The 2024 NFL season was admittedly definitely memorable. When fans look back on this NFL season, they’ll remember the iconic Philadelphia “Tush Push,” the Chiefs’ failed attempt at a three-peat, and the iconic meme that was Tennessee quarterback Will Levis.
However, before the regular season had even started, Minnesota Vikings fans were already calling their season over. The Vikings were coming off a 7-10 season in 2023, so they used the 10th overall pick in the draft to select a new face of the franchise: QB J.J. McCarthy. Unfortunately for the Vikings, McCarthy suffered a season-ending knee injury in the preseason. So, who would replace McCarthy as QB1?
Sam Darnold.
To add context, Darnold was the third overall selection in the 2018 NFL draft for the New York Jets. Darnold spent just three years in New York, starting just 38 games and throwing for 45 TDs to 39 interceptions. Since then, Darnold has hopped around as a backup quarterback, eventually landing in Minnesota as the QB2 behind McCarthy. At least, that was the plan.
It looked like Minnesota had wasted their first-round pick. They’d have to wait until next year to see their new QB in action, and until then, they’d have to deal with the train wreck that was Sam Darnold.
Then, the Vikings won their regular season opener. Then, their second game. Then, their third. By the time Vikings fans realized what was happening, the Vikings were undefeated when they reached their bye week. Under Darnold, the Vikings went 14-3 and made it to the playoffs, the most wins in a season for the Vikes since 1998. Darnold started every game in the season (a first for his career) and threw for 4,319 yards and 35 TDs to just 12 interceptions.
The entire NFL world was stunned. How could the Vikings have won so many games in such an illustrious division… with Sam Darnold at the reins? The Vikings did sputter out in the playoffs, losing 27-9 to the Los Angeles Rams in the wild card round. However, Minnesota proved that you should never count a team out because of their QB. Or count a QB out, for that matter.
There were many similar Cinderella stories at QB across the NFL this season. Jayden Daniels, a rookie quarterback for the Washington Commanders, led his team to a 12-5 record and an NFC championship appearance, neither of which have happened in Washington since 1991. Bryce Young, the #1 overall pick by the Carolina Panthers in 2023, was coming off a horrendous season, which caused many fans to dub him a bust. However, despite struggles early in the season, Young finished with flashes of outstanding talent, often looking like a future MVP. Even Jared Goff, who was left in the dust by the Rams a few years ago as they won a Super Bowl without him, led his Detroit Lions to 15-2 and a playoff berth.
Perhaps the most important is Jalen Hurts of the Philadelphia Eagles. Labeled early in his career as a mid-level quarterback, he was one of the most successful QBs in the league this year and led his team to a Super Bowl win.
This was certainly the year for QB comebacks, and it left the NFL a lot to think about as we enter the offseason. This year, QBs taught us three key things that NFL teams should definitely take notice of; these are the keys to success for the man under center and the entire team.
#1: You Need To Be Mobile
When it comes to mobility, quarterbacks can be divided into three categories:
- Dominant dual threats (ex. Lamar Jackson)
- Competent scramblers (ex. Joe Burrow)
- Pocket-passer slowpokes (ex. Aaron Rodgers)
These athletic dual-threat QBs are becoming more common throughout the league. These are your QBs who have designed runs made for them because they are so good at running the ball. These are your Lamar Jacksons or Josh Allens. Next, you have your scramblers. These guys aren’t especially good runners and probably don’t have many designed runs for them. However, when the pocket breaks down, you can count on these guys running their way out of trouble. Last, you have your pocket-passers. These guys have the speed of your 60-year-old grandpa. Sure, they’ll take off every once in a while, but nobody trusts them to do it; everyone just yells at them to slide.
When people look back on the greatest QBs in recent history, most of them fit into that last category. Some of the most iconic QBs of the past generation (Tom Brady, Eli Manning, Aaron Rodgers,etc) have been slow as dirt. These were your 2010 heroes. What people have started calling the “golden era” of football. Back then, your QB didn’t need to make plays–it was all about offensive schemes. Basically, if it got to the point where your QB had to run, you were in trouble. Nowadays, it seems that QBs are using their legs every play.
Pocket passers are out. Scramblers are in.
Just take a look at the rookie QBs this season. Jayden Daniels was by far the best one selected. On the ground, Daniels picked up a ridiculous 891 yards (6 yards per carry) and 6 touchdowns on the ground. 900 yards rushing as a quarterback! Although Daniels was a respectable passer, what really gave him an edge against the defense was his ability to run for the first down if nobody was open.
In short, if you’re not mobile, you can’t survive in today’s league… we are entering a new age of quarterbacks where you have to outrun the defense if you want to survive.
This year it seemed like every good quarterback was a mobile quarterback. Lamar Jackson, Josh Allen, Jayden Daniels, Jalen Hurts, Kyler Murray: they are all athletic dual threats. It seems like everybody else is at least competent at scrambling. Joe Burrow, Baker Mayfield, Patrick Mahomes, Bo Nix, Sam Darnold. All with successful seasons.
Then, look at these stationary, slow QBs: Kirk Cousins, Geno Smith, and Aaron Rodgers. Cousins struggled a lot in his first season with the Atlanta Falcons, even getting benched at the end of the season. Smith didn’t have a terrible season, but throwing 15 interceptions to just 21 TDs is no recipe for success. Rodgers was back with the New York Jets and struggled to keep the team afloat, only winning 5 games and throwing 11 picks, which is one of Rodgers’ worst seasons in his career. Although, to be fair to Rodgers, he wasn’t especially set up for success. Speaking of that…
#2: Your Situation Can Doom Your QB
As previously mentioned, Bryce Young was selected #1 overall in the 2023 NFL Draft by the Carolina Panthers. The Panthers had made a blockbuster trade to get the #1 overall pick from the Chicago Bears and were coming off of a 7-10 season. With Bryce at the helm, deemed a future Hall of Famer by scouts, the Panthers would surely improve their record. Maybe even make the playoffs.
The regular season started. The Panthers lost their first game, then their second. Whoops! Probably just a hiccup, right? Sure, Young had thrown as many interceptions as he had touchdowns, but he’s just smoothing out the kinks…right?
By the time the Panthers reached their bye week, they hadn’t won a single game. They finished the season 2-15. Bryce played in just 16 games, only throwing 11 TDs to 10 INTs.
In his rookie season with the Panthers, Young was running for his life. His O-Line was inconsistent at best, allowing him to be sacked 62 times across the course of the season for a loss of 477 yards. Subtract that from his passing totals, and Bryce gained 2200 yards on 589 total passing plays. That’s just 3.7 yards per pass attempt. These are unreal sack numbers; Bryce was sacked nearly four times per game.
If you look at Bryce’s footwork throughout the season, it goes from being confident to jerky. Football professionals know that footwork is key to a quarterback’s success. If your footwork is inconsistent and unorganized, you are unable to quickly plant and deliver a good throw. As he was sacked more and more times throughout the season, he became more anxious that he would be sacked. He was constantly afraid of getting hit, so he had to be ready to run at any second. Bryce Young probably started to believe he was living in an “I Survived” book.
This is a prime example of how the situation you throw your QB into can doom him from the start. The Panthers traded just about every asset they had to get Bryce Young. Then, once they got him, they said: “OK. Go make a play!” He was expected to lead a rebuilding team to the top of the NFC South completely by himself. There were no talented coaching staff or players around him to help him succeed, which transitions nicely into my third and final point…
#3: Supporting Cast Matters More Than Anything
Entering 2024, Young was a failure in most NFL fans’ eyes. The fact that C.J. Stroud (the quarterback who was selected one pick after Young by the Houston Texans) won Offensive Rookie of the Year was not helping his case. The Panthers had brought in a completely new coaching staff led by Head Coach Dave Canales in hopes of turning things around. They also learned from their mistakes last year, bringing in loads of offensive assistants to help Young develop, and surrounding Young with a supporting cast. However, Panthers fans were still skeptical.
Carolina’s season opener against the New Orleans Saints seemed to clarify the fans’ worst fears, as Young threw a pick on the very first play of the game, and they ended up losing 10-47. Young started the next game against the Los Angeles Chargers and didn’t do much better, losing 3-26. Then, Canales did the unthinkable: he benched Bryce Young just two weeks into the season for an aging Andy Dalton.
Dalton led the Panthers to a win against the Las Vegas Raiders in his first start, and it looked like that was it for Young. He had blown his chance. The Panthers were succeeding without him. He would be labeled a massive bust and would live out his NFL days as a career backup—
What’s that? Andy Dalton got in a car wreck on October 22? Luckily, Dalton and his family were not seriously injured, but Dalton suffered an injury to his thumb, knocking him out for a few games. Call it luck, call it a sign, even call it NFL script if you’re superstitious; it all meant the same thing: Bryce Young was getting a second chance.
The Panthers were now 1-6, and Young would be starting his first game since being benched against the Denver Broncos. The Panthers would end up losing 14-28, but Bryce Young looked like a completely different player: confident, making good throws, and slinging for 237 yards and 2 TDs. The following week, Young would be rewarded with a revenge game against the Saints, throwing for 171 yards and a TD to win his team the game 23-22. The Panthers were off to a running start.
The Panthers would finish the rest of the season with Young at the reins and managed a 5-12 record. While not good, it was an improvement. Not counting his bumpy two-game start, Young had a 4-5 QB record. If all one-score games went in Carolina’s favor, that would be 7-2.
So…what changed?
For starters, as previously mentioned, a new coaching staff was definitely necessary. Dave Canales is no Andy Reid, but he helped Young improve and grow throughout the season. However, the most important change is the actual people who lined up alongside Young on the field: his supporting cast.
In the offseason, the Panthers signed free-agent offensive guards Damien Lewis and Robert Hunt–both talented, veteran players–to help protect Young. Without the threat of being lit up every play, Young was able to calm down and make his throws more confidently. They also built up talent in the skill positions. They returned young RB Chuba Hubbard. While their receiving core is still pretty lackluster, they did take WR Xavier Leggette in the draft. Carolina’s biggest struggle in the 2024 season was the defense: They had the worst defense in the entire league in terms of both points and yards.
Heading into the offseason, Carolina definitely needs to target their defense. They have the #8 overall pick in the draft, so they should almost certainly select a defensive player, so Young and the offense don’t have to carry the team. Maybe draft some weapons for Young in the later rounds.
The point is that the whole team runs through the quarterback. If you want your QB to succeed, you have to set him up to succeed by giving him weapons.
Take a look at all of our QB Cinderella stories this year. Sam Darnold worked under two coaching staffs while in New York: those of HC Todd Bowles and OC Jeremy Bates and of HC Adam Gase and OC Dowell Loggains. although Bowles has had success since, none of these are especially reverend coaches. The defense playing alongside Darnold was never above average. His best weapon he had to throw to in his three years was a quickly aging Jamison Crowder.
Then, he went to Minnesota. He was working under HC Kevin O’Connell, a respected offensive coach. He had weapons surrounding him: a veteran Aaron Jones to lean on running the ball. He had a future Hall-of-Fame receiver in Justin Jefferson, a young stud in Jordan Addison, and a top-10 tight end in T.J. Hockenson to throw to. On the other side of the ball, he had a Top-5 defense.
And well, guess what… he played pretty well!
The position of quarterback is extremely overvalued on both bad teams and good teams. On bad teams, the QB is given all the pressure in the world and no resources to produce results. On good teams, the QB is treated like he was the one who led his team to victory every time, even though the 21 other players on the field played their part just as well.
In the end, I think the NFL needs to value quarterbacks a lot less. It is true that everything flows through the quarterback, so it is certainly an important position, but you need to set your QB up to succeed first. However, teams will often waste an early draft pick on a quarterback. The draft class this year is the worst class for QB talent we’ve seen in a while; despite this, some mock drafts even have three QBs being taken in the first round.
I beg NFL teams this year: don’t draft a QB just because you need one! Unless there is a generational talent QB, which there is certainly not in this draft, why draft him just to set him up in the worst environment possible? Luckily, the Tennessee Titans, who have the #1 overall pick, don’t seem to be falling into this trap. The president of Football Operations for the Vikings, Chad Brinker, announced his plans for the pick via Adam Schefter of ESPN: “We won’t pass on a generational talent with the first overall pick in the NFL draft.”
If there are better players on the board, and there almost always most certainly will be, don’t take a QB just because he’s the “most important position.” While that is true, he cannot succeed unless you set him up to succeed. Draft other positions that will elevate your future QB, and only draft him when you feel confident he is in an environment where he can grow.
If not, at least make sure he’s mobile. That way, when his offensive line falls apart, he’ll be able to run for his life.
