NFL Week 1: Zero rookie quarterbacks will start in opening week for the first time since 2007

The incoming quarterback class was not considered by pundits to be one of the the most elite groups in recent memory. While there are several signal-callers with legitimate starting potential, there were not any quarterbacks that teams felt comfortable trading multiple first-round picks for such as we saw last year. In fact, as Pro Football Talk points out, this week will be the first time since 2007 where no rookie quarterbacks will start the season opener.

Two quarterbacks were selected in the first round of the 2007 NFL Draft: JaMarcus Russell at No. 1 overall to the then-Oakland Raiders, and Brady Quinn at No. 22 overall to the Cleveland Browns. Neither started Week 1 of their rookie seasons. Kevin Kolb, John Beck and Drew Stanton were the three quarterbacks selected in the second round that year, and none of them got the starting nod Week 1 either.

The majority of 2022 NFL mock drafts featured two to three quarterbacks being selected in the first round. When draft night came around, however, only one Day 1 quarterback was selected in Kenny Pickett at No. 20 overall to the Pittsburgh Steelers. To the surprise of virtually everyone, no quarterbacks were selected in the second round, as Desmond Ridder, Malik Willis and Matt Corral fell to Day 3. 

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Pickett and Ridder were seen as the two quarterbacks that had the best chances to start Week 1 -- although they both were facing uphill battles. Pickett took part in a three-way competition with veterans Mitchell Trubisky and Mason Rudolph, while Ridder was battling Marcus Mariota -- who has a personal relationship with Atlanta Falcons head coach Arthur Smith. Both the Steelers and Falcons targeted quarterbacks in free agency months before the 2022 NFL Draft, and both of those free-agent additions will be starting for their respective teams this Sunday.