PHILADELPHIA, PA - DECEMBER 22: Carson Wentz #11 of the Philadelphia Eagles hugs Dak Prescott #4 of the Dallas Cowboys after the game at Lincoln Financial Field on December 22, 2019 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Eagles defeated the Cowboys 17-9. (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images)The 2016 NFL Draft was relatively quarterback-heavy, with the Los Angeles Rams taking Jared Goff No. 1, after making a big swap with the Tennessee Titans to land the pick. The Philadelphia Eagles swapped with the Cleveland Browns to move up to No. 2, selection Carson Wentz.
Goff has made a Super Bowl as the Rams starter, losing to the New England Patriots. The year before, Wentz got a ring with the Eagles, but he was out with torn ACL. Nick Foles led the team to the championship over the Patriots.
In the last few weeks, both of those quarterbacks have been traded after disappointing 2020 seasons. Goff led the Rams to the playoffs, but failed to take a major step forward in recent seasons. He was sent to the Detroit Lions, along with major draft capital, in a trade for Matthew Stafford. Carson Wentz, meanwhile, totally fell apart in 2020. Today, he was dealt to the Indianapolis Colts.
Amazingly, this leaves Dak Prescott, the fourth-round pick turned star for the Dallas Cowboys, as the final quarterback from that draft with the team that selected him. Those two sides have had their issues as well, and have been stuck in contract negotiations since 2019, and he played last year on the franchise tag. Still, it is by far the most stable relationship of any of the 2016 quarterbacks with the franchise that drafted them.
Dak Prescott is officially the only QB from the 2016 class who is still with the team that drafted him. https://t.co/Uejs33EdsA
— David Helman (@HelmanDC) February 18, 2021
Paxton Lynch, the Denver Broncos‘ first-round pick that year, has been out of the league since 2019. Christian Hackenberg, a New York Jets‘ second-rounder, was a famous flame-out.
Jacoby Brissett is one of the NFL’s better backup quarterbacks, starting his career with the New England Patriots but most recently playing for the Colts, Wentz’s new team.
Five other mid-and-late round quarterback picks are still hanging on in the league. Kevin Hogan (5th round, Kansas City Chiefs) and Brandon Allen (6th round, Jacksonville Jaguars) were both Cincinnati Bengals in 2020. Jake Rudock (6th round, Lions) is on the Miami Dolphins. Nate Sudfeld (6th round, Washington) infamously replaced Jalen Hurts in Week 17 for the Eagles. Jeff Driskel (6th round, San Francisco 49ers), was on the Denver Broncos.
Cody Kessler (3rd round, Browns), Connor Cook (4th round, Raiders), Cardale Jones (4th round, Buffalo Bills), and Brandon Doughty (7th round, Dolphins) are all out of the NFL as well.
This year’s NFL Draft is expected to be extremely quarterback heavy, and more teams are in need at the position than we’ve had in a long time. Hopefully, for the teams that invest heavily in the position at this year’s draft, it goes a little better than 2016.
