First Round QBs Are No Guarantee

David Carr (1) and Joey Harrington (3) were chosen early, and Patrick Ramsey (32) went later in the first round in ’02; all are still playing as backup QBs for teams other than their original.

Carson Palmer was the cream of the 2003 quarterback class, signing days before the draft. Rex Grossman (22) and Kyle Boller (19) threw their way into the reserve passer roles they possess today, while Byron Leftwich (7) was cut following a disagreement with Jack Del Rio.

2004 proved to be one of the most successful drafts in selecting a quarterback, even with Eli Manning (1) refusing to sign with San Diego, resulting in a draft-day swap of Manning and Phillip Rivers (4).

Ben Roethlisberger (11) leads the class with the 2004 Rookie of the Year, a Super Bowl win, and a Pro Bowl appearance. Recently, Manning lead the Giants to an upset win in the Super Bowl over the Patriots, cinching the game’s MVP title.  

Rivers earned a Pro Bowl spot in 2006, his first year starting, and is currently the QB of the team favored to win it all J.P. Losman (22), however, is the only one yet to achieve success, as he is currently being supplanted by Trent Edwards on the Bills.

In 2005, the San Francisco 49ers had to choose between Alex Smith and Aaron Rodgers, leaving the loser a free-for-all tumble into the middle of the first round. Rodgers (24) continued his wait behind Brett Favre, as Smith, through multiple offensive coordinators, has failed to become a threat, losing his job to J. T. O’Sullivan.  

Jason Campbell (25), also suffering from the same coordinator problems as Smith, has recently shown signs of progress under new Redskins Head Coach Jim Zorn.

Vince Young (3) was the 2006 Rookie of the Year, but he has struggled while leading the Tennessee Titans to the playoffs in his second season.

Jay Cutler (11) came out as the better passer of ’06's first round, but he suffered a blow both statiscally and health-wise, learning that he played most of the year while developing Type-I Diabetes.

Matt Leinart (10) has shared the quarterback position with Kurt Warner for the last two years and has recently been benched behind Warner for inconsistent play.

It’s too early to call JaMarcus Russell (1) and Brady Quinn (22) from the 2007 first round due to limited action, and one can only imagine how the 2008 class of Matt Ryan (3) and Joe Flacco (18) can perform in the NFL.

Sure, an argument can be made that many of the QBs drafted are “system quarterbacks,” beneficiaries of statistical greatness from certain college offenses that function less from reading the defense.

Perhaps some passers just were not ready for the big stage and the negatives that come with the job. All that can be said about the quarterback selection in the first rounds, even from 1983, is that it has turned out to be a crapshoot for many franchises: some went boom and other have gone bust.  

Please share your thoughts on your favorite team’s selection of quarterbacks, whether from the beginning to the end of the draft, good or bad.

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