The 2018 NFL draft was chock-full of quarterbacks.
Baker Mayfield, Sam Darnold, Josh Allen, and Josh Rosen all went in the top-10, while Lamar Jackson closed out the first round as the 32nd overall pick. The Jets were among those to take a QB, moving up from sixth overall to select Darnold at No. 3.
There was a bit of contention as to where all five should go in the draft. Some analysts said Darnold was the best, others touted Mayfield, and a few liked the other three more. But now that two full seasons have passed for these young quarterbacks, we can begin to evaluate their performances. All five have had varying degrees of success. Ironically, the last one taken in the first round, Jackson, has more playoff appearances than the other four combined and is the 2019 MVP frontrunner.
Two seasons is not enough to write the book on any of these signal-callers, but it’s a glimpse into their futures in the league. With that said, here’s how the five first-round quarterbacks in the 2018 NFL draft fared since coming into the league.
Baker Mayfield – 1st overall, Browns
The Browns surprised some when they took Mayfield with the first overall pick, especially when they waited until Week 3 to start him. Once he played, though, Mayfield showed everyone why he went No. 1, breaking an NFL rookie record with 27 passing touchdowns. He went 7-8-1 (the fewest losses for a Browns team since 2007) with 3,725 passing yards.
Much was expected of Mayfield in his sophomore season, especially with a loaded offense with Odell Beckham Jr., Jarvis Landry, Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt, but he only went 6-10 and failed to make the playoffs. Mayfield also threw fewer touchdowns (22) and more interceptions (21) than he did as a rookie.
Career totals:
12-17 regular-season record
7,552 passing yards
49 passing touchdowns
35 interceptions
Sam Darnold – 3rd overall, Jets
Darnold fell to the Jets at No. 3 when the Giants took Saquon Barkley second overall and started Week 1 of the 2018 season. He had an up and down rookie season marred by turnovers, and he missed three games with a foot injury. Darnold finished his rookie season 4-9 with 2,865 passing yards, 17 touchdowns and 15 interceptions.
Similarly to Mayfield, Darnold looked to build off a solid rookie season with the addition of a new offensive coach in Adam Gase and additional skill position players Le’Veon Bell and Jamison Crowder. Darnold also failed to live up to his expectations, though, thanks to a three-week absence battling mono and a bad offensive line. He improved slightly, though, going 7-6 with 3,024 passing yards and 19 touchdowns, but he also turned the ball over 16 times.
Career totals:
11-15 regular-season record
5,889 passing yards
36 passing touchdowns
28 interceptions
Josh Allen – 8th overall, Bills
Allen showed the league he was a dual-threat quarterback after the Bills took him No. 8 overall. With his incredible arm strength and mobility, he scored almost as many passing touchdowns (10) as rushing touchdowns (8) and finished with 2,705 total yards. He did turn the ball over 15 times, though, and finished with a 5-6 record as a rookie.
Allen saw a huge jump in 2019 as the Bills raced to a 10-6 record. The sophomore quarterback scored 20 passing touchdowns, nine rushing touchdowns, threw for 3,089 yards and rushed for another 510. He also reached his first postseason but failed to beat the Texans after building an early lead.
Career totals:
15-2 regular-season record
0-1 playoff record
5,163 passing yards
1,141 rushing yards
47 total touchdowns (30 passing, 17 rushing)
21 interceptions
Josh Rosen – 10th overall, Cardinals
Rosen has had the worst career of the five first-round quarterbacks. After the Cardinals took him 10th overall, Rosen went 3-10 as a starter for 2018’s worst team. He finished with 2,278 passing yards, 11 touchdowns, 14 interceptions and a whopping 45 sacks.
When the Cardinals took Kyler Murray first overall in the 2019 draft, Arizona traded him to the Dolphins for a second-round pick, but he couldn’t even hold down the job in Miami. Rosen saw the field five times in 2019 with three starts but eventually ceded the QB1 role back to Ryan Fitzpatrick in Week 10 and never played again. Rosen finished 2019 with 567 passing yards, one passing touchdown, five interceptions and an 0-3 record (he lost the two games he didn’t start, too). There’s no telling where Rosen will play in 2020 depending on who the Dolphins draft.
Career totals:
15-2 regular-season record
5,163 passing yards
1,141 rushing yards
47 total touchdowns (30 passing, 17 rushing)
21 interceptions
Lamar Jackson – 32nd overall, Ravens
No one knew what to do with Jackson during the 2018 draft. All 32 teams passed on him, including the Ravens, who traded back into the first round to grab him with the 32nd pick. Jackson played well enough during his rookie season to take over for Joe Flacco in Week 10, but he burst onto the NFL scene in 2019 as the likely MVP with 54 total touchdowns.
Jackson went 6-1 as a starter in 2018 and followed it up with a 14-2 record in 2019. He finished this past season with 3,127 total yards, including an NFL-record 1,206 rushing yards for a quarterback. Though he made the postseason the past two years, his 2019 season ended similarly to his 2018 one. Jackson’s Ravens failed to beat the Chargers in 2018 and then his 508 total yards weren’t enough to beat the Titans in the NFL Divisional Round in 2019.
Career totals:
15-2 regular-season record
0-2 playoff record
6,229 passing yards
1,901 rushing yards
95 total touchdowns (83 passing, 12 rushing)
9 interceptions
