Analysis Of The 1St Round Quarterbacks In The 1990S
We breakdown all the quarterbacks drafted in the 1st round since 1990 and how they have performed throughout their careers. We have graded them from 1-10 for their career as well as the value of the select for the team that drafted them.
1990
#1 Jeff George was drafted based on the hype of his arm strength coming out of Illinois. He was known to have attitude issues but the physical skills were considered worth the risk. George lasted 4 years in Indy before being shipped off to Atlanta. He found greater success in his years under June Jones and the run-and-shoot offense there posting successful numbers. Since 1996, George has been on 6 teams and other than a random Oakland and Minnesota season, he has struggled to get on the field and once he steps on it. Overall George is considered a huge mistake as the #1 overall selection.
Draft: D
Overall: C
#7 Andre Ware came out of Houston University as the first black quarterback to win the heisman and landed in Detroit with Barry Sanders. Ware failed to play for any significant stretch in his entire career. Rodney Peete was the starter when Ware was drafted and Ware eventually ran out of time in Detroit and played more in Canada and NFL Europe.
Draft: F
Overall: D-
1991
#16 Dan McGwire is the tallest quarterback (6′8″) to play in the NFL and the brother of Mark McGwire, so the hype coming out of San Diego State was intense. His rookie season was to learn the NFL behind veteran Dave Krieg. His 2nd season was where he was supposed to lift the franchise over. He was a disappointment in preseason, was benched to 3rd string and Seattle drafted Rick Mirer in 1993 to replace McGwire. Dan went to Miami for a season before ending his NFL career in 1995.
Draft: F
Overall: F
#24 Todd Marinovich was drafted by the Raiders and played only the final game of his rookie season, but splashed with 3 touchdowns in a narrow defeat to Kansas City. Todd started by week 3 of the 1992 season, but ended up being benched before the demolish of the season. He would never throw another pass in the NFL and played sparingly in the Arena League and CFL.
Draft: D-
Overall: F
1992
#6 David Klingler from Houston was drafted by Cincinnati in the top 10 in 1992. He was highly touted out of college, setting the record for 11 touchdowns in one game and amassing 91 for his career. After two years of subpar performance as the starting quarterback for the Bengals, he was replaced by Jeff Blake and spent time as a backup in Oakland and Green Bay. He was out of the league permanently by 1998.
Draft: D
Overall: D-
#25 Tommy Maddox (UCLA) was drafted late in the 1st round by Denver. John Elway was in his prime, so Maddox rarely saw the field. He went to the XFL during the league’s short stint and was one of the best players in the league. Maddox returned to the NFL in 2001 to Pittsburgh and posted an impressive 10-5-1 mark with a wild card earn in 2002. Maddox was average in 2003 and was replaced in 2004 with Ben Roethlisberger but earned a championship ring as a reserve in Super Bowl XL.
Draft: D+
Overall: C+
1993
#1 Drew Bledsoe was the clearcut choice for a New England team that needed a quarterback with the first overall retract. Bledsoe was the face of the franchise for 9 seasons leading to multiple playoff runs and a Clean Bowl appearance, losing to the Packers and Brett Favre. Bledsoe was injured early in the 2001 season and was replaced with Tom Brady, who would lead the Patriots to a Super Bowl earn and never relinquished the starting role. Bledsoe moved on rival Buffalo for 3 seasons, making his 4th Pro Bowl and almost make the playoffs. He was replaced with J.P. Losman and came to Dallas for another chance to start. He was successful in his first season, but was replaced by Tony Romo in 2006. He retired as 7th all-time in yards, 13th in touchdowns and 5th in completions.
Draft: B+
Overall: A-
#2 Rick Mirer started from day one with Seattle and set rookie records for attempts, completions and yards but had 12 touchdown to 17 interceptions. He was given 3 years of starting opportunities with the Seahawks before being traded to Chicago in 1997. Mirer was cut the follow year and spent the rest of his career as a back-up until 2004.
Draft: D+
Overall: D
1994
#3 Heath Shuler finished 2nd in the heisman race before he was selected by the Redskins. After a significant holdout, he never had the weapons or the support to succeed in D.C. In 1997 he was traded to New Orleans, where he continued to struggle mightily. After a few surgeries, Shuler hung up his cleats as one of the biggest disappointments in the past 25 years.
Draft: D-
Overall: F
#6 Trent Dilfer started for Tampa Bay in his 2nd NFL season, but posted 4 touchdowns and 18 interceptions as the Buccaneers were one of the worst franchises in the league. He improved and made the Pro Bowl in his 3rd season as Tampa Bay made the playoffs and won the wild-card game before losing to the eventual champion Packers. Dilfer played well until 1999, when he was released and signed with Baltimore. Dilfer came in to replace Tony Banks and reeled off 7 straight wins and a playoff birth. Dilfer was aided by the great Baltimore defense and ran through the playoffs and won the Super Bowl 34-7 against the Giants. He was released after the season and began a series of back-up roles in Seattle, Cleveland and San Francisco.
Draft: B
Overall: A-
1995
#3 Steve McNair achieved tremendous college success, finishing 3rd in the heisman voting – the highest ever for a I-AA player. McNair was grooming slowly by the Oilers, splitting time with veterans Chris Chandler and Dave Krieg. After moving the franchise to Nashville, McNair was named the unquestioned starter and led the team to the Super Bowl, losing to Rams after falling one yard skittish of a game-tying touchdown as tie expired. Until 2006, McNair was the face of the franchise, winning a co-MVP title in 2003. Since 2004 McNair has led the Baltimore Ravens to winning records and the playoffs.
Draft: A
Overall: A+
#5 Kerry Collins was the first pick of the fresh Carolina Panthers franchise in 1995 and led the team its first 3 seasons. He threw for 39 touchdowns and 49 interceptions and led the Panthers to a Super Bowl appearance in their second season. After a year on the bench in Novel Orleans, Collins signed with the Giants in 1999. After playing part of the 1999 season, Collins led Novel York to the Super Bowl in 2000, losing to Baltimore. After 5 successful seasons (over 16,000 yards) in New York, Kerry was released and signed with the Raiders and played parts of two seasons. The past two seasons have been with Tennessee as a back-up to Vince Young.
Draft: A
Overall: A
1996
No first round quarterbacks taken
1997
#26 Jim Druckenmiller was a flame-out in his time with the 49ers and Dolphins and went to the AFL in 2001. After one season in the AFL and one in the XFL, Druckenmiller failed at a comeback with Indianapolis in 2002 and officially left the game.
Draft: F
Overall: F
1998
#1 Peyton Manning was drafted first overall by the Colts in one of the best draft decisions in the history of the NFL. Ryan Leaf was thought of as the quintessential quarterback with the strongest arm coming out of college in recent memory. The Colts didn’t follow the hype and took the 4-year starter from Tennessee considered the safe choice. Manning has only started every game in his career and become an icon for Indianapolis and the NFL as well as being regarded as one of the best quarterbacks in our generation. In addition to winning Trim Bowl XLI over Chicago, Manning has nearly 40,000 passing yards, 275 touchdowns (including a record 49 in a season), 7 Pro Bowls and an impressive 92-52 record as a starter.
Draft: A+
Overall: A+
#2 Ryan Leaf was considered one of the top two players in the draft along with Peyton Manning in 1999. What made the Chargers decision worse was that they traded up from #3 to #2 in order to draft Leaf from Arizona. They gave up two 1st round picks, a second round pick and 4-time Pro Bowler Eric Metcalf. After winning his first two starts in 1998, he went 1-15 with two interceptions and blew up at the media and his teammates after being questioned about his terrible performance. He was benched after nine games in 1998 and missed 1999 with an injury. The third season was marred by injury and bad play. Leaf was released and never got a long-term chance with another team. He finished with 14 touchdowns and 36 interceptions in the NFL.
Draft: D-
Overall: F
1999
#1 Tim Couch took over for Ty Detmer in Cleveland in the second game of his rookie season. Couch was inconsistent and injured often during his five-year tenure with the Browns. The final two years he was in competition with Kelly Holcomb to get playing time. In 2004 Couch tried out for the Packers and in 2005 with the Bengals, Bears, Dolphins and Texans among others. Couch did not perform well enough in those workouts because he was out of football shape and still had lingering injuries.
Draft: D
Overall: D-
#2 Donovan McNabb – Eagles fans were not in favor of McNabb’s drafting in 1999. After playing off and on during his rookie season, McNabb was a full-time starter in 2000 and never looked back. McNabb finished 2nd to Marshall Faulk in the MVP voting with 3300 yards, 21 touchdowns and 600 yards rushing. McNabb led the Eagles to 4 straight NFC championship games and finally a Shapely Bowl appearance in 2005 losing to the Patriots. The past two seasons have seen McNabb miss essential time with injury and look to regain his All-Pro beget in Philadelphia.
Draft: A
Overall: A
#3 Akili Smith gets a awful rap because he was chosen ahead of future greats Torry Holt, Edgerrin James, Champ Bailey, Daunte Culpepper and Jevon Kearse. The Bengals refused many trade offers for the #3 pick (including up to 9 picks from New Orleans to draft Ricky Williams) to draft Smith, who played some baseball in college and only one successful football season prior to the NFL. Smith held-out in training camp for a better contract and never established himself and a real member of the team in four years in Cincinnati. After only 17 games with the Bengals, he played some in Canada and Europe, but never again in the NFL.
Draft: F
Overall: D-
#11 Daunte Culpepper did not throw a pass his rookie season in Minnesota. He had instant success in 2000 with Randy Moss throwing for 3900 yards, 33 touchdowns and running for 470 yards and 7 touchdowns. After that Pro Bowl season, Culpepper struggled on the field and with injury in 2001 and 2002 after being featured on the Madden cover. Culpepper came back in 2003 with 3500 yards and 25 touchdowns, leading Minnesota to a 9-7 record. 2004 was a record-setting season, but unfortunately Peyton Manning had a better year to overshadow Culpepper. Daunte dazzled with 4700 yards, 39 touchdowns and only 11 interceptions and went to his third Pro Bowl. 2005 was 2 games long for Culpepper, as he threw 8 interceptions and fumbled twice before going on the injured list. Culpepper spent two years overcoming injuries and eventually was traded to Miami, where he never played consistently and is now looking for a new commence with a new team.
Draft: B+
Overall: B-
#12 Cade McNown was drafted by Chicago, but didn’t get a glean chance his rookie season because of contract issues and his second season due to abominable play. Chicago fans were against McNown from the start with websites and signs during home games. McNown was traded twice in the next two years and released another time before ending his football career.
Draft: F
Overall: F
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