The eight teams remaining in the playoffs show just how important it is to prioritize the quarterback position when building a winning team.
All eight of the starting quarterbacks still in the playoffs were high draft picks, with seven going in the first round and one in the second.
Two of the remaining quarterbacks were first overall picks, who were traded for each other: Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford and Lions quarterback Jared Goff. The Lions took Stafford first overall in 2009, the Rams took Goff first overall in 2016, and they were traded for each other (with the Lions also getting two first-round picks) in 2021. With the Rams winning the Super Bowl in Stafford’s first season, and Goff leading the Lions to two of their best seasons in franchise history the last two years, that’s a trade that both teams are glad they made.
And the other six playoff teams are glad they drafted their quarterbacks when they did.
Washington’s Jayden Daniels was the second overall pick in 2024. Houston’s C.J. Stroud was the second overall pick in 2023. Buffalo’s Josh Allen was the seventh overall pick in 2018. Kansas City’s Patrick Mahomes was the 10th overall pick in 2017. Baltimore’s Lamar Jackson was the 32nd overall pick in 2018. Philadelphia’s Jalen Hurts, the only second-round pick, was the 53rd overall pick in 2020.
There’s more than one way to build a winner in the NFL, but there’s one move that matters more than anything else when building a roster: hitting on the right quarterback.
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