We all remember the old childhood playground axiom “First is the worst, second is the best,” but could #2 overall NFL draft picks like C.J. Stroud and Jayden Daniels be proving it's actually true? (We'll ignore “third is the one with the hairy chest” for now, no need for body-hair shaming in this particular discussion).
In the trend-happy executive quarters around the NFL, general managers and their teams are surely noticing the recent trend of second-overall quarterbacks like Stroud and Daniels performing far superior than their first overall-picked counterparts.
The Carolina Panthers have officially given up on last year's top overall pick, Bryce Young, after a slow start to the season. But it was already clear by the end of last season that #2 overall pick C.J. Stroud was by far the superior talent.
This year's top pick Caleb Williams came in with even more hype and fewer question marks than Young, but his road thus far has been substantially bumpy. The Bears were thought to be loaded with talent on the offensive side of the ball, and had hopes of Williams' excelling right away in the offense. He's shown flashes of potential but has also proven to be seriously rookie mistake-prone.
Meanwhile, this year's #2 overall pick, Jayden Daniels, looks like a bona fide superstar for the Washington Commanders right out of the gate (in much the same way that Stroud premiered for Houston). He's exciting, explosive and has already led his team on an epic last-minute drive to win the game against a perennially tough opponent in a dire must-win situation (the Bengals).
Last season's draft could have been seen as an anomaly, but now that it appears this year's is playing out in much the same way, it's time to view the results as more of a pattern.
The question now becomes why are the #2 overall QBs taken off the board outshining their top-picked cohorts? Stroud and Daniels might tell you they never should have gone #2 in the first place, but is there some benefit to being runner up in the draft class?
Is there a level of pressure and attention that comes with being the number one overall pick that number two picks aren't quite as subjected to? Put another way, are the second-picked QBs able to fly a little more under the radar and focus more on football, less on the weight of their expectations?
That's certainly a possibility. And if we broaden our search criteria a little further than the last couple seasons, the results are even more interesting. The two biggest surprises this season at quarterback (for better or worse, respectively) are most likely Sam Darnold and Trevor Lawrence.
Darnold has looked nearly flawless in leading the powerhouse Minnesota Vikings to a perfect 4-0 record. Lawrence, on the other hand, has looked anything but comfortable in the pocket, leading his Jacksonville Jaguars to a cellar-dwelling 0-4 start.
Darnold, while not the #2 overall pick, was the second quarterback taken of the 2018 NFL draft (he went third overall). And Lawrence was, you guessed it, #1 overall in the Class of 2021.
It's not all gloom and doom for these number one picks though. Leaving a bad first impression doesn't necessarily mean they'll be a complete draft bust. Alex Smith found success later in his career, after the pressure of expectations had subsided a bit. So has Baker Mayfield (who was the QB picked above Darnold in that 2018 draft).
C.J. Stroud might have taken some heat for his perceived “little bro-ing” of Caleb Williams after the Texans matchup with the Bears, but maybe when cooler heads prevail, Williams will take Stroud's words to heart and realize he should be soaking up everything the superstar quarterback has to say if he wants to make it in this league as well.
Regardless, one thing is certain — right now, in the ever-changing landscape of the NFL, it pays to be the #2 overall pick, if C.J. Stroud and Jayden Daniels are any indication.
Follow Us
Subscribe
