Start Or Sit? Let's Look At When These NFL Draft First-Round Quarterbacks Will Play
The Chicago Bears have basically stunk at picking quarterbacks for a long, long time. That's not news, but it's definitely a heavy millstone everyone working for the storied franchise carries.
General manager Ryan Poles is aware. He knows the names of the first round quarterbacks the Bears picked and then discarded because they failed to play up to expectations.
Cade McNown.
Rex Grossman.
Mitch Trubisky.
Jim Harbaugh.
Justin Fields.
CHICAGO, IL - OCTOBER 15: head coach Matt Eberflus of the Chicago Bears talks to General Manager Ryan Poles before an NFL football game against the Minnesota Vikings at Soldier Field on October 15, 2023 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Todd Rosenberg/Getty Images)
Bears Want To Start A New Chapter
Probably only Jim McMahon, who played on a Super Bowl winning team in 1985, left a lasting mark in Bears history. So, yeah, there's a reason Bears fans have heard the saying about Chicago being the place where quarterback careers go to die.
Poles doesn't want to hear that anymore.
"The history's the history," the Bears general manager said during the recent NFL draft. "Like, I'm kind of done talking about it. Like, you go back so much over time. Those days are over. So we're bringing players in here that want to really change things up, and do things a different way.
"..It hasn't been smooth recently. It's time to change. "
Enter first-round draft pick Caleb Williams. He's a breath of fresh air in the Windy City and he says he's eager to get to work. So the question is simple for him and the other quarterbacks picked in the first round of last week's NFL draft:
When?
A record-tying six quarterbacks were drafted in that fateful first round. So when do these newly minted stars take over?
None of these players has suited up for a practice but the question is already being asked.
"Man, I don't know the playbook, so I'm not prepared right now," Washington's Jayden Daniels told reporters.
Apr 25, 2024; Detroit, MI, USA; Southern California Trojans quarterback Caleb Williams holds up his jersey after being selected by the Chicago Bears as the No. 1 pick in the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft at Campus Martius Park and Hart Plaza. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
The Rookie Starters Are Here
Honesty's good. But it says right here that Williams, Daniels, Bo Nix and probably J.J. McCarthy will start right off, if not soon after the 2024 season begins.
Meanwhile, Drake Maye in New England and Michael Penix Jr. in Atlanta are likely to marinate on the bench for a while before they get their chance.
Williams obviously is the top candidate to start his career as, well, a starter. He's the first pick of the draft, and he comes with 33 starts and over 1,000 pass attempts in college.
He's also joined a team that Poles lined with infrastructure for a quarterback to succeed: D.J. Moore, Keenan Allen and Rome Odunze seem like a dangerous starting receiver trio and the Bears have what should be a good offensive line.
And this: The other quarterbacks currently on the roster are Tyson Bagent and Brett Rypien.
If Williams can't beat out those guys in training camp, somebody's evaluation on him was terribly flawed.
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - FEBRUARY 10: Jayden Daniels attends Michael Rubin's Fanatics Super Bowl party at the Marquee Nightclub at The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas on February 10, 2024 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
Jayden Daniels Best Deep Thrower
The Commanders aren't going to ask Daniels to take over right away. But they hope he does, even expect him too, because of his skills.
"He's the best deep ball thrower we thought in the draft," Commanders general manager Adam Peters said. "And that's even before we started watching him run. And the way he runs, he just kind of, we talk about it kind of takes your soul as a defense."
Before Daniels can begin collecting souls, he has to beat out Marcus Mariota, who is expected to be the backup but is capable of starting.
The Commanders, like the Bears, have a good infrastructure on offense to support a rookie quarterback – especially one that can run. Yes, the offensive line gave up a lot of sacks last season, but did I tell you Daniels can run?
Apr 24, 2024; Detroit, MI, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels quarterback Drake Maye interacts with Special Olympics athletes at the Play Football Prospect Clinic at The Corner Ballpark. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
Drake Maye: Goal Is To Start
The Patriots picked Drake Maye with the No. 3 overall selection. And if you ask Maye, he expects to start Day One.
"I think that's obviously the goal for myself but also for any quarterback coming into the NFL," Maye said on Audacy's WEEI 97.3 on Monday. "For me, I just want to earn the respect of the guys and get to know them first, but obviously all the stuff on the field will come after that."
Maye acknowledges he's got a lot to learn at 21 years old. And the first thing he should learn is that incumbent quarterback Jacoby Brissett is a grown man who intends to win the job and play.
The Patriots say privately they will let the situation play out organically. But they will not be disappointed if Brissett, in his ninth pro season and with 48 career starts, beats out the rookie at least initially.
It should be noted that while the Patriots believe their lineup and offensive philosophy of controlling the ball, is more than adequate to support a rookie quarterback, the truth is no one is worrying about New England's offensive depth chart.
Michael Penix Jr. was the surprise pick at #8 overall by the Atlanta Falcons. Courtesy: Getty Images
Falcons To Start Kirk Cousins
In Atlanta, we know Michael Penix Jr. is not going to start. He's going to sit behind presumed starter Kirk Cousins. At least that's the plan.
"Kirk Cousins is our quarterback," general manager Terry Fontenot said.
The club's $180 million investment in Cousins must pay dividends, otherwise the people who signed him will look dumb. Secondly, the Falcons believe themselves to be a playoff-caliber team and the way to prove it is generally to go with an experienced quarterback.
The Vikings have the option of going with experienced Sam Darnold as their starter. And that's the way it's expected to start through minicamp and even at the start of training camp.
But of all the quarterbacks selected in the first round, J.J. McCarthy stands out as the one who has the greatest opportunity to win an actual competition – if not right away, definitely before the season ends.
The Minnesota Vikings selected Michigan Wolverines QB J.J. McCarthy with the 10th pick in the 2024 NFL Draft. Courtesy: Getty Images
Vikes Don't Want To Ruin McCarthy
The Vikings believe McCarthy to be a mature, disciplined quarterback despite his rookie status. They also have a great cast around whomever wins the quarterback job and that suggests it can support a rookie's flaws.
The major issue coach Kevin O'Connell must be convinced of before making the call on his starter is having a conviction that if the rookie starts, he won't pull him out later when troubles come.
O'Connell, a former quarterback, doesn't want to yo-yo the rookie and possibly affect his confidence.
DETROIT, MI - APRIL 25: The Denver Broncos pick Oregon QB Bo Nix with the twelfth overall pick during Day 1 of the NFL Draft on April 25, 2024 at Campus Martius Park and Hart Plaza in Detroit, MI. (Photo by John Smolek/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
Bo Nix Seems NFL Ready
The Broncos similarly will have a competition at quarterback but everyone in that building is expecting Bo Nix to be their starter in 2024.
The Broncos point to the fact Nix played six years in college. He's the son of a football coach. He's smart. He was superior, they say, to most of the other drafted QBs in a number of metrics they measured before the draft.
The Broncos believe Nix should be NFL ready by the regular season.
Does that mean he'll be starting the regular-season opener ahead of Jarrett Stidham, Zach Wilson and Ben DiNucci?
If he isn't, something unexpected happened.