When you select a quarterback in the first round of the draft, it's widely assumed and hoped that the player will be with the franchise for the foreseeable future. However, that's not always the case and, in light of the Carson Wentz trade to Indianapolis, there appears to be a rather significant dead zone in franchise quarterbacks sticking with their first clubs in recent history.
As Field Yates of ESPN highlighted in the aftermath of the Wentz trade, there are now zero quarterbacks taken in the first round between 2009 and 2016 that are still with their original teams. In all, there were 22 quarterbacks taken over that stretch and Wentz (No. 2 overall in 2016) was the final signal-caller standing with the club that brought him into the league.
Here's a look at all those quarterbacks and what their situation is currently:
- 2009 NFL Draft: Matthew Stafford, Lions (now with the Rams); Mark Sanchez, Jets (retired); Josh Freeman, Buccaneers (retired).
- 2010 NFL Draft: Sam Bradford, Rams (retired); Tim Tebow, Broncos (retired).
- 2011 NFL Draft: Cam Newton, Panthers (spent 2020 with the Patriots); Jake Locker, Titans (retired); Blaine Gabbert, Jaguars (now with the Buccaneers); Christian Ponder, Vikings (retired).
- 2012 NFL Draft: Andrew Luck, Colts (retired); Robert Griffin III, Washington (spent 2020 with the Ravens); Ryan Tannehill, Dolphins (now with the Titans); Brandon Weeden, Browns (retired).
- 2013 NFL Draft: EJ Manuel, Bills (retired).
- 2014 NFL Draft: Blake Bortles, Jaguars (now with the Rams); Johnny Manziel, Browns (retired); Teddy Bridgewater, Vikings (now with the Panthers).
- 2015 NFL Draft: Jameis Winston, Buccaneers (now with the Saints); Marcus Mariota, Titans (now with the Raiders)
- 2016 NFL Draft: Jared Goff, Rams (now with the Lions); Carson Wentz, Eagles (now with the Colts); Paxton Lynch, Broncos (retired).
This primarily shows you that even when you do hit on a quarterback pick like the Lions did with Stafford, the Panthers did with Newton, or how Indianapolis did with Luck, that's sometimes only half the equation. Teams also need to build a winning squad around them or -- in the case of Stafford -- they'll eventually want to land with a winning organization or -- like Luck -- call it quits earlier than most expect.
That trend looks like it'll somewhat continue as we turn our attention to the 2017 draft class. Mitchell Trubisky (taken No. 2 overall by the Chicago Bears) is entering unrestricted free agency and Deshaun Watson (No. 12 overall by the Houston Texans) is asking for a trade. The only first-round QB from that class who seems solidified in his original situation is Patrick Mahomes, who signed a 10-year extension with the Chiefs last offseason.
