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NFL Notebook Week 8: Midseason awards, Trade Deadline dud and more

By Zach Cohen

SANTA CLARA, CALIFORNIA - OCTOBER 27: Nick Bosa #97 and Solomon Thomas #94 of the San Francisco 49ers react after sacking Kyle Allen #7 of the Carolina Panthers (not pictured) during the second quarter at Levi's Stadium on October 27, 2019 in Santa Clara, California. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)
SANTA CLARA, CALIFORNIA - OCTOBER 27: Nick Bosa #97 and Solomon Thomas #94 of the San Francisco 49ers react after sacking Kyle Allen #7 of the Carolina Panthers (not pictured) during the second quarter at Levi's Stadium on October 27, 2019 in Santa Clara, California. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images) /
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JACKSONVILLE, FLORIDA – OCTOBER 27: Sam Darnold #14 of the New York Jets looks to pass during the second quarter of a game against the Jacksonville Jaguars at TIAA Bank Field on October 27, 2019 in Jacksonville, Florida. (Photo by James Gilbert/Getty Images)
JACKSONVILLE, FLORIDA – OCTOBER 27: Sam Darnold #14 of the New York Jets looks to pass during the second quarter of a game against the Jacksonville Jaguars at TIAA Bank Field on October 27, 2019 in Jacksonville, Florida. (Photo by James Gilbert/Getty Images) /

Fantasy Fixture

As the season rolls on, it’s only appropriate that every week I discuss a little about America’s new favorite pasttime: Fantasy Football.

With all the buzz on quarterbacks in the upcoming draft, I was curious how first-round passers since 2015 have fared in fantasy this year (per ESPN standard leagues).

I know fantasy football stats aren’t the holy grail of performance stats. However, it’s interesting that only two quarterbacks are top five in fantasy points this season. On top of that, only two (Goff and Wentz) of the past 16 first-round quarterbacks have reached the Super Bowl.

It usually takes three years to accurately judge a player, though demand for immediate success is larger than ever among young quarterbacks. Six of the top 10 fantasy quarterbacks were first-round picks, with only Kyler Murray and Matt Stafford being the first picks taken in their drafts.

What these numbers tell me is that, like with every draft, there will be hits and there will be misses with this upcoming crop of first-round quarterbacks. Here’s the full list of quarterbacks taken in the first round since 2015:

  • Kyler Murray: 8th-highest scoring quarterback/averaging 17.9 points per game
  • Daniel Jones: 21st/14.3
  • Dwayne Haskins: 58th/-0.1 (backup, thrown only 22 times)
  • Baker Mayfield: 26th/11.3
  • Sam Darnold: 35th/9.6
  • Josh Allen: 19th/17.3
  • Josh Rosen: 40th/3.6 (benched for Ryan Fitzpatrick)
  • Lamar Jackson: 3rd/25.1
  • Mitchell Trubisky: 29th/10.1
  • Deshaun Watson: 1st/24.4
  • Patrick Mahomes: 6th/18.8
  • Jared Goff: 14th/16.3
  • Carson Wentz: 12th/17.2
  • Paxton Lynch: Out of the league
  • Jameis Winston: 18th/17.7
  • Marcus Mariota: 25th/14 (benched for Ryan Tannehill)

It’s a bit all over the place but there are also far more shortcomings than you might expect.

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