Tom Brady joining the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Drew Brees extending his contract with the New Orleans Saints. Philip Rivers leaving the Los Angeles Chargers to head to Indianapolis. When these players made their decision, the upcoming NFL season became indicatory for their career, and arguably their legacy.
However, in contrast to the already established names in the NFL, the younger generation of quarterbacks is not acquitted from facing pressure going into 2020.
Here are five quarterbacks, who entered the league since 2017, that are set to head into their make-or-break season.
5. Josh Rosen, Miami Dolphins, 3rd season
Do you remember when Josh Rosen was mentioned alongside Sam Darnold, Baker Mayfield and Josh Allen heading into the 2018 NFL Draft? There were a handful of mock drafts projecting him to go to the New York Giants at No. 2 to become the heir apparent to Eli Manning. Instead, Rosen fell to the Arizona Cardinals at No. 10.
“The Chosen One“ had a tough rookie season. While he was named the starting quarterback, he spent most of the time running from opposing pass rushers behind a struggling offensive line. In the end, the Cardinals decided to rebuild and Rosen was traded to Miami, a team searching for a long-term answer at quarterback. However, since then, Rosen continued to struggle, eventually being replaced by then 36-year-old Ryan Fitzpatrick.
2020 is a make-or-break year for the former No. 10 pick, who is going into his third season. Miami drafted Tua Tagovailoa with the No. 5 pick in the 2020 NFL Draft, further emphasizing the limited amount of faith the franchise has in Rosen to be the franchise quarterback going forward.
So, where does that put the former UCLA Bruin? The positive outcome would be him beating Tua for the starting job and having a future with the Dolphins, or convincing another franchise that he can be their franchise quarterback. The negative outcome could be that Rosen continues to struggle and finds himself as the back-up until his contract with the Dolphins is up after the 2021 season. Then, however, he would have played only a few meaningful games, three years into his career. Hard to imagine him finding a team that believes in him with a résumé like that.
If Josh Rosen seeks a future as a starting quarterback in the NFL, it is time for him to step up. It is time for him to prove he can be even close to what he was projected to be. Otherwise, “The Chosen One” might make the list of former first-round quarterbacks that never lived up to the hype and always played second fiddle.
4. Daniel Jones, New York Giants, 2nd season
It is going to be the first full season as the starter for the former first-round pick, who showed promising upside after taking over for the now-retired Eli Manning last season. However, there is a huge amount of pressure on Daniel Jones to produce heading into 2020.
Jones has played 13 games for the New York Giants so far. In those 13 games, he had 23 turnovers, and 11 of them were fumbles. The lack of pocket awareness is a real problem and not every quarterback has the ability to correct it. Just ask Kirk Cousins. Now, to be fair, Jones had 24 touchdowns, too.
Quarterbacks are expected to make their biggest jump from the first to the second season, mainly because of a full off-season to work on their rookie mistakes and build chemistry with skill position players and play-callers. Due to the COVID-19 situation and a change in the coaching staff, Jones cannot do that. Yet, he is expected to be better. Why? Because there are multiple jobs on the line next season in New York.
On paper, there are not many teams definitively less talented than the Giants. They have a tough schedule and play in the same division as the Super Bowl contending Dallas Cowboys and Philadelphia Eagles. So, what if the Giants finish with one of the worst records in the league for a fourth consecutive time? Surely, after the Pat Shurmur misstep, this would have been Dave Gettleman’s last chance to hire the right person for the head coaching job. So, assuming that the team did not show signs of improvement, also reflected in the team’s record, he would probably be released from his duties.
Where does that put Joe Judge, the guy that Gettleman hired? Hard to tell. On the one hand, Judge signed a five-year contract with the Giants. On the other hand, he is a rookie head coach, potentially not ready for a head coaching job in a market like New York, who worked under Bill Belichick, whose coordinators not exactly turned out to be great head coaches in years past. And it generally would make sense for the new general manager to bring in his own choice for a head coach, instead of sticking with the one hired under the previous regime.
Essentially, the Giants would rebuild. Again. They would have a high draft pick, a new general manager and new head coach. Neither of them drafted Daniel Jones or have worked with him before. So, unless Jones showed that he is undoubtedly a franchise quarterback, do you really think the Giants will pass on someone like Trevor Lawrence of Justin Fields if available?
3. Lamar Jackson, Baltimore Ravens, 3rd season
No doubt, Lamar Jackson had an incredible 2019 season, which was rightfully crowned with him unanimously winning the MVP trophy. He had 36 touchdowns, threw for over 3,000 yards and averaged over 1,200 yards rushing. “Not bad for a running back”, as Jackson himself said after throwing for five touchdown-passes in Week 1. Therefore, it is a pretty bold statement to say that the current MVP is one of the quarterbacks under the most pressure going into 2020.
In reality though, despite the great season that Jackson and the Baltimore Ravens had, they were not able to recreate the same success that they had in the regular season, losing 28–12 to the Tennessee Titans in the Divisional round of the playoffs. Jackson threw for 365 yards, rushed for 143, but the stats do not tell the entire story. The Titans had seen through the Ravens game plan, allowing Jackson to do his thing without putting many points on the board.
Sure, it is not fair to put the loss entirely on one player, especially since Jackson did not play his worst game by any means. However, the way Baltimore’s season ended begs the question of whether Jackson’s success was indeed the start of something great … or just a fluke. And it would not be the first time we saw a quarterback dominate the NFL for one season before falling back into the pile of mediocrity.
The Ravens had a strong off-season, improving their already stacked roster and adding more depth to it. Therefore, there is no reason (aside from injuries, of course) why Baltimore should not compete for the Super Bowl next season.
Lamar Jackson has the talent and the players around him to be successful. Plus, the offense is built around his style of play. Now, he needs to prove that he is as good as we think he is.
2. Mitch Trubisky, Chicago Bears, 4th season
Honestly, this one is a no-brainer and everyone knows it. In the 2017 NFL Draft, the Chicago Bears traded up to draft Mitch Trubisky who they made out to be their franchise quarterback. Three years later, the only thing history remembers is the Bears choosing Trubisky over two of the best quarterbacks currently playing, Deshaun Watson and Patrick Mahomes.
Of course, it is not Trubisky’s fault that Chicago traded up for him and thus passed on two quarterbacks who turned out to be elite. On the other hand, the 26-year-old did not do much to help his case. Last season, the Bears offense was ranked 29th, averaging around 200 passing yards per game.
Trubisky struggled throughout the entire season, making the same mistakes as in his rookie season and relying on his first read most of the time. Once his first read was not there, or the play broke down, Trubisky looked helpless. Granted, head coach Matt Nagy did not have the best season either. However, Trubisky is in no position to put the blame on anyone but himself.
After declining his fifth-year option and trading for Super Bowl winning quarterback Nick Foles, the Bears sent a message to Mitch Trubisky. If he does not perform in 2020, his time with the team may very well be over. Chicago has one of the best defenses in the NFL and is built to win now.
If Trubisky can not play his part in contributing to that, he might even find himself on the bench before the 2020 season ends.
1. Baker Mayfield, Cleveland Browns, 3rd season
When the Cleveland Browns drafted Baker Mayfield with the first overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft, people were quick to compare him to another former first-round pick, Johnny Manziel. Polarizing, talented, yet always on the verge of self-adulation. In retrospect, Mayfield is a far better football player than Manziel and, despite his antics, not even close to the headache that Manziel was.
Nevertheless, the pressure for Baker Mayfield is real heading into 2020. After taking over for Tyrod Taylor in Week 3 of the 2018 season, Mayfield threw for over 3,700 yards with 27 touchdowns, surpassing Peyton Manning and Russell Wilson for most touchdowns passes in a rookie season. By this point, the Browns seemed to have found their answer at quarterback.
Consequently, Cleveland made use of the fact that Mayfield was playing under his rookie contract and acquired Odell Beckham Jr. to strengthen the already stacked roster. In Freddie Kitchens, they even got Mayfield the head coach he was comfortable with. The Browns were considered Super Bowl contenders before the season, just to immensely underperform and finish with a 6-10 record. Compared to his rookie year, Mayfield finished with five fever touchdowns, despite playing three more games and never found his consistency.
One could argue Mayfield was the victim of circumstances last season. Kitchens was not ready to be a head coach in the NFL, the offensive line could not compensate losing Kevin Zeitler and force-feeding Odell Beckham Jr. to make him happy about being in Cleveland, instead of New York or Los Angeles, was foredoomed to fail. Still, none of these excuses is of any validity going into 2020.
The Browns hired a new head coach in Kevin Stefanski, who proved himself as an offensive coordinator with the Vikings. The offensive line was addressed with the additions of free agent Jack Conklin and first-round pick Jedrick Wills. And there will surely be no more force-feeding any of the high-profile players on the team.
Consequently, the pressure is on Baker Mayfield to produce. The Browns surrounded him with a loaded roster and a competent coaching staff, so they can find out whether he is the Browns’ future under center. With players like Landry and Beckham on the payroll, plus extensions of franchise cornerstones coming up, 2020 is a make-or-break season – for Cleveland and Baker Mayfield.
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