It's a little different today. Used to be it took 3-4 years to develop a new QB. Today, they make an immediate impact if they're any good. Most colleges now play a pro set offense instead of an option offense, so the adjustment to the pro game is quicker. QBs don't call their own plays. Guys like Rothy, Palmer, and even rookies like Leinart and Young are way farther along. Brady had one year on the bench and led the Pats to the SB the next. Regardless of how good they really are, all of these guys carry themselves on the field with either a quiet confidence, or a swagger, that I've never seen in Eli. Eli's blank look isn't the result of "quiet confidence"
I'm not up on Eli's college numbers, but does anyone really think he would have been the #1 overall pick if he had a different last name?
TDF, when you consider where the Pats have been picking in the draft, it shows why they're consistent winners. Over the same period, the Giants have wasted #1 picks on guys like Ron Dayne, Will Allen and William Joseph. They picked Joseph ahead of Ty Warren in the same draft, I think.