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We are now nearly halfway through the 2024 NFL season, and a lot of young quarterbacks have been center stage during what has been an entertaining season. The 2024 NFL Draft was arguably the most stacked class at the quarterback position ever. The class was one of the rare drafts where five-plus quarterbacks were taken in the first-round. In fact, a league-record six signal-callers were selected within the first 32 picks.
Caleb Williams, Jayden Daniels, and Drake Maye were all viewed as generational prospects, and they were taken with the first three picks. After that, Michael Penix Jr. was taken eighth, J.J. McCarthy was selected 10th, and Bo Nix was drafted with the 12th pick. The majority of those quarterbacks have had a chance to put their skills on display already, and a quarterback drafted later has even seen field time, too.
In this article, we are going to rank how each of the rookie gunslingers has performed thus far. We aren't going to take into account projection, as some of these players can still improve down the road. McCarthy, for example, is out for the season with a meniscus injury, but the Minnesota Vikings still have high hopes for him. We are only going to rank the production of the rookies who have played so far, so check out the gallery below.
1. Jayden Daniels, Washington Commanders
Jayden Daniels won the Heisman Trophy in his last season of college football, but he didn't go first overall. Everyone loved his ability as a runner, and although he threw a nation-leading 40 touchdowns at LSU in 2023, some scouts had questions about how his arm would translate to the NFL level.
Daniels has answered all of those questions. The second overall pick is having one of the best rookie seasons ever for a quarterback. In fact, his numbers are historically good, even for veteran players. Daniels relied on the run early, as he rushed 16 times in his debut game. The rookie was effective on the ground, as he became the first quarterback ever with two rushing touchdowns and 80-plus yards in a debut game.
The LSU product then started showing off what he had with his arm. In Week 3, Daniels went 21-23 on his passes, which was the most accurate game for a first-year player ever. Daniels followed that up with another efficient game which made him the first player ever with an 85% completion percentage in back-to-back games.
Overall, Daniels had the best completion percentage ever (82.1) for a quarterback in a four-game span, and that isn't just rookies. He did that at the start of his career while having more scoring drives (23) than incompletions (19). Daniels' accuracy has been mesmerizing, and his ability as a winner/leader has been even more noticable.
The quarterback has led the Washington Commanders to a 6-2 record, which is something no one could have predicted coming into the year. He even completed a game-winning hail mary as time expired in Week 8 while battling through injury against the team of the only player who was drafted before him, Caleb Williams. The miraculous heave is the play of the year in the NFL season so far, and Daniels has demonstrated that many more memories and big plays will likely continue to happen throughout his career. Regardless, Daniels has clearly been the best rookie quarterback so far.
2. Caleb Williams, Chicago Bears
Before the NFL Draft, no one would have guessed that Caleb Williams wouldn't have been the best rookie quarterback halfway through his first season. The Chicago Bears took Williams first overall knowing that he was viewed as one of the most generational prospects ever.
Like most rookies, though, there have been growing pains. Williams didn't burst onto the scene as many expected. Instead, he got off to somewhat of a slow start despite the Bears surrounding him with weapons, including D.J. Moore, Keenan Allen, Cole Kmet, Gerald Everett, D'Andre Swift, and fellow first-round rookie Rome Odunze.
The USC product only put up 93 yards in Week 1 and 174 yards in Week 2, while the player drafted behind him was lighting up the stat sheet. Williams was seemingly getting more comfortable week in and week out, though, and that eventually led to his Week 6 breakout performance.
In that game, the Bears' signal-caller threw for four touchdown passes in what was the second straight week that his team scored over 35 points. Williams has looked more like the player we expected in recent weeks, and he very well can still become the best player in his draft class. There is enough time left in the season for Williams to make a run at the Rookie of the Year award, too.
Highlight plays haven't come as easy at the professional level as they did in college, but Williams clearly has some special traits that most quarterbacks don't possess. His arm talent is special, and his ability to work outside of a script to make big plays has already been evident. We aren't sure when it will be, and it might not be this season, but our guess is that Williams will surpass Daniels on this list at some point.
3. Bo Nix, Denver Broncos
Bo Nix was the last quarterback taken in the first round of this year's draft, but he was one of three who were named Week 1 starters. The Denver Broncos' youngster won a three-way quarterback battle during training camp with Jarrett Stidham and Zach Wilson, and he has had his ups and downs as a rookie.
The Oregon product's stats through the air are actually comparable to Williams' (1,530 yards and eight touchdowns to Williams' 1,448 yards and nine touchdowns), and he has been a better runner. Nix already has four rushing touchdowns, as he has shown an ability to evade incoming pass rushers and get downfield using his legs.
Nix has also been able to lead his team to some victories. Like the Commanders and Bears, the Broncos have more wins than expected (5-3). These factors actually give Nix a case as having a better rookie season thus far in comparison to the first overall pick, but we still give Williams the slight edge.
For most of the season, most of Nix's success came in the short game. Sean Payton utilized a dink and dunk-heavy offense, and Nix didn't show off much big play ability. He also had some real stinker games. It took until Week 4 for Nix to throw his first touchdown pass, and he only ended up going 12-25 for 60 yards in that game (although the weather played a factor).
Nix has looked more special in recent weeks. He has seven touchdowns to only one interception over the last four weeks. He even better showed off his arm strength with some deep balls in the Broncos' most recent dominant victory over the Carolina Panthers. The Panthers certainly are a bad team, but it was good to see Nix look closer to elite than mediocre in that game.
4. Drake Maye, New England Patriots
Drake Maye, the number three overall pick, wasn't named the Week 1 starter by the New England Patriots, which came as a shock to many. Instead, Jacoby Brissett started the first five games of the season. Brissett was clearly just a bridge option, though, and Maye was promoted in Week 6.
Maye was considered more of a raw prospect than his rookie peers, but his potential was just as high as any of them. He has a cannon for an arm, and many think he can be the next long-term Patriots gunslinger. His raw athleticism and skills were on display in his first two starts of the season.
In those games, Maye combined for 519 yards and five passing touchdowns. That two-game stretch was the best of any of the quarterbacks not named Daniels. Maye was quickly proving that he should have been starting from day one, but then he got injured in Week 8.
Maye suffered a concussion in the first quarter of that game, and he could be forced to miss time. Still, Maye was on the trajectory to quickly climb the ladder of rookie quarterback success.
5. Spencer Rattler, New Orleans Saints
After the six rookies were taken in the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft, no quarterback was selected until Spencer Rattler in the fifth round. In his amateur days, Rattler was viewed as one of the future faces of the NFL, but his collegiate career didn't go exactly according to plan.
Even so, Rattler has tons of potential, and he was given a chance to prove himself when Derek Carr went down with an injury. Rattler started three games, but he underwhelmed, and he was benched for Jake Haener. After a hot start, the New Orleans Saints have struggled recently. If they keep losing games, perhaps Rattler will have another chance to show that he deserves to be the Saints quarterback of the future.
6. Michael Penix Jr., Atlanta Falcons
Michael Penix Jr., like J.J. McCarthy, has yet to start a game this year. Unlike McCarthy, though, it isn't because of injury. Instead, Penix is glued to the bench and stuck in reserve duty because Kirk Cousins is ahead of him on the depth chart. Cousins' presence on the Atlanta Falcons' roster is what made the Penix draft selection so bizarre.
The Falcons gave Cousins a four-year, $180 million contract to be the franchise quarterback. That means that Penix might not get a shot for the better part of a half-decade. It isn't like he is a young rookie, either. The Washington product is already 24 years old, and he even has a history of injury issues.
We aren't here to criticize the Falcons' draft decisions, though. Penix ranks this low because he has barely seen the field. In fact, he only has one passing attempt. He did complete that pass for 14 yards, but it could be a long time until Penix can truly prove himself and justify the Falcons' decision to draft him so high. Penix's limited time on the field is why he ranks as the worst of the rookie quarterbacks (who qualify) so far.
