Will six quarterbacks be taken in round one for the first time since 1983? Well, seven teams picking in the top 13 could be hoping to draft one.
The Bears at No. 1 (Caleb Williams is a given), the Commanders at No. 2 (Jayden Daniels presumably, but they might have too many cooks in the kitchen to do the obvious thing), the Patriots at No. 3, the Giants at No. 6, the Vikings at No. 11, the Broncos at No. 12, and the Raiders at No. 13 are all believed to be thinking about taking a quarterback.
For the Bears and Commanders, it’s a no-brainer because they don’t have clear alternatives to start. The Patriots have Jacoby Brissett, who could in theory handle the job. The Vikings have Sam Darnold, the Broncos have Jarrett Stidham, and the Raiders have Gardner Minshew and Aidan O’Connell.
The one team that stands out is the Giants. They have Daniel Jones, a top-10 pick in 2019 who is on his second contract. The Giants also have no impact players at any of the offensive skill positions. It would be odd, to say the least, for them to take a quarterback now.
In past years, taking a quarterback high in the draft could provide insurance of sorts for the head coach and/or G.M. They won’t be fired until the new quarterback gets a chance to show what he can do.
But that didn’t save former Giants coach Pat Shurmur, who was fired a year after Jones was drafted. It also didn’t help the likes of Matt Nagy and Ryan Pace in Chicago, who were fired one year after trading up to pick quarterback Justin Fields.
That’s the balance the five teams other than the Bears and Commanders need to consider. Can they make it work with who they have, and how much better will the team be if the first-round pick is used on a different player? It’s a particularly important question for teams that might have to trade up to get the guy they want.
Regardless, there are currently seven teams that are considering quarterbacks. And six first-rounders. Someone won’t be getting one. How many will affirmatively choose not to try?
We’ll find out in nine days.
