As the 2011 NFL Draft gets closer and closer, the prospect of Cam Newton even being available when the Washington Redskins pick at No. 10 has grown dimmer and dimmer. Redskins fans are divided on whether it even makes sense for the team to use the pick on Newton to fill its quarterback hole, but there's a very good chance he won't even be there to take.

So how high will Newton rise? There's ample sentiment that he'll rise all the way at the top and get drafted No. 1 overall by the Carolina Panthers. Former Dallas Cowboys personnel man Gil Brandt, who has done research on Newton's background, certainly thinks so, telling the Fort Werth Star-Telegram that he thinks Newton will be the No. 1 overall pick.

"It would shock me... if he's not the first player picked," Brandt said Monday. "If I was drafting and I had Carolina's [No. 1] pick, I'd feel really good about who I was getting as far as ability. I just hope he realizes how hard he needs to work. You can have all the ability in the world but if you don't work like Drew Brees, Peyton Manning or Aaron Rodgers, you're only going to be semi-successful."

If teams follow Brandt's lead, the Redskins won't have to worry about Newton. Instead, the question will be whether Blaine Gabbert is worth taking at No. 10.