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Quitting on Quarterbacks

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Sam Darnold sitting on the bench as a former backup quarterback for the Carolina Panthers

By: Sam Morris

Sam Morris is from Madison Heights, Michigan, and is an undergraduate student at BGSU majoring in Sports Management. He has a passion for sports writing and journalism. In his free time, he also performs, writes, and produces his own raps for the music industry club at BGSU.

October 11, 2024

The “Franchise Quarterback” Dilemma

The NFL quarterback is one of the most important and high-pressure positions in all of sports. Football games revolve around quarterbacks and their ability to make plays. From something as simple as a running back handoff to something as difficult as an 80-yard ‘Hail Mary,’ quarterbacks are involved in every single play.

Because of this level of importance, NFL GMs are hard-pressed by ownership to constantly be on the lookout for their next “franchise QB” who will lead them to the Super Bowl. This quarterback carousel can sometimes lead to teams getting QB’s that will last for decades and lead their team to success. Some of these would include Tom Brady with the Patriots, Ben Roethlisberger with the Steelers, Eli Manning with the Giants, and Pat Mahomes with the Chiefs. However, more often than not, a dilemma arises when the “franchise QB” that they thought they had is nowhere to be found. When this realization sets in after a few seasons, the team often moves on from their original candidate in one of two ways.

One proven way that teams move on is by adding other promising QB’s via trade or free agency, but a more recent trend that has been occurring is drafting QB’s out of college in the NFL Draft. This is mostly a hit-or-miss strategy that can lead to success stories like Jayden Daniels and C.J Stroud, but it can also result in complete busts like Trey Lance and Josh Rosen.

Former Arizona Cardinals first-round pick, QB, Josh Rosen, throwing on the 49’ers practice squad.

While it is important for NFL GMs to be constantly improving their rosters, I argue that teams give up on these young quarterbacks too early. Some of them are given just two or three years to develop and then are discarded when they are just hitting their stride in their low to mid-20’s.

I believe this theory is becoming more and more evident as three recent QB’s who their original franchises gave up on have taken the NFL by storm over the past few years. As you will soon read, the lesson GMs should be taking away from these three success stories is DON’T quit on your young drafted quarterbacks too soon.

Geno Smith

After a great 26-13 4-year career at West Virginia, Smith declared for the 2013 NFL Draft where he was the second QB off the board, picked in the second round by the New York Jets. Despite falling out of the first round, Smith was one of the most highly anticipated rookies coming out of the class.

Geno Smith playing with his former team, the New York Jets

He played 4 years with the Jets and had some success with the team. His rookie season he had a poor TD/INT ratio but led the Jets to an 8-8 record, which was an improvement from the Jets’ previous season. Despite this beginning success, Smith was benched on-and-off during the following year after some turnover struggles and replaced by Michael Vick.

Smith’s next two seasons in New York were riddled with multiple injuries and he barely played because of them. However, when he did play, he had success in New York during these two seasons and was only 26 by the end of the season when the Jets eventually let him go.

Smith spent a year with the Giants and a year with the Chargers, both as a backup, learning from Eli Manning and Phillip Rivers. This experience of gaining veteran knowledge allowed him to fully hit his prime when he entered the Seahawks organization in 2019.

Geno Smith with his current team, the Seattle Seahawks

Originally picked up as a backup for Seattle, he earned the starting job in 2021 when Russell Wilson got injured and he completely shocked the NFL with a yearly performance better than that of his rookie season 8 years prior with New York. The following year, after Wilson was traded to Denver, Smith improved so much that he became a pro bowler, won the 2022 Comeback Player of the Year award, and even took Seattle to a playoff game.

In 2023, Smith showed no signs of slowing down. He was selected to his second Pro Bowl in a row with Seattle and was in the MVP race for much of the season. So far in 2024, Smith has continued his success by leading Seattle to a current first-place tie with San Francisco in the NFC West.

Although the Jets didn’t give up on Smith as early as some of the other QB’s on this list, he was, in my opinion, not given a fair chance with New York. New York hasn’t had a consistent quarterback since Mark Sanchez and getting rid of Smith didn’t help them at all. I believe that had they kept him for a few more years, he would have been able to give them production and success similar to the years he has spent as a starter with Seattle.

Baker Mayfield

Mayfield, the Cleveland Browns overall draft pick out of Oklahoma in 2018, is another QB who has proven his original team gave up on him too early. Unlike Smith, Mayfield was the clear #1 QB in his draft class coming out of college, leading Oklahoma to an outstanding 33-6 record during his time with the Sooners. He was also the 2017 Heisman winner.

Mayfield won the starting quarterback job during week 2 of his 2018 rookie campaign. While he only led the Browns to a 7-8-1 start, it was at least better than their previous season when they went 0-16! Many Browns fans felt like they had finally found their quarterback of the future and that Mayfield would eventually lead Cleveland to a resurgence in the AFC North. Mayfield also came in second place in the Offensive Rookie of the Year voting in 2018 to former Giants RB Saquon Barkley.

Despite a regression in Cleveland’s 6-10 2019 season, Mayfield finally led the Dawg Pound back to the postseason with an 11-5 regular season record in 2020. In the postseason, he led the Browns to a Wild Card victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers, their biggest rival, and barely lost to the eventual AFC champions, the Mahomes-led Kansas City Chiefs.

Baker Mayfield scrambles with the ball with his original team, the Cleveland Browns

The playoff excitement unfortunately didn’t last long for Cleveland, as they once again fell short of the postseason with an 8-9 record the following 2021 season. Because of injuries and the 3-win regression in 2021, Mayfield was let go to make room for their eventual trade pick-up from Houston, Deshaun Watson, after the conclusion of the 2021 season.

This decision seemed legitimate at the time, but looking back on it, it was an enormous mistake by the Browns. Mayfield gave the Browns a playoff berth and win in just his third year with the team, something that the Browns hadn’t done as a franchise since 2002! I believe they could have given him at least another year to develop. Also, when you look at the fact that Mayfield went through 4 different coaches and 4 different offensive coordinators in his age 23-26 seasons, it’s no wonder he struggled a little each year.

Once Mayfield got to Tampa Bay in 2023, he proved to Cleveland and to the NFL that the Browns quit on him too early. He made a Pro Bowl in his first year with the team, won the NFC South, won a playoff game against the Eagles, and almost won a second playoff game against Detroit which would have sent them to the NFC Championship.

Mayfield was supposed to be a transitional quarterback for Tampa Bay but he has now become part of their future plans as he signed a three-year contract extension in the 2024 offseason, and he currently has Tampa Bay in a tie with Atlanta for first place in the NFC South.

Baker Mayfield throwing the ball with his current team, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers

On the other hand, Cleveland is a mediocre 19-20 since Mayfield’s departure.

Sam Darnold

Sam Darnold throwing the ball for his current team, the Minnesota Vikings

Sam Darnold is perhaps the most successful quarterback whose team gave up on him way too early. Darnold is a surprise lead MVP candidate so far this year. He is 13th in the NFL in yards (1,111), 2nd in the NFL in TD’s (11), and has just 4 interceptions. He is also leading the Vikings to an NFL-best 5-0 record (tied with Kansas City).

Like Mayfield, Darnold was supposed to be a guy for Minnesota that they could play as a bridge-type quarterback while they wait for rookie J.J McCarthy to come back from injury next season. However, Darnold has risen to the occasion and has completely taken the NFL by storm.

Despite being in his 7th season and in the same draft class as Mayfield, Darnold is actually only in his age-27 season, making him 6 months younger than Joe Burrow. Darnold, from USC, was the third overall pick by the Jets in the 2018 draft. His college statistics for the most part were some of the best in the country, but his interceptions were a cause for concern with some scouts.

Darnold’s turnover problems continued into the NFL and essentially plagued him throughout his 3 seasons as a Jet. Darnold then bounced around the league, playing with Carolina and San Francisco before eventually landing with the Vikings this past offseason.

Darnold’s rise as one of the league’s best gunslingers has been nothing short of extraordinary and he is yet another reason why teams that draft young QB’s should let them develop instead of quitting on their talent too early.

Bryce Young and the Future of QB’s

Now that I’ve examined the three quarterbacks above whose teams have given up on them prematurely, I want to talk about someone whose team, I believe, is giving up on him too early, and that player is Bryce Young.

Bryce Young holding up his draft day jersey at the 2023 NFL Draft

Carolina was a pit stop for both Darnold and Mayfield above, and even though it wasn’t the place that originally gave up on both of the quarterbacks, the Panthers didn’t even consider bringing them on as future pieces and simply shipped them off as soon as the next year’s draft came along.

The Panthers could have had two of the NFL’s best players at the moment, but instead are stuck with an aging Andy Dalton as the QB and a rightfully upset Bryce Young as the backup. I think they would be making a colossal mistake by trading Young at the end of the season if they don’t let him play out the rest of the year to prove himself. Carolina is likely to miss the playoffs, so they have nothing to lose by playing Young the rest of the year to see if he improves. If they do trade him in his young age-23 season, they could just be the next victim of this “quitting on quarterbacks” trend a few years down the road with Young starring for another team like Mayfield and Darnold are doing right now.

As for the future of the quarterback position, I think we will continue to see teams draft franchise QB prospects in the NFL Draft and then move on from them in a few years if they don’t produce Mahomes-level results by age 25, 26, or 27. This is an easy trap to fall into in a league that is always in a win-now type of mindset. And while some of these players will truly become busts (Josh Rosen, Trey Lance, Mac Jones etc.), others (Darnold, Mayfield, Smith) may hit their primes just a few years later and prove to their former teams that they quit on them prematurely.

5 Shocking Storylines Early in the NFL Season

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Caption: Unanticipated Storylines after Week 2 of NFL 2023 play.

By Sam Morris

Sam Morris is from Madison Heights, Michigan, and is an undergraduate student at BGSU majoring in Sport Management. He has a passion for sports writing and journalism. In his free time, he volunteers in the strategic communications department at BGSU at various sporting events and he also performs, writes, and produces his own rap music.

September 23, 2023

Although the 2023-2024 NFL season is still very young, there have been many intriguing and shocking storylines in just the first two weeks. In this article, I will be summarizing and analyzing these storylines as they currently stand through these first two weeks and will predict how these storylines might develop as the season goes on. I will follow-up on this article and its predictions at the end of the regular season to describe how these early storylines developed throughout the year and how they affected the teams’ seasons that were involved. These storylines will be ranked by me below from 5 to 1 in terms of how surprising I feel the storyline is.

5.  Sam Howell’s Success

Caption: Commanders tab Sam Howell as starting QB for 2023 NFL Season.

Sam Howell, a second year QB for the Commanders was selected in the 5th round out of UNC last year. Howell only played 1 game last season as Carson Wentz and Taylor Heinecke split most of the season as starters and he was looked at as more of a bridge QB for the franchise to pick someone in the top of the loaded QB 2024 Draft Class next year. However, the Commanders’ front office and coaching staff felt that Howell didn’t get a chance to prove himself last year and deserved at least another year to become the Commanders QB of the future. The decision to pass up on selecting a QB in the 2023 NFL Draft was in spite of fan pressure to select one of the top 4 QBs with their 16th pick.

Come draft day, with QB Will Levis still on the board, the Commanders selected Emmanuel Forbes, a CB out of Mississippi State instead. Because of this decision, Sam Howell has been under constant media attention during the offseason as a deciding factor for the Commanders’ regular season success. Despite many doubters, Ron Rivera and new OC Eric Bienemy strongly believe in Howell and gave him high praise throughout training camp, OTAs, and during the Commanders’ undefeated preseason.

In the first two weeks, Howell has proven the doubters wrong and has not only brought the Commanders to an early 2-0 record but has been a large reason why they have won both games. He’s in the top half of the league in passing yards with 501 (11th in NFL), total touchdowns, with 4 (11th in NFL), and in completion percentage by completing 65.7% of his throws (16th in NFL).

As of right now, Howell is certainly making his case to stay as the starter next season, however his talent and skill will truly be tested in the coming weeks. There’s no doubt that the Commanders’ schedule will get much harder than the Cardinals and Broncos as they play the Bills, the reigning NFC Champion Eagles twice, as well as arguably the best two NFC teams, the Cowboys and 49’ers. In my opinion, as good a start as this has been for Howell, I think he will start to be overmatched by the elite defenses they have to play. He could become a good QB in the future, but at this stage of his young career I would be truly shocked if he led the Commanders to a winning record this season. I’m predicting a decent season for Howell but anticipate that he will slow down as the season progresses, leading Washington to a 4th place NFC East finish.      

4.  NFC South’s Undefeated Teams

Caption: NFC South predictors did not anticipate 2-0 starts for Saints, Bucs, and Falcons.

Heading into the 2023-2024 season, many experts predicted the NFC South to be the worst division in football. Early into the season, the NFC South has instead looked like one of the best divisions, having a combined record of 6-2, which is second only behind the NFC East’s 7-1. The only team not currently undefeated in the NFC South is the Carolina Panthers, who have lost games to their NFC rivals, the Atlanta Falcons and New Orleans Saints.

Besides dominating Carolina, Atlanta also had an impressive come from behind victory against Green Bay. Despite Jordan Love lighting up Atlanta’s defense through the first three quarters, throwing for 140 yards with 3 TD and no interceptions, the Atlanta front seven pressured Love out of the pocket for much of the 4th quarter, holding Green Bay scoreless. Down 12 in the 4th, Ridder led the Falcons on an 8 play, 65-yard drive that was capped off with a Ridder rushing touchdown.

Although Ridder had a decent game, throwing for 237 yards with 2 total touchdowns, and 1 INT, it was rookie running back phenom Bijan Robinson who stole the show. Robinson ran for a monstrous 124 yards on 19 carries, with an additional 48 receiving yards on 4 receptions.

New Orleans has also had an impressive start, with a close MNF win against Carolina and a one-point week 1 win over Tennessee. Although their combined margin of victory was only 4, the Saints defense has looked like the best in the division so far, only giving up 16 ppg through their first two contests. Cam Jordan has anchored the front 7, which has a combined 7 sacks, which ranks 10th in the NFL, while Marshawn Lattimore and the defensive back rotation have 3 interceptions, which is tied for 3rd in the NFL.

The Saints offense on the other hand, has been below average. Although Derek Carr has given the Saints a veteran presence at QB and has led some game winning drives, he also has a 1:2 TD:INT ratio (28th in NFL) and a 47.5 QBR (21st in NFL). Despite Carr’s slow start, I expect him to bounce back in the upcoming weeks, especially once Kamara comes back from suspension and Jamaal Williams returns from injury, to give the New Orleans’ offense a more balanced attack.

Tampa Bay is possibly the biggest 2-0 surprise in the division. They’ve defeated the Bears by 10 and the Vikings by 3 while overperforming on both sides of the ball. Their secondary, despite being relatively inexperienced, has forced 5 turnovers (2nd in NFL), and offensively, the Buccaneers passing attack has been a force to be reckoned with. Mike Evans continues to prove why he will go down as one of the most consistent receivers in NFL history, as he is currently 4th in the league in receiving yards. The guy throwing Evans the ball has also been the best QB in the division through the first two weeks. Baker Mayfield has bounced around the league the past two seasons, going from the Panthers to the Rams, and now to the Buccaneers.

We saw a resurgence in Mayfield at the end of last season, when he was fighting for playing time in Los Angeles, and this new confidence has continued to grow through the first two games in South Florida. Mayfield ranks top 10 in the league in QBR, passing TDs, and completion percentage, all while committing zero turnovers. Although it is early, Tampa Bay is playing with a balanced, team-oriented energy, that isn’t relying on one superstar to get the job done. Their chemistry and competitiveness should be a great sign for Buccaneers’ fans as they transition into playing tougher opponents.

Overall, my prediction for these three 2-0 teams is that none of them will be true Super Bowl contenders simply because they each have major holes in one part of their roster (Atlanta’s inexperienced defense, New Orleans’ offensive line, and Tampa Bay’s rushing attack). I do think that each of these three teams will overperform their preseason expectations and that it will be a battle for the NFC South crown until the end of the year. I think the Saints will barely edge past the Buccaneers and Falcons because I think they have the most experienced and deepest roster in the division.        

3. Vikings, Chargers, and Bengals Going Winless

Caption: Joe Burrow’s Bengals and and Justin Herbert’s Chargers have 0-2 records.

On the opposite end of the spectrum, three teams have started off the season 0-2 who all made the playoffs last season; the Minnesota Vikings, Los Angeles Chargers, and Cincinnati Bengals. The Vikings had a lot of skeptics heading into the season as to whether or not they would repeat as NFC North champions. This was mostly because the Detroit Lions were one of the most hyped teams the entire offseason, but also because they lost all three preseason games, and they won most of their games by one score last season.

All these fears have come true through the first two games for Minnesota fans. Not only have the Lions looked like the favorites early on, but Minnesota has flipped the script and lost both games by one score. The Vikings’ offense has become one-sided and predictable with Dalvin Cook out of the picture. Nobody can seem to stop the passing attack, with Jefferson leading the league in receiving yards and Cousins being top 5 in the league in completion percentage, TD:INT ratio, and QBR. But this isn’t enough to win them games when they have 69 total rushing yards as a team (Last in the NFL), only 2 rushing first downs, and a leading rusher who isn’t even in the top 50 for rushing yards. The defense also has major holes at cornerback and on defensive line.

Overall, if the Vikings want to repeat as NFC North champs, they need to figure out a way to get the run game going and also need to be able to stop the run on defense. In my opinion, I don’t see both of those things happening unless they trade for some major pieces on defense, and I am predicting the Vikings will fall short in the division and will not make the playoffs.  

Although it is surprising for the Chargers to be 0-2, this is less shocking than the Vikings and Bengals because of the quality of their opponents (Dolphins and Titans). Even with these opponents, the Chargers have played really well on offense, losing 34-36 against the Dolphins and 24-27 to Tennessee in OT. Herbert and Ekeler have looked fantastic so far and Quentin Johnston has looked like a solid draft choice.

What Is really concerning for LA, especially with them being in the Chiefs’ division, is that they can’t execute in close games, and that their defense has been horrible. The late game execution was a big problem for the Chargers in their loss to the Jaguars in the playoffs and it has carried over to this season, as they have scored just 10 points in the 4th quarter through the first two games combined. The defense has also given up the 3rd most points in the NFL, just ahead of the Bears and Giants.

In order for the Chargers to reach the playoffs they need to fix both major issues quickly. In my opinion, I think the defense will begin to improve throughout the year and Herbert will be able to lead the Chargers to a 6 or 7 seed in the playoffs.

Lastly, the Bengals are trying to copy their team from last year and have once again started the year off 0-2. Last year, Burrow bounced back and took them to the playoffs and eventually the AFC Championship, where they barely lost to the Super Bowl Champion Chiefs. As the new highest played player in football, Burrow is attempting to lead them back to the playoffs this year, but right now it is not looking good. Burrow has struggled mightily thus far, ranking 30th in passing yards, throwing for just 2 touchdowns while throwing 2 interceptions, and ranking 22nd in QBR. Against the Browns, the Bengals’ offense tallied just 3 points as their offensive line caved in and defense was shredded by Nick Chubb and the rushing attack. The Ravens had a similar game plan with Lamar Jackson. If the Bengals want to make the playoffs they need to fix this run defense quickly and also need Burrow to get back on track.

Good news for Cincinnati is that the rest of the division is currently extremely low on depth. Baltimore, despite being 2-0 have a whopping 17 players injured, including stars, C Tyler Linderbaum and RB J.K Dobbins, while the Browns have lost 2 of their starters in the secondary as well as RB Nick Chubb for the season. Because of these injuries and my faith that Burrow will be able to regain his productivity, I am predicting that the Bengals make the playoffs. However, I do think the Ravens will win the division and that the Bengals will be the 5 seed in the AFC.   

2.  Puka Nacua

Caption: Rookie Puka Nacua has record 15-catch performance in LA Rams’ loss to 49ers

Where in the world did this guy come from? Puka Nacua, a WR out of BYU, was selected in the 5th round by the Rams in this year’s draft and he has not looked like a 5th round caliber player. So far, Nacua has 25 receptions for 266 receiving yards, along with 111 yards after the catch. These statistics have given him some historic NFL records. His 25 receptions is a new NFL record for a rookie through his first two games, his 15 receptions against San Francisco is the most receptions ever by a rookie in a single game, and he is the first player with at least 10 receptions and 100 yards in each of his first two games. He also has the most yards after the catch in the league as well as the second most receiving yards in the league, behind Justin Jefferson.

Nacua not only is having a great start to the year individually, but he has also propelled the Rams’ receiving core. His play has spaced out the field for Tutu Atwell and Ben Skowronek to be more productive, while giving Stafford a legitimate #1 WR while Kupp is dealing with injuries. When Kupp comes back, sometime around week 5, the Rams will have a scary 1-2 receiver punch, with a veteran QB, a talented young RB in Kyren Williams, and a defense anchored by Aaron Donald and Byron Young. Although the Rams are a young team that was predicted by many to be at the bottom of the NFC, I think they were overlooked and will shock some people throughout the year.

I am predicting Nacua to continue to be a great receiver after the catch and in open space this season. I think he will finish second in the rookie of the year voting to Bijan Robinson. As for the Rams, I see them hovering around .500 this year and just missing the playoffs by a game or two. If Nacua continues putting up these top 5 WR in the league type numbers though, I could easily see them sneaking in as a 7 seed.

1.  Season-Ending MNF Injuries

Caption: Aaron Rodgers (Jets), Nick Chubb (Browns), and Cooper Cupp (Rams) injured

Despite there being many intriguing and shocking storylines so far, the Monday Night Football Injuries to Aaron Rodgers and Nick Chubb have by far been the most league altering. New York Jets fans spent the entire offseason waiting for Rodgers to save their team and for them to finally end the longest active playoff drought in the NFL. However, just one play into the Jets first drive, Rodgers dropped back and was sacked for a loss by the Bills LB, Leonard Floyd. On impact with the turf, Rodgers tore his achilles tendon and was later ruled out for the season.

This monumental loss leaves the Jets in disarray as backup QB Zack Wilson has arguably been one of the biggest draft busts in recent memory. Although Wilson led the Jets to a comeback victory Monday Night against Buffalo, he was absolutely decimated by the Cowboys’ defense in week 2. The Jets still have one of the best defenses and wide receivers in the NFL but without a quality QB, their Super Bowl hopes have been destroyed and I am predicting them to miss the playoffs this season. Since Rodgers is on a 3-year deal, he will likely return to the Jets next season, but all the hype and Super Bowl dreams will be delayed. Once Rodgers is healthy, the biggest worry for Jets’ fans will be if he can ever perform at an elite level again, which will depend on how well his achilles heals.   

One week later, again on Monday Night Football, Nick Chubb, Cleveland’s superstar running back, suffered a season-ending knee injury. Steelers’ safety Minkah Fitzpatrick hit him low, causing his leg to twist sideways into the turf. The injury was so severe and gruesome looking that it wasn’t even shown on the broadcast. Browns’ fans watched as Chubb broke down in tears as he was getting carted off the field. Chubb had previously torn three ligaments in his knee causing him to miss the remainder of that season as well, so his career being shortened by this new injury is even more likely.

I personally know many Browns fans who have experienced a wave of emotions over the last two weeks as their team handily beat the Bengals but now sit at 1-1 with their best player on the sideline. Chubb’s absence is catastrophic for the Browns as he is essentially who their entire offense is based upon. Watson will have to be exceptional this year for them to make the playoffs, which I believe they will not.

Overall, these MNF injuries have sparked two additional storylines, the pressure by the players’ union to get rid of artificial turf and the increasing pressure to pay running backs more money, as they are extremely valuable to their teams.

To wrap up this article, it is safe to say that the NFL has brought us an exciting and shocking first two weekends of football. With 15 weeks remaining, it will be interesting to see which of these storylines becomes the most impactful, which will ultimately become flukes, and which will remain a steady topic discussed throughout the year.