Every year, fans get excited to see which player their team selects. For teams in the top five, they usually look to draft a quarterback to save their franchise. That wasn’t the case in 2022 when the first quarterback was not chosen until the 20th overall pick. Fast forward to now, and you could make the case the 2022 class of quarterbacks is one of the worst in history. Calling it “underwhelming” would be putting it nicely.
Round 1, Pick 20: Kenny Pickett
The Pittsburgh Steelers kept the prospect close to home, drafting him with their first-round pick in hopes of finding their franchise guy of the future.
Appearing in 13 games during his rookie year, he went 7-5 as a starter while throwing for 2,404 yards. However, his seven touchdowns compared to nine interceptions showed a lot more work needed to be done.
His sophomore season didn’t get any better. Despite going 7-5 again, he threw for just 2,070 yards and 6 touchdowns compared to four interceptions.
Not showing the type of talent a first-rounder would have, Pittsburgh recently gave up on the young quarterback, sending him off to Philadelphia after signing Russell Wilson to a minimum contract.
Round 3, Pick 74: Desmond Ridder
No longer with Matt Ryan, the Atlanta Falcons hoped Ridder would be the next in line to lead the team back to the top of the NFC South. Coming out of the University of Cincinnati, he was a winner, having the third-most wins in school history. More notably, he was perfect as a starter (26-0) when playing at home.
With the quarterback competition down to Marcus Mariota vs. Ridder, the latter would only start just four games, leading the team to a 2-2 record. He threw for a total of 708 yards, two touchdowns, and no interceptions.
Improvement was expected in 2023. Head coach Arthur Smith appointed him as the team’s starter. But, things went downhill. He finished with just 2,836 yards, and threw just 12 touchdowns compared to 12 interceptions. Ridder led the team to a 6-7 record, his last game in a Falcon uniform being a 48-17 loss to the New Orleans Saints.
Recently, the Falcons went and signed Kirk Cousins from free agency to a four-year deal. You would think Ridder would be expendable, and you would be right. He was traded to the Arizona Cardinals, where he will back up Kyler Murray.
Round 3, Pick 86: Malik Willis
The Tennessee Titans wanted to find their QB of the future, as the miles on Ryan Tannehill were only going up. They took a chance on the young Willis, who was intriguing coming out of Liberty University.
His NFL future was doomed from the start. Starting in three games, he went 1-2 as a starter. He barely completed 50% of his passes as a rookie, throwing zero touchdowns compared to three interceptions.
Things got worse in 2023, as the team drafted Will Levis in the second round, marking the end of Willis’ chances of becoming a starter for the team ever again. He played in three games last year but didn’t do much throwing just 74 yards the entire year and nothing else.
He is currently still on the team, unlike the quarterbacks already mentioned. But, with Tennessee recently signing Mason Rudolph, it’s clear his future with the team could be running out soon.
Round 3, Pick 94: Matt Corral
Coming out of Ole Miss, the prospect was selected by the Carolina Panthers. More notably, they traded up for the young quarterback.
Corral’s quick release and work ethic are what stood out to him most. This is a guy that he knows won’t be ready from the day he lands in Carolina but with time, could become the face of the franchise for years to come.
SCHUYLER CALLIHAN of Sports Illustrated on Matt Corral
Well, he couldn’t have been more wrong. Corral never played a down and was instead released one year later. He is now in the UFL, playing for the Birmingham Stallions.
Round 4, Pick 137: Bailey Zappe
Unlike the previously mentioned quarterback, Zappe actually took foot on an NFL field and got playing time in the regular season. The New England Patriots drafted him, but not without fans and the media questioning them. After all, they already had Mac Jones (spoiler: he is somewhere else now) and Brian Hoyer as the backup. But, they viewed Zappe as a project and value to the position.
Well, Zappe got a chance to take the field when Jones missed three games in 2022 due to an injury. He played considerably well, even going undefeated in the two games he was a starter for.
Mac Jones came back for the week seven matchup against Chicago. But, as he played poorly, coach Bill Belichick threw Zappe back into the fire. He threw for 185 yards and a touchdown, but also had two interceptions. Unfortunately, he never step back on the field for the team again that year.
In 2023, Zappe appeared in 10 games and started in six of them. It was a rocky year, as he threw for 1,272 yards and six touchdowns but nine interceptions.
Zappe is currently still on the team, but will likely be the backup to whoever the Patriots select at quarterback with the third overall pick in this year’s draft.
Round 5, Pick 144: Sam Howell
The first player chosen in the fifth round, Howell appeared in 18 games for the Washington Commanders.
If there was a player that defined the word “mid”, it would be this guy. Howell threw 21 touchdowns and 21 interceptions last season despite nearly throwing for 4,000 yards. Yes, he was sacked a lot behind that offensive line. But, the interceptions are something that needs to be toned down.
Like most of the other quarterbacks in this draft, the team that drafted him moved on from him quickly, trading him to the Seattle Seahawks. It makes sense, considering the Commanders have the second overall pick in this year’s draft and will likely go quarterback.
Howell looks to rejuvenate himself in Seattle, where he will back up Geno Smith for the time being.
Other Quarterbacks In The 2022 Draft
- Chris Oladokun: drafted by Pittsburgh, 7th round. Currently with the Kansas City Chiefs.
- Skylar Thompson: drafted by Miami, 7th round. Appeared in a playoff game. Still in Miami.
Oh, and Brock Purdy
The best quarterback in that year’s draft. After injuries to Trey Lance and Jimmy Garoppolo occurred during his rookie season, Purdy stepped in beautifully. Starting in five games, he went undefeated and led the team to the NFC Championship (where he hurt his throwing elbow against the Eagles).
Purdy came back with a vengeance in 2023, going 12-4 as a starter while throwing 4,280 yards and 31 touchdowns. His QBR of 72.8 led the entire NFL and was fourth in MVP voting. Most importantly, he led the 49ers to the Super Bowl where he matched up against Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs. He played great, going 23/38 for 255 yards and a touchdown (no interceptions).
Unfortunately, his team fell 25-22 in overtime. But, Purdy’s career has been the best out of the quarterbacks in this draft class thus far. Mr. Irrelevant has made a name for himself.
Outside of Purdy, this 2022 class of quarterbacks is among the worst in NFL history. Let’s hope this year’s draft class does not follow the same path.
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