Five quarterbacks were taken in the first round of the 2018 NFL Draft. Checking in on them as their fifth year in the league comes to a close.
The regular season of the fifth year for the five quarterbacks taken in the first round of the 2018 NFL draft ended in similar fashion to their previous seasons: with only two of them in the playoffs.
Okay. Three, counting Josh Rosen, current member on the practice squad for the Minnesota Vikings.
Two others have playoff games on the agenda this coming weekend. Though it's looking more and more realistic only one of them will take the field.
The Baltimore Ravens (10-7) open with a trip to Cincinnati (12-4) to face the Bengals in the Wild Card round, part of a three-game slate on Sunday. Baltimore could be facing the defending AFC Champion without star quarterback Lamar Jackson and his backup Tyler Huntley.
Jackson continued to be a non-participant in practice and hasn't played since early in week 13, when he left the game with a knee injury. Even if he is able to suit up on Sunday, one wonders how effective he will be after spending six weeks on the sideline.
That would leave Josh Allen the sole quarterback from this group of five to see playoff action this season. And by August of 2023, Allen, too could be the only one of these five quarterbacks to be on the same team they ended the 2022-23 season with.
Josh Allen
Allen and the Buffalo Bills (13-3) take a seven-game winning streak, minus one canceled game in the mix, into this year's playoffs.
They've done so with a newfound ground game and a performance from Allen that has been less than 100 percent.
Battling an elbow injury, Allen still put up similar numbers to last season despite playing in one less game. Though he's only thrown for more than 300 yards once since a week 10 loss to Minnesota, Allen finished with 4283 passing yards. He completed 63.3 percent, same as last season, while throwing 35 touchdowns.
Allen threw 14 interceptions and did have some trouble in the red zone in this department.
Three times Allen threw for four touchdowns in a game and had a season-high 424 passing yards in a week 5 victory over the Steelers.
Allen nearly matched last season's totals on the ground, racking up 762 yards (763 in '21-22). Averaging 6.1 yards per carry, Allen also found the end zone seven times.
Buffalo remains one of the top offenses in the NFL and it's spearheaded by Allen. The arrival of consistent running game behind him gives Allen even more options and more space to work. A Super Bowl appearance would cement Allen's early legacy as a star. The window isn't necessarily closing, and Allen hasn't plateaued but to see him earn that shot this season would be a fitting end to season number five.
Lamar Jackson
The Ravens truly are a different team when Jackson isn't on the field. The looming question remains whether or not he played his last snap with Baltimore.
Jackson is in the last year of his rookie deal. With plenty of quarterback-needy teams, the free agent market could be enticing, though he has missed 9+ games the last two seasons due to injury.
Prior to the knee injury this season, Jackson was in the mix for league MVP. Perhaps he'll still garner votes, rightfully so, because the Ravens were 3-3 in his absence, with those three wins coming by a combined 11 points.
Jackson, playing in the same number of games as last season, actually saw a drop-off in his stats. A fast start for Baltimore in the passing game seemed to be setting Jackson up for a career year. But injuries to the receiving corps and then the running backs stalled this offense out, even before Jackson's injury.
Completing 62.3 percent of his passes, lowest since his rookie season, Jackson threw for 2242 yards. He tossed 17 touchdowns and only 7 interceptions, throwing only 1 in his last six starts.
It was with his legs in Jackson was bringing the goods. He had 764 yards but was doing more with less, averaging 6.8 yards per carry, the second-best of his career. Eight games Jackson went over 50 yards rushing and he had 316 through the season's first four weeks.
Ultimately, whether he plays in this season's playoffs or not, I believe Jackson will be back with the Ravens. If Baltimore is willing to build around him in the passing game and JK Dobbins can continue to grow, Jackson will be forced to carry the ball less. And with an offense already tailored to him, sticking with the Ravens will be his best bet.
Sam Darnold
The end for Sam Darnold as a member of the Carolina Panthers (7-10) could be nigh. Free agency is pending for the fifth-year quarterback, with an organization in flux.
Despite going 4-2 as a starter after he returned from an ankle injury, the Panthers relied on a strong running game. This is not to say Darnold was ineffective, despite a 5-15 for 43 yards and two interceptions in a week 18 victory. It's that simply he wasn't consistent enough and had trouble holding on to the ball the last two weeks with three interceptions and five fumbles (two lost).
Prior to week 17, Darnold had not thrown a pick with four touchdown passes, plus two more on the ground. In some regards, he looked comfortable out there and like a guy who could carry this team going forward. Especially if the Panthers focused on a running attack.
Darnold did have 341 passing yards in week 17 against the Bucs and did have a couple of 200-yard games, something generally lacking in his career prior.
Darnold has only had one season with a completion percentage above 60. This season was at 58.6, throwing for 1143 yards. He had seven touchdown passes and three interceptions. Darnold also ran for 106 yards and two scores.
No matter where Darnold ends up next season, an opportunity to at least compete for a starting job should be on the table. Those chances won't be around for much longer, so Darnold must make the best of it, or find himself carrying a clipboard for years to come.
Baker Mayfield
Splitting time between the Panthers and Los Angeles Rams, Mayfield finds himself in a similar situation as Darnold heading into the offseason.
Except to return to his current organization would automatically mean competing for a backup job. Unless, that is, the Rams go into a full rebuild mode, move on from Matthew Stafford, and bring back Mayfield to be a transition starter.
Mayfield went 1-3 as a starter with the Rams, winning one other game off the bench in his Rams debut. The results were about as mixed for Mayfield as they have been for his career.
In his lone victory as a starter, Mayfield was 24-28 for 238 yards and two touchdown passes. In those three losses, Mayfield barely crossed the 50 percent barrier in completion percentage and failed to throw for 150 yards in all three games.
He did have only two interceptions in five games with the Rams and did seem to be more comfortable on the field than at any point this season with Carolina.
Mayfield appeared in 12 games in the 2022-23 season, throwing for 2163 yards. He threw only eight interceptions but only 10 touchdown passes. Mayfield's completion percentage was at 60, on par with his career thus far.
Heading into free agency, Mayfield has vowed to simply not just "chase a paycheck". Let's hope that is true. With plenty of teams in need of a starter, it's hard to imagine Mayfield doesn't at least get a chance to compete for a starting job. Like Darnold, that window will be closing soon, unless results change.
Josh Rosen
Rosen is hanging on by a thread in this league, bouncing between the practice squads of the Cleveland Browns and Vikings in '22-23. His last pass in a regular season game was in week 11 of the 2021 season, where he completed 1-3 passes for five yards and an interception for the Atlanta Falcons.
If there's an opportunity, perhaps Rosen looks to the USFL this spring to simply get some reps at game speed. He hasn't shown much during his NFL tenure, and what he did show was not very good. But he keeps getting chances and, if embraces the role of backup and can hone in on his natural skills, a second act could very well give him a role in this league for years to come. And finding a gig has a career backup is not a bad one to have.
Thanks for following along with this series chronicling the careers of these five quarterbacks. Be sure to check back next August as we embark on year six.
Photo credit: Wikimedia Commons
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