With the release of Andy Dalton by the Cincinnati Bengals Thursday, the way is paved for Joe Burrow to start at quarterback after being the No. 1 overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft. Once signed, he would be stepping into a team that was 2-14 last season. How have some of the other big names — and high draft picks — done in their rookie years?
Bob Griese
The fourth overall pick by the Miami Dolphins out of Purdue in 1967, Bob Griese went 3-7 as a starter with 15 TD passes against 18 interceptions. He completed 50.2% of his passes for 2,005 yards.
Greg Cook
Since there is a Cincinnati theme, we will harken back to Greg Cook, whom the Bengals drafted out of Cincinnati in 1969. He was 4-6-1 as a starter with 15 TD passes and 11 picks. His career was soon derailed by injury.
Terry Bradshaw
The first overall pick out of Louisiana Tech in 1970, Terry Bradshaw made eight starts for the Pittsburgh Steelers and went 3-5. He completed 83-of-218 passes with six for TDs and a league-leading 24 interceptions.
Jim Plunkett
The No. 1 pick out of Stanford in 1971, Jim Plunkett went to the New England Patriots. He was the immediate starter and went 6-8. Plunkett threw for 2,158 yards with 19 TDs and 16 picks.
Archie Manning
The New Orleans Saints grabbed Archie Manning second overall out of Ole Miss. He played in 12 games, going 3-5-2 as a starter with 1,164 yards. Manning threw six TD passes and 9 picks.
Steve Bartkowski
The No. 1 overall pick out of Cal in 1975, Steve Bartkowski went to the Atlanta Falcons. He was 4-7 as a starter, completing 45.1% of his passes with 13 TDs and 15 picks.
Richard Todd
The heir apparent to Joe Namath, Richard Todd was the sixth overall pick from Alabama in 1976. He threw 12 picks against three TD passes while going 2-4 as a starter.
Doug Williams
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers chose Doug Williams from Grambling in 1978 with the 17th overall pick. Williams was 4-6 as a rookie starter with seven TD passes and eight picks.
Phil Simms
The seventh overall pick out of Morehead State by the New York Giants in 1979, Phil Simms started 11 games, going 6-5. He threw for 1,743 yards with 13 TD passes and 14 picks.
Jim McMahon
The Chicago Bears made the fifth overall pick in 1982 and it was Jim McMahon from BYU. The rookie was 3-4 as a starter with nine TD passes and seven interceptions.
John Elway
John Elway forced his way to Denver after being the first overall pick by the Baltimore Colts in 1983. His rookie season was rough as the former Stanford star went 4-6 with seven TD passes and 14 picks.
Dan Marino
Six QBs were taken in the first round in 1983 and Dan Marino was the last of the bunch. He got off to a hot start, going 7-2 as a rookie with 20 TD passes against six picks.
Vinny Testaverde
The top overall pick out of Miami by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Vinny Testaverde was winless in four starts in 1987.
Troy Aikman
The Dallas Cowboys had the first pick in 1989 and used it on UCLA’s Troy Aikman. He was 0-11 as a starter with nine TD passes and 18 interceptions. He did complete 52,9% of his throws.
Jeff George
Jeff George was the first overall pick in 1990. The Colts had George start 12 games and he went 5-7 with 16 TD tosses and 13 picks.
Brett Favre
The Atlanta Falcons — not the Green Bay Packers — made Brett Favre the 33rd overall pick in 1991. He was the third QB taken behind Dan McGwire and Todd Marinovich. Favre made four throws as a rookie and completed none.
Drew Bledsoe
The Patriots went out West with the first pick in 1993, grabbing Drew Bledsoe from Washington State. He started 12 games as a rookie and went 5-7 with 15 TDs and 15 picks.
Peyton Manning
The prize of being first in the 1998 NFL Draft went to the Indianapolis Colts. They drafted Peyton Manning out of Tennessee. He was 3-13 as a rookie starter with 26 TD passes and 28 INTs. A quick study, Manning went 13-3 the next season.
Ryan Leaf
The San Diego Chargers took Ryan Leaf after Manning went to the Colts. The Washington State QB was 3-6 as a rookie with 2 TDs and 15 picks.
Michael Vick
The top pick out of Virginia Tech in 2001 was Michael Vick to the Atlanta Falcons. He started two games as a rookie, going 1-1 with two TD passes and three picks.
David Carr
The expansion Houston Texans took David Carr out of Fresno State in 2002. He was 4-12 with nine TD tosses and 15 picks. Oh, he was sacked 76 times.
Carson Palmer
The Bengals had a crack at the top pick in 2003. They took Heisman winner Carson Palmer out of USC. He went 6-7 as a rookie, throwing for 2,897 yards with 18 TD passes and the same number of picks.
Eli Manning
Eli Manning’s welcome to the Giants and the Big Apple was going 1-6 as a starter after Big Blue snagged his rights from the Chargers. The 2004 top pick completed 48,2% of his passes with six TDs and nine picks.
Philip Rivers
Philip Rivers went from the Giants to the Chargers in the Eli Manning deal. He sat behind Drew Brees as a rookie, seeing action in two games and going 5-for-8 passing.
Ben Roethlisberger
The 11th pick in 2004 was to the Steelers. They drafted Ben Roethlisberger and he went 13-0 as a rookie starter.
Alex Smith
The San Francisco 49ers selected Alex Smith from Utah with the first overall pick in 2005. He went 2-5 as a starter with one TD pass against 11 interceptions.
Aaron Rodgers
Taken 24th overall by Green Bay out of Cal, Aaron Rodgers sat as a rookie and in his second and third seasons behind Brett Favre. He completed 9-of-16 passes in 2005 with one interception.
Vince Young
The third pick out of Texas by Tennessee, Vince Young was 8-5 as a rookie with 2,199 yards passing. He threw 12 TDs against 13 picks.
JaMarcus Russell
The Raiders took an LSU QB first overall in 2007. JaMarcus Russell lost his only start as a rookie. Overall, two TD passes and four picks.
Matthew Stafford
Another SEC QB to go No. 1 overall was Georgia’s Matthew Stafford to the Lions in 2009. He went 2-8 with 13 TD passes and 20 picks.
Sam Bradford
The St. Louis Rams selected Sam Bradford from Oklahoma with high hopes. He was 7-9 in his first season with 18 TD passes, 15 picks, and 3,512 yards.
Tim Tebow
The Florida star went 25th to the Broncos and Tim Tebow made three starts while playing in nine games. He threw for 654 yards with five touchdowns and three picks.
Cam Newton
The No. 1 overall pick out of Auburn to the Carolina Panthers in 2011, Cam Newton was 6-10 as a rookie despite throwing for 4,051 yards with 21 TD passes against 17 picks.
Andrew Luck
Andrew Luck was 11-5 in his first three seasons with Indy after being taken No. 1 overall out of Stanford in 2012. He completed 54.1% of his passes as a rookie for 4,374 yards and threw 23 TD passes against 18 picks.
Jameis Winston
The top pick from Florida State to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Jameis Winston threw 22 TD passes against 15 interceptions while throwing for 4,042 yards and going 6-10 in 2015.
Jared Goff
The Rams took Jared Goff first overall in 2016. He went 0-7 as a starter with a handful of TD passes and seven picks.
Mitchell Trubisky
The Bears famously traded up to the two slot to select North Carolina Mitchell Trubisky in 2017. He went 4-8 with seven TD passes and seven picks.
Baker Mayfield
The Heisman winner out of Oklahoma went to the Cleveland Browns, who were moribund. Baker Mayfield took over midseason in 2018 and went 6-7 as a starter.
Lamar Jackson
The Ravens grabbed Lamar Jackson in the second round in 2018. The Heisman winner from Louisville took over for Joe Flacco and went 6-2 as a starter for Baltimore.
Kyler Murray
Another Heisman winner from Oklahoma, Kyler Murray went first to Oklahoma in 2019. He was 5-10-1 as a starter while throwing for 3,722 yards with 20 TDs and 12 picks.
