What are the 10 best seasons by a rookie QB in NFL history?
2025-01-21
Category: sports

Rookie seasons ideally signal promise for both the player and the team. Some do, some don't. But in the past 15 years, we've seen several first-year quarterbacks make seamless transitions from college to the NFL. The latest is Jayden Daniels, who not only will soon be crowned Offensive Rookie of the Year but is the catalyst for the Washington Commanders being in the NFC Championship Game. But where does Daniels' campaign rank all time?&nbsp;  Here are the 10 best debut seasons by a signal-caller in NFL history. 10. Ben Roethlisberger (2004)  Roethlisberger put together an outstanding rookie season, though it's probably better remembered for what the Steelers did. After being drafted No. 11 overall, Big Ben took over for an injured Tommy Maddox early in the 2004 season and won all 13 of his regular-season starts, which included ending the defending champion Patriots' record 21-game winning streak. Since 1970, no rookie QB has won more starts than the future Hall of Famer. Roethlisberger is also one of just nine rookie signal-callers to amass 2,500 passing yards, 15 passing touchdowns and 10 wins. His charmed debut season ultimately ended in the AFC Championship Game … to the Patriots, who would go on to repeat as Super Bowl champs. 9. Dak Prescott (2016)  Prescott surprisingly fell to the fourth round of the 2016 draft after posting two all-SEC first-team seasons at Mississippi State. It was an even bigger surprise when he was pressed into action during his first preseason after Tony Romo was sidelined with a back injury. Dak more than delivered, though. Like Roethlisberger, Prescott won 13 starts as a rookie as the Cowboys earned the top seed in the NFC.&nbsp; The Cowboys QB played virtually mistake-free football, posting just four interceptions against 23 passing touchdowns. He's the only rookie since 1970 to post 2,000 passing yards while throwing fewer than five interceptions. He was the NFL's Offensive Rookie of the Year, though his campaign might have been a bit overshadowed by fellow newcomer Ezekiel Elliott, who led the league in rushing and earned All-Pro first team honors. Dak did his part in his postseason opener, tallying 302 passing yards and three touchdowns with one interception, only to see the Cowboys lose a divisional round thriller to the Packers behind the heroics of one Aaron Rodgers. 8. Russell Wilson (2012)  Wilson is responsible for perhaps the most surprisingly good season for a rookie QB. A third-round pick, he wasn't even expected to be the starter heading into the season with the Seahawks having just signed Matt Flynn to a lucrative deal. But Wilson blew everyone away in training camp and won the job prior to Week 1. Russ rewarded Pete Carroll's bold move by throwing 26 touchdowns (with 10 interceptions) and rushing for 489 yards with four touchdowns. Seattle won 11 games and rallied for a dramatic wild-card victory against Washington before falling to the top-seeded Falcons a week later. Wilson is one of just five rookie QBs since 1970 to top 3,000 passing yards and 25 passing touchdowns. 7. Andrew Luck (2012)  Luck was the most decorated prospect in more than a decade and was better than you might remember. His 4,374 passing yards remain a rookie record, as do his 627 attempts. The No. 1 overall pick also led seven game-winning drives while propelling a Colts team that had gone 2-14 the season prior to an 11-5 mark and postseason berth.&nbsp; Luck threw 23 touchdowns with 18 interceptions — the latter likely cost him Offensive Rookie of the Year — but added five rushing scores for good measure. Luck's first season ended in the wild-card round in a loss to the Ravens, who went on to win the Super Bowl. 6. Robert Griffin III (2012)  Reminiscent of the run Daniels is on for Washington right now, Griffin largely carried his team during a magical first season. The No. 2 overall pick in 2012 ran for a then-rookie record 815 yards with seven touchdowns while leading the league with 6.8 yards per attempt. His 1.3 interception percentage was also tops in the NFL. He'd add 3,200 passing yards and 20 passing touchdowns with just five interceptions and claimed Offensive Rookie of the Year honors. More importantly, he led Washington on a seven-game winning streak to close out the regular season and claim the NFC East title. Alas, this marked the high point of RG3's career as he tore his ACL in a wild-card loss to the Seahawks. 5. C.J. Stroud (2023)  Recency bias? Certainly not. Stroud became one of just five rookie QBs since 1970 to post 4,000 or more passing yards, including a record 470 yards in just his eighth career start. His six games with 300 or more passing yards are second-most by a rookie QB. Even better, the No. 2 overall pick in 2023 protected the ball like no other, posting an NFL-best 1.0 interception rate.&nbsp; Add in 23 touchdown passes to just five INTs, a league-high 273.9 passing yards per game and an AFC South crown — the Texans went 10-7 after winning 11 games combined over the previous three seasons — and you can understand why some regard this as the best season by a rookie QB in league history. AP voters fittingly rewarded Stroud with Offensive Rookie of the Year honors and an eighth-place finish in MVP voting. Stroud's special season trickled into January, as he threw for 274 yards and three touchdowns in Houston's blowout wild-card win versus the Browns. The Texans would fall the following week against the top-seeded Ravens.  4. Cam Newton (2011)  After turning in arguably the best individual season in NCAA history, Newton incredibly picked up where he left off at the next level. The No. 1 overall pick became the first QB to throw for 400 yards in his debut. Then he broke his own rookie record with 432 yards in Week 2 — his 854 yards in the first two weeks of a season were briefly a record for any QB.&nbsp; The 6-foot-5, 245-pound Newton, who was quickly dubbed Superman, would register the first 4,000-yard passing season for a rookie while rushing for a then-record 706 yards. His 14 rushing touchdowns are still a record for a debut season and weren't topped until Josh Allen and Jalen Hurts each ran for 15 scores last year (in a 17-game season). Newton's 5.6 yards per carry led the NFL in 2011. He was responsible for at least one passing touchdown and one rushing touchdown in eight games that year. No rookie has had more than five such games dating back to at least 1970. Newton totaled 4,051 yards and 21 passing touchdowns with 17 interceptions and was a near-unanimous choice for Offensive Rookie of the Year.&nbsp; The only thing missing from Cam's unforgettable rookie campaign was team success. The Panthers, which went 2-14 the year prior, won only six games in 2011.&nbsp; 3. Dan Marino (1983)  Maybe no quarterback in history has seen their brilliance minimized more by rings culture than Marino. While his career is no longer properly appreciated, his rookie season still holds up as one of the best of all time. After being selected No. 27 overall — he was the sixth QB to come off the board in the famed 1983 draft — Marino didn't become the full-time starter until Week 6. The rifle-armed rookie wasted no time proving what a mistake that was, rallying a struggling Dolphins squad into one of the most explosive offenses in the league.&nbsp; Marino tallied 20 touchdowns with just six interceptions as Miami won seven of his nine starts. In a sign of things to come, he led the NFL in sack percentage and adjusted net yards per attempt. Those efforts yielded Marino a Pro Bowl and second-team All-Pro selection and a third-place finish in MVP voting. The Fins, meanwhile, won the AFC East and were the No. 2 seed in the conference but lost in the divisional round to the Seahawks. 2. Justin Herbert (2020)  Herbert's placement might surprise some, but no rookie QB has ever performed better in the regular season. He set a record with 31 passing touchdowns, while his 4,336 yards fell just 38 yards short of Andrew Luck's mark. Herbert did all of that in only 15 games, as he was unexpectedly pressed into action in Week 2 after Tyrod Taylor was rushed to the hospital during pregame warmups with a punctured lung.&nbsp; The No. 6 overall pick in the 2020 draft produced a scintillating 1.7 interception rate and also rushed for five touchdowns. All of this made Herbert an easy choice for Offensive Rookie of the Year. But as you probably guessed, the Chargers weren't a winner. Despite boasting a top-10 offense, the Chargers lost seven of Herbert's first eight starts by one possession en route to a 7-9 season. 1. Jayden Daniels (2024)  We're factoring in the entire season for this exercise, and the best rookie campaign in league history is still active. Daniels did it all for Washington in the regular season, breaking RG3's NFL record with 891 rushing yards while becoming the fourth rookie to be responsible for more than 30 touchdowns (25 passing, six rushing). Throw in Daniels' 3,568 passing yards, 100.1 passer rating and 1.9 INT percentage, and he might be a unanimous choice for Offensive Rookie of the Year.&nbsp; Most importantly, he led four game-winning drives and guided the Commanders, who went 4-12 in 2023, to their first 12-win season since 1991. That's also the last time they were in the NFC Championship Game — their victory over the Lions this past weekend ended the longest conference title game drought in the NFC. (Daniels' historic rookie season continues Sunday versus the Eagles at 3 p.m. ET on FOX and streaming on the FOX Sports app.) The No. 2 pick in the 2024 draft has only elevated his play in the postseason, registering four touchdowns, 567 passing yards and a 69.7 completion rate without committing a turnover and taking just one sack. In the wild-card round against the Buccaneers, Daniels overcame a fourth quarter deficit before setting up a game-winning field goal at the buzzer. Against the top-seeded Lions, Daniels led six scoring drives as Washington won going away.&nbsp; It's the first time in franchise history that the Commanders have won two road games in a single postseason. Look no further than their rookie QB for the biggest reason why. Daniels is just the sixth rookie starter to reach the conference title round (none have advanced to the Super Bowl), but he's the first to do so without being backed by a top-three scoring defense. Regardless of what happens this weekend at Philadelphia, we've witnessed the greatest rookie QB season ever.&nbsp;  Honorable mentions: Bo Nix (2024), Kyler Murray (2019), Baker Mayfield (2018), Jameis Winston (2015), Matt Ryan (2008) Want great stories delivered right to your inbox? Create or log in to your FOX Sports account, follow leagues, teams and players to receive a personalized newsletter daily!