Gabb session

COLUMBIA, Mo. — Everyone is all smiles. Team Gabbert is rolling deep for son Blaine's big day, his throwing day in front of 125 NFL personnel and six head coaches, and no one seems a bit nervous.

Not father Chuck, who is hobnobbing with anyone who'll tap him on the shoulder and strike up a conversation about his future millionaire son, shaking hands and posing for pictures. "This is just great, so awesome for Blaine," proud Chuck says, beaming. "The beautiful thing is that he is going to be drafted by the team because they really want him. How great is that? That is just awesome." Chuck uses the word "awesome" 10, maybe 12 more times before Blaine throws a single ball.

Not Gabbert's agents — Tom Condon, Ben Dogra and Jim Steiner — who proudly await their client's performance, expecting greatness. Dogra takes a quick scan of the room, which includes Jets head coach Rex Ryan, Broncos executive vice president of football operations John Elway and his new head coach, John Fox, within a 10-foot radius. "To me it's not how many teams come here, but who comes that matters," Dogra says. So impressed is Gabbert's 10-year-old brother that he walks up and confidently asks Elway for an autograph.

Nervous? Not Terry Shea. Gabbert's QB coach the previous 10 weeks has helped oversee his development from Missouri's shotgun offense to a more pro-friendly, under-center system. Shea had similar tutoring duties with Josh Freeman in 2009 and Sam Bradford last year and thinks Gabbert ranks right up there with the young, elite quarterbacks.

"I see him as the No. 1 pick in the draft," Shea says without hesitation.

Striding onto the surface of the Daniel J. Devine Indoor Facility for the first time in view of the nearly 1,000 onlookers — friends, family, fans, media and, oh yeah, an NFL who's who — Gabbert sheds his No. 5 Indianapolis Combine sweatshirt and has a line of folks waiting to talk to him. He handles each: Shea, with a few final instructions; Missouri's sports-information director giving Gabbert last-minute schedule details; and Central Missouri State WR Jamorris Warren, one of the receivers Gabbert will throw to, who stops for a quick word as school workers get the field cleared for Gabbert's pro-day exhibition.

The eye test was passed long ago. Gabbert has a dream QB physique at nearly 6-5 and 234 pounds, with athleticism (he ran a 4.61 40-yard dash at the Combine) and arm strength to spare. Since opting not to throw passes at the Combine in February, NFL executives have waited to see Gabbert do the things he did not at Mizzou with any regularity: take snaps from under center, execute five- and seven-step drops and throw passes at NFL depths.

This is his day. He's ready. He looks ready. Gabbert already has thought about what he'll say to the media — his victory speech, if you will — if, no, when he rips it up during his passing showcase. The words have been chosen as carefully as the passes Gabbert will execute. Precise, scripted ... safe, really. The NFL doesn't mind safe. Making million-dollar investments, especially in this lockout-addled NFL world, means no stone will be left unturned.

Safe is a good thing.

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Quarterbacks should look good at their pro day.

Bradford used his last year to show off his healed shoulder's strength, tacking on a few bonus throws just to end that conversation once and for all. The year prior, Matthew Stafford put on a show for the Lions' brass that clinched him eventually becoming the No. 1 pick. In 2008, Matt Ryan nailed his performance at Boston College, so much so that the Falcons privately wondered whether he even would be there at their No. 3 spot.

Of course they looked good. It's physically gifted passers throwing predetermined routes against air defenses in shorts and T-shirts in climate-controlled environments. Buffalo in December this is not. But it also is crucial not to botch it. Performing poorly in such sterile conditions could be disastrous.

That said, it guarantees nothing to perform well, either. JaMarcus Russell put on one of the greatest throwing displays ever at his pro day. His troubles started when the opposing team opted to take its full allotment of 11 defenders on the field. Alex Smith also shined at his pro day. It's perhaps the best he's ever looked since leaving Utah.

But Gabbert has some forces working against him, too. Because of the NFL lockout, he's allowed to throw only to draft-eligible players, and Mizzou features none. "It would have been great if we could have brought in A.J. Green and Julio Jones to throw to," Chuck Gabbert says, but then proudly lists the career achievements of the four local pass catchers who will catch Blaine's passes today. They played their college at places such as Central Missouri State and William Jewell College, Division II schools, and have worked with Gabbert only for the previous four days. No one seems too concerned.

But then the first tense moment of the day. Central Missouri RB Anthony Stewart, one of the four receivers, pulls a hamstring during his 40-yard dash. Shea is scratching his head. "I might have to make an announcement, maybe pull someone out of the stands," he says.

Instead, they find a replacement and cut Gabbert's 50-throw routine down by one, eliminating the planned wheel route to Stewart. It should be plenty still.

After the 14-throw warm-up, Gabbert huddled with Shea and the receivers. The script called for the first throw to be a 10-yard stick route to the "Z" receiver, a nice way to get loose. He stays short with the next five throws: a flat route, another stick, a slant, a quick out and a hitch. The passes are crisp, if not a bit high on a few.

Gabbert starts to stretch it out. Another slant is followed by a corner route, then a slant-and-go. He throws two 12-yard outs, one to each side, and a seam route. Then two "Bang 8s," one in each direction, and an angle route. He's catching rhythm; the passes are humming now.

While the friends, fans and many media watch Gabbert's arm, the scouts look down. It's the feet they're worried about. They're not stunned that Gabbert is unleashing his hose of an arm and spraying pretty, tight spirals all over the field, even if a few aren't picture-perfect. They have come to see the fruits of Shea's and Gabbert's labor — those drops from center that were as common at Missouri as the appearance of Halley's Comet.

Shea and Gabbert drew up a script that includes more than 20 throws outside the numbers and more than 25 deeper than 15 yards. The drops are mostly of the five- and seven-step-drop variety, with a few sprints, a bootleg, a couple of spins and three shotgun snaps sprinkled in.

It's all there: throwing well on the move, hitting most of his receivers in stride and putting nice touch on the ball. It's how a franchise quarterback should look here. Sure, some throws are a bit off target, though still in the catching radius, but when you see Gabbert rainbow a perfect "go" route and throw a whistling dart on a seam route near the end of his program, you know he has the skills to be great.

He completes 44 of the 49 throws, and it includes four drops. Gabbert has only one clear overthrow, and that was on a five-step "go" route thrown 55 yards in the air.

"The biggest thing was to come out here and show people that I have made that transition to an under-center offense from the shotgun," Gabbert told PFW after the performance. "I think I answered those questions today."

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"I think you guys were more nervous than I was," Gabbert says with a smile to the assembled media.

Gabbert has been ready for this moment because he has been ready for every moment since he decided to be great. This has all been part of the plan. He had a personal QB tutor in high school, he had the God-kissed genes and talent and made himself into an Elite 11 quarterback before his senior season, standing toe to toe with QBs like Andrew Luck, Landry Jones and Kyle Parker.

So why wouldn't he attract this much attention from NFL folks?

"I knew this was going to happen," he says. "You're not going to do something if you're not going to believe in it. All along, I believed I would be in this place. I had that goal set, and I was going to reach it no matter what."

Missouri fans like Gabbert. Love? Well ... they like him a lot. He led them to an 18-8 record in two seasons, which included two bowl games and a win over No. 1-ranked Oklahoma in Columbia. It's what Gabbert says he's most proud of during his time in school.

And he should be. But there always will be a feeling of the unaccomplished with Gabbert at Mizzou. He was good. Very good, even. But there's no question that Gabbert didn't match the college résumé and production of Saints backup QB Chase Daniel, whom Gabbert backed up as a freshman. No one would say that he has come anywhere close to reaching his vast potential yet — not even Gabbert.

"I am still a work in progress," he said. "That's how all quarterbacks should be. They should have that mindset and that goal to come out and be better every day."

Gabbert was off to a scorching start as a sophomore before then-Nebraska DT Ndamukong Suh dragged him down from behind, causing an ankle injury that affected him through the rest of the season. Gabbert's toughness never was questioned from that point, but everyone salivated at the prospects of a healthy junior season.

It didn't quite live up to expectations, as Missouri worked with a young receiving corps. He once again got battered by the Cornhuskers, suffering a serious blow to the head in the game but playing on despite Nebraska's relentless pressure.

"He just kept getting up," says Missouri junior WR Wes Kemp. "He showed us so much in that game despite the offense struggling."

Missouri offensive coordinator David Yost, one of Gabbert's biggest supporters, agrees with his quarterback's assessment that his best work lies in front of him.

"He can just continue to just get better and better and better because he's not a finished product," Yost said. "He has a lot of things he can still get better at and improve on. It's not from a lack of trying. It's more just (that he had) two years as a starter."

Gabbert missed most of his senior year of high school with foot and shoulder injuries. He backed up Daniel for a year and forwent his senior year at Mizzou. You wouldn't list experience under his strengths.

Missouri head coach Gary Pinkel, for one, can't blame Gabbert for coming out early.

"He's done some great things here, but his upside is unbelievable," Pinkel said. "He's got all of it."

He just hasn't done all of it yet, but Pinkel has seen this type of unrefined greatness before. When Gabbert was trying to put the finishing touches on his finest game in Missouri's bowl game against Iowa last season, he instead got just a little too cute. Instead of throwing away a pass on a broken play, Gabbert got greedy and tried to fluff it into his receiver, who was not on the same page. The ball was intercepted, run back for a touchdown, and a four-point Mizzou lead turned into a three-point deficit with under six minutes remaining.

"When I was at Washington with Warren Moon, on fourth down he threw a ball out of bounds. He forgot what down it was," Pinkel said. "Same thing. People say, 'Oh my gosh.' Warren Moon learned from it. Moon was physically and mentally tough. He was a great competitor. Blaine Gabbert has all those same qualities."

Watching Gabbert's pick-six on the sideline against Iowa, Yost was screaming for him to throw it out of bounds. But he also knew he also had seen the best of Gabbert, version 1.0, in that game, in which he completed 41-of-57 passes for 434 yards and four TDs. Gabbert 2.0, the NFL version, could be special.

"You can see that he can do it at the highest level," Yost said. "There's no question in my mind he has the ability to do that. The question is: How fast can he get there and how fast can a team get him there?"

Chuck Gabbert and Gabbert's agents know nothing they do will help Blaine get drafted higher. They know it's up to Blaine at this point. Where he'll go remains a mystery. The way things are shaping up, it's down to Gabbert and Auburn's Cam Newton to be the top quarterback selected. It could be at Nos. 1, 3, 4 or 5, but one of these young men likely will be off the board by the time the fifth draft card is turned in.

Gabbert denied any kind of rivalry with Newton at the Combine, but he did take a nice little zing at his fellow quarterback, who famously referred to himself as an "entertainer and an icon" in a pre-Combine interview.

"My sole focus is on football," Gabbert says. "I'm not here to entertain anybody. I'm here to get the playbook and throw the football."

And there's no reason to worry about his ability to take over a pro offense in time, Shea says.

"He certainly brings a competitive zest and he's going to win over an NFL huddle," Shea says. "His confidence level and his competitiveness are going to be effervescent."

When or where that occurs remains unknown. Chuck says Blaine has no idea where he'll land, but that's not what's important.

"The thing is, we've always told our boys: focus on the things you can control," he says. "You can't control the draft, you can't control referees, how good the other team is. There are a lot of things that are thrown at you, and it's how you react to those that makes you the person that you are."

Hilary Swank Whitney Port Minka Kelly Carol Grow Erika Christensen