For the first time in NFL history, six quarterbacks were selected within the first 12 picks, which tied the record for an entire first round set in 1983.
Move over, 1983, and make room for the new gold standard of quarterback-heavy NFL draft classes.
For the first time in NFL history, six quarterbacks were selected within the first 12 picks, which tied the record for an entire first round set in 1983. Only time will tell whether this group has versions of Hall of Famers Dan Marino, John Elway and Jim Kelly or turns out more like the bust-laden quarterback classes of 1999 and 2021.
The Bears’ Caleb Williams, Commanders’ Jayden Daniels and Patriots’ Drake Maye started the party as the first three picks, respectively — as expected. The Patriots entertained trade offers from the Maye-interested Vikings and Giants but ultimately were the team that made it so that quarterbacks were the first three picks for just the fourth time in the modern draft era (1967), joining 1971, 1999 and 2021.
“We had some conversations with other teams, but ultimately we felt like Drake was the player we wanted and we had the opportunity to get him,” Patriots director of scouting Eliot Wolf said. “All along, we knew we were in a unique opportunity to get a quarterback we liked.”
All hell broke loose beginning at No. 8 when the Falcons, who just signed Kirk Cousins to a four-year, $180 million contract, stunned the league by drafting Michael Penix Jr. The injury-plagued Penix, 23, is widely considered ready to play but will sit the bench for a team that could have used a defensive starter to fulfill its playoff aspirations.
It is easy to imagine that a stunned Cousins feels misled about leaving the Vikings in free agency, especially given that NFL Network reported he was not given the courtesy of heads-up about the possibility.
