Philip Rivers is parting ways with the Chargers. He was one of four quarterbacks taken in the first round of the 2004 NFL Draft. Seventeen quarterbacks went in the draft, many of them having short and forgettable careers. A look at the QB Class of 2004.
Broncos: Bradlee Van Pelt (7th round, 250th overall)
Bradlee Van Pelt was 2-of-8 passing for seven yards. He also rushed for 48 yards and one touchdown.
Texans: B.J. Symons (7, 248)
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B.J. Symons (pictured wearing No. 2) played professionally for the Houston Texans and the Chicago Bears of the NFL, the Frankfurt Galaxy and Berlin Thunder in NFL Europe, and the Tampa Bay Storm of the Arena Football League.
Broncos: Matt Mauck (7, 225)
Matt Mauck came to the Broncos from LSU, where he won a national championship in 2003. He played professionally for the Denver Broncos and Tennessee Titans. He was 0-1 as a starter, threw one pick and for 136 yards.
Bengals: Casey Bramlet (7, 218)
Casey Bramlet was a member of the Washington Redskins, Atlanta Falcons, Miami Dolphins, San Diego Chargers, Baltimore Ravens and Winnipeg Blue Bombers. He was World Bowl XV Most Valuable Player with the Hamburg Sea Devils in 2007.
49ers: Cody Pickett (7, 217)
Cody Pickett made two starts for the Niners in 2005, losing both. He threw for his 195 yards in his short career with four picks.
Cardinals: John Navarre (7, 202)
John Navarre lost his lone start. He played with the Cardinals for two seasons and appeared in two games, throwing for 342 yards with a TD and five picks.
Rams: Jeff Smoker (6, 201)
In his second year, Jeff Smoker was beaten out of that position by former Harvard University quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick and was cut from the Rams at the end of the 2005 training camp. Smoker had no NFL stats.
Colts: Jim Sorgi (6, 193)
Jim Sorgi proved to be an adequate back-up to starting quarterback Peyton Manning. In his first season, Sorgi played against the Denver Broncos, throwing for 175 yards and two touchdowns. That was his only appearance that season. In the 2005 NFL season, he gained slightly more playing time, and completed 42-of-61 attempts for 444 yards. The bulk of his playing time in 2005 came against the Seattle Seahawks at the end of the regular season.
Ravens: Josh Harris (6, 187)
After a brief stay in Baltimore, Josh Harris went on to the Cleveland Browns for two seasons before he was released.
Eagles: Andy Hall (6, 185)
Andy Hall remained local, coming to the Eagles from Delaware. Hall spent two years with the Eagles. Before the 2005 season, he was allocated to the Rhein Fire of NFL Europe.
Bears: Craig Krenzel (5, 148)
Craig Krenzel was 3-2 as a starter for the Bears in his lone year in the NFL.
Browns: Luke McCown (4, 106)
Luke McCown stuck with Cleveland for one season. He was in the NFL from 2004-15, despite a break from ’05-07. He was 2-8 as a starter.
Falcons: Matt Schaub (3, 90)
Matt Schaub has played for four teams in a long career. He started a game for the Falcons in 2019 and was on the losing side. In 2009, as a Texan, he led the NFL with 4,770 yards passing.
Bills: J.P. Losman (1, 22)
J.P. Losman did not fare as well as the other first-round picks. He transferred to Tulane from UCLA in college. Losman was 10-23 as a starter in seven seasons. All his starts came for Buffalo before he went on to a journeyman’s odyssey.
Steelers: Ben Roethlisberger (1, 11)
Ben Roethlisberger is expected to return to action in 2020 after being sidelined due to injury last season. The No. 1 pick from Miami (OH) has thrown for 56,545 yards and 366 TDs.
Giants: Philip Rivers (1, 4)
Philip Rivers has moved his family to Florida and will be parting with the Los Angeles Chargers. The former No. 1 pick of the New York Giants went to the Bolts and had a strong career. Rivers threw for 59,271 yards and 397 TDs with the Chargers.
Chargers: Eli Manning (1, 1)
Eli Manning recently retired, citing his desire to be a one-team player, with the Giants. The two-time Super Bowl winner threw for more than 57,000 yards and 366 TDs.
