NFL Draft quarterback mistakes that shaped league landscape in 2025

An NFL squad is acold much apt to marque a mistake erstwhile drafting a backmost than they are to marque the close pick. 

And often enough, teams marque an arsenic atrocious mistake erstwhile passing connected a quarterback, letting him autumn and beryllium taken by rivals that past predominate the teams that passed connected him for galore seasons to come.

The past 8 drafts person featured an yearly frenzy of these mistakes, costing wide managers their jobs and galore passionate fans their sleep.

These mistakes are among the astir consequential moments that person shaped the existent NFL hierarchy.

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2017 Draft - 10 teams walk connected Patrick Mahomes, Bears prime Mitch Trubisky

The Kansas City Chiefs selected Patrick Mahomes of Texas Tech with the 10th prime successful the 2017 NFL Draft connected April 27, 2017, successful Philadelphia. (Rich Graessle/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

The seeds of the NFL's existent and preeminent dynasty, the Kansas City Chiefs, were planted successful 2017 erstwhile 10 teams passed connected Patrick Mahomes. 

The Browns, Bears, 49ers, Jaguars, Titans, Jets, Chargers, Panthers and Bengals each decided Mahomes wasn't worthy their first-round pick, earlier helium fell to the Bills astatine 10.

The Bills besides made the determination not to instrumentality Mahomes, but to marque things worse for themselves for the adjacent 8 years, they agreed to commercialized their prime to the Chiefs. The Bills would get their franchise backmost a twelvemonth later, but sending Mahomes to Kansas City acceptable up the Chiefs to bushed the Bills successful 4 consecutive playoff games since then. 

But astatine slightest the Bills got thing retired of it successful the trade. The Bears were the lone different squad bold capable to instrumentality a backmost successful the apical 10 but utilized their prime connected Mitchell Trubisky, who was retired of Chicago aft conscionable 4 seasons. 

Meanwhile, nary of the different 8 teams that passed connected Mahomes presently person a backmost with a azygous MVP grant oregon Super Bowl ring, fto unsocial thing comparable to Mahomes' 2 MVPs and 3 title rings. 

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2018 Draft - 2 QBs taken earlier Josh Allen; 4 QBs, 31 picks taken earlier Lamar Jackson

The existent procreation of large NFL quarterbacks began to instrumentality signifier successful 2018, erstwhile Josh Allen and Lamar Jackson joined Mahomes successful the NFL. 

But earlier either of those 2 MVPs were taken, a drawstring of franchise-soiling mistakes had to hap first. 

The Browns utilized the No. 1 prime that twelvemonth connected Baker Mayfield, which came arsenic a astonishment to many. Mayfield didn't extremity up being the biggest mistake of that draft, starring Cleveland to its archetypal playoff win. But successful hindsight, passing connected Allen and Jackson near the Browns with plentifulness of second-guessing since then, particularly present with Mayfield gone and their backmost concern uncertain. 

New York Jets backmost Sam Darnold

The Jets whitethorn person gotten adjacent little retired of their determination to walk connected Allen and Jackson with the determination to instrumentality Sam Darnold. Darnold ne'er came adjacent to sniffing the playoffs successful conscionable 3 seasons with the Jets, and helium was much remembered for infamously "seeing ghosts" successful a mediocre show successful 2019.

On apical of that, letting Allen upwind up successful Buffalo gave the Jets their adjacent large bully arsenic soon arsenic they were coming to the extremity of having to woody with Tom Brady successful New England.

But the squad with the biggest backmost blunder from 2018 was the Arizona Cardinals, who made the determination to commercialized up to the No. 10 prime to instrumentality Josh Rosen. Allen was already gone astatine that constituent aft the Bills traded up to No. 7 to get him, but the Cardinal's determination to concede for Rosen yielded 1 of the lowliest returns of immoderate trade-up for a backmost successful caller history. 

Rosen lasted 1 play successful Arizona, going 3-10 arsenic a starter earlier helium was ousted and had to settee for backup and signifier squad roles up until 2022.

Meanwhile, plentifulness of different teams made the mistake of not taking Jackson aft that, and helium fell each the mode to the last prime of the archetypal circular earlier the Ravens traded backmost into the circular to unafraid their aboriginal MVP. 

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2019 Draft - Giants prime Daniel Jones, then-Redskins instrumentality Dwayne Haskins

The Cardinals were rewarded for the Josh Rosen blunder with the worst grounds successful the NFL successful 2018 and the No. 1 prime successful the 2019 draft.

They took Kyler Murray, and they genuinely couldn't person done immoderate amended successful presumption of quarterbacks for that year's draft. Still, Murray hasn't travel adjacent to being the benignant of backmost that Jackson is, had they picked Jackson implicit Rosen a twelvemonth earlier. 

With Murray disconnected the board, the different teams were near picking from the leftovers of a precise mediocre draught people for QBs, arsenic past has shown. 

The Giants took Daniel Jones astatine No. 6. In 2018, the Giants were 1 of the galore teams to marque the mistake of passing connected Allen and Jackson, for the involvement of gathering astir Eli Manning for astatine slightest 1 much year. 

By the 2019 draft, they had to wantonness that imaginativeness and scrambled to find a replacement. So they ended up with Jones. And, to beryllium fair, the Giants couldn't person done overmuch amended successful that year's class. 

Many critics initially believed the Giants had made the mistake of that year's QB picks by taking Jones implicit the precocious Dwayne Haskins. 

New York Giants quarterbacks Daniel Jones (8) and Eli Manning (Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports)

But the Redskins' enactment of Haskins proved to beryllium an adjacent smaller summation arsenic the Ohio State prima lasted lone 2 seasons successful Washington. Haskins died successful April 2022 aft getting deed by a conveyance connected the road. 

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Jones lasted 5 and a fractional seasons successful New York, winning a playoff crippled and signing a 2nd contract. But his often-losing and injured tendencies, and deficiency of a Pro Bowl, weren't capable to chopped it overmuch further than that. His stint with the Giants ended halfway done the 2024 play erstwhile helium and the squad mutually agreed to portion ways. 

Simply put, some Washington and the Giants whitethorn person been amended disconnected not taking a backmost astatine each successful 2019.

2020 Draft - The Jalen Hurts debate

One of the rarer drafts successful caller times erstwhile the apical backmost taken tin beryllium acknowledged arsenic the champion prime came successful 2020. 

The Bengals took Joe Burrow aft 1 of the astir decorated assemblage careers of each time. And aft an injury-plagued rookie year, Burrow joined the institution of this generation's premier quarterbacks close away. 

But the existent second-best backmost of that draught is inactive up for debate. 

The Chargers' prime of Justin Herbert and the Dolphins' prime of Tua Tagovailoa gave each franchise their existent prima quarterbacks, and some person made the playoffs.

But those teams besides person the favoritism of passing connected Jalen Hurts, who has won a Super Bowl and played successful different with the Eagles, portion Herbert and Tagovailoa person yet to triumph a azygous playoff game. 

However, some Tagovailoa and particularly Herbert person amended mean passing numbers than Hurts and mostly person a larger relation connected offense. 

Thus, the Chargers' and Dolphins' determination to walk connected Herbert whitethorn beryllium considered questionable alternatively than a full-blown mistake. 

Still, the Eagles won the worth conflict by getting Hurts successful the 2nd round. Philadelphia has managed its resources to physique a halfway that has outperformed immoderate different squad that picked a backmost successful 2020, adjacent Burrow's Bengals.

2021 Draft - 49ers, Jets, Bears, Patriots get backup prime with premium picks

Like 2020, the 2021 draught is besides 1 wherever the apical backmost taken tin beryllium considered the best. But successful 2021, the modular for that rubric was much, overmuch lower. 

And similar successful 2019, each those teams that picked quarterbacks aft No. 1 wide would apt person been amended disconnected conscionable taking a presumption subordinate instead. 

After the Jaguars took Trevor Lawrence, who has panned retired to beryllium a decent franchise backmost but abbreviated of the generational luster experts promised, determination are nary QB picks that tin beryllium considered palmy starters.

Zach Wilson didn't adjacent execute mean prime play with the Jets and someway provided much arsenic a backup to Aaron Rodgers than a full-time starter. 

Trey Lance hardly played for the 49ers astatine all. In fact, the 49ers' prime of Lance whitethorn person had the biggest interaction connected caller NFL past of immoderate backmost successful 2021 due to the fact that it outgo them a accidental to draught a subordinate who whitethorn person changed the result of their heavy playoff runs successful 2021, 2022 and 2023.

North Dakota State backmost Trey Lance (AP Photo/Tony Dejak)

The Bears gave up an eventual top-10 prime to commercialized up to No. 11 and instrumentality Justin Fields, but Fields' tenure successful Chicago ended aft conscionable 3 seasons erstwhile they abruptly got the accidental to get a amended prospect. 

The Patriots' enactment of Mac Jones astatine No. 15 was astatine slightest a higher-value pick, getting a Pro Bowl motion and a playoff berth retired of it. But his days arsenic a starter ended aft little than 3 seasons arsenic well. 

2022 Draft - The Brock Purdy debate

The lone backmost worthy mentioning to travel retired of the 2022 draught people was the last pick, Brock Purdy. 

After whiffing with Lance a twelvemonth earlier, the 49ers took a low-risk accidental connected Purdy with the No. 262 pick. And aft a bid of injuries to Lance and Jimmy Garoppolo, Purdy emerged arsenic the main antheral connected a 49ers squad with realistic Super Bowl aspirations and past a Super Bowl quality successful 2023. 

The comparisons to Tom Brady began immediately. Still, nary 1 seems to speech astir the agony of passing connected Brock Purdy rather the aforesaid mode they bash astir Brady … astatine slightest not yet.

2023 Draft - Panthers walk connected CJ Stroud, sacrifice more-valued No 1 prime to get Bryce Young

Bryce Young poses with NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell (David Eulitt/Getty Images)

Scouts said Bryce Young whitethorn person been excessively tiny coming retired of college. And Young proved them close passim the archetypal twelvemonth and a fractional of his NFL career. 

Young played truthful poorly for the Panthers arsenic a rookie that the first-round prime they traded to determination up to No. 1 and get him ended up being the No. 1 prime the pursuing twelvemonth for the Bears.

The Bears past utilized that prime to instrumentality a overmuch much highly coveted imaginable successful Caleb Williams. 

It was an assertive commercialized that the Panthers had the accidental to marque wage off, but they decided to walk connected C.J. Stroud for Young. 

Panthers fans had to ticker Stroud excel arsenic a rookie of the twelvemonth each portion their ain losing would simply each beryllium to the payment of the Bears. 

To beryllium fair, Young turned things astir a spot astatine the extremity of his 2nd season. But until further notice, the Panthers' determination is connected way to perchance beryllium 1 of the bigger QB draught blunders successful league history.

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2024 Draft - Too soon to call, but truthful acold Washington is winning the race

Williams showed flashes of his generational luster arsenic a rookie successful 2024 but yet paled successful examination to the backmost who was taken 2 picks aft him successful Jaden Daniels. 

After Daniels led Washington each the mode to the NFC rubric crippled arsenic a rookie of the year, Williams has a batch to unrecorded up to successful bid to warrant being taken up of him.

Now, Washington is poised to perchance beryllium 1 of the astir transcendent teams successful 2025, and Daniels could soon marque his ain people connected NFL past the mode Mahomes, Allen, Jackson, Burrow and Hurts have. 

And if different twelvemonth similar 2024 goes by for Washington and Chicago, the speech astir Williams and Daniels could soon beryllium precise akin to the 1 that has been had astir Young and Stroud.

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