State of the QB position in 2024: Five trends to know, including historic youth movement, richer deals

There’s no more important position in sports than quarterback. If the position wasn’t entertaining enough to follow, we’re currently in an era featuring the most volatile, highest-paid, injury-prone, youngest and talented group of QBs in NFL history.

Here’s five trends you need to know:

1. Age of impatience

It’s no secret we live in a world where we want things now, now, now! We can order something online and get it delivered on the same day. In the NFL, teams want their blue-chip QBs to deliver immediately, too. 

It’s becoming the age of impatience, as the average number of career starts by QBs drafted in the first round in the 2010s is currently 52. Even if you project signal-callers like Patrick Mahomes, Josh Allen, Kyler Murray and Lamar Jackson to double their start total for their respective teams, that number only jumps to the mid-60s, a far cry from the 2000s (81) and most other decades. 

Average career starts for draft team (First-round QBs by draft decade)

2010s – 522000s – 811990s – 501980s – 731970s  – 76

Roughly 40% of QBs drafted in the first round in the 2010s signed a second deal with their draft team. Plus, the two previous mega QB classes (2018 and 2021) have only seen three of the 10 first-round QBs get a second deal with their draft teams. 

Why are these figures so low? There are plenty of theories. Head coaches and front offices are under immense pressure, too, so starting over at QB can buy them extra time. QBs are valued so high in today’s game they are overdrafted and underprepared. QBs are thrown into the fire quickly and have to learn on the job, rather than sit most of their rookie seasons (first-round rookie QBs average 10 starts per year in the last decade.)

In some cases, as the Browns can attest, wisdom dwells with prudence. Their decision to move on from Baker Mayfield and invest $230 million guaranteed (and three first-round picks) in Deshaun…

Source link : https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/state-of-the-qb-position-in-2024-five-trends-to-know-including-historic-youth-movement-richer-deals/

Author : Douglas Clawson

Publish date : 2024-06-17 13:17:56

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