2022 rookie quarterback stats; Scott Turner is out

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January 11, 2023

by Steve Thomas

With Washington’s fan base now excited about the performance of rookie quarterback Sam Howell this past Sunday in the big victory over Dallas, I thought I’d take a brief moment to show everyone how the quarterbacks drafted in 2022 – including Howell – stacked up in year one.  How did Howell compare to his peers?  Without further ado, check out some numbers:

Round 1

Kenny Pickett (University of Pittsburgh), Steelers: 13 games, 12 starts, 389 attempts, 63.0% comp. percentage, 2404 yards, 7 TDs, 9 int, QB rating 76.7

Round 3

Desmond Ridder (University of Cincinnati), Falcons: 4 games, 4 starts, 115 attempts, 63.5% comp. percentage, 708 yards, 2 TDs, 0 int, QB rating 86.4

Malik Willis (Liberty), Titans: 8 games, 3 starts, 61 attempts, 50.8% comp. percentage, 276 yards, 0 TDs, 3 int, QB rating 42.8

Matt Corral (Ole Miss), Panthers: Did not play; placed on IR in preseason.

Round 4

Bailey Zappe (Western Kentucky), Patriots: 4 games, 2 starts, 92 attempts, 70.7% comp. percentage, 781 yards, 5 TDs, 3 int, QB rating 100.9

Round 5

Sam Howell (North Carolina), Washington: 1 game, 1 start, 19 attempts, 57.9% comp. percentage, 169 yards, 1 TD, 1 int, QB rating 83.0

Round 7

Chris Oladokun (South Dakota St.), drafted by Steelers but cut and re-signed to Chiefs practice squad: did not play

Skylar Thompson (Kansas St.), Dolphins: 7 games, 2 starts, 105 attempts, 57.1% comp. percentage, 534 yards, 1 TD, 3 int, QB rating 62.2

Brock Purdy (Iowa St.), 49ers: 9 games, 5 starts, 170 attempts, 67.1% comp. percentage, 1374 yards, 13 TDs, 4 int, QB rating 107.3

Unquestionably, Brock Purdy was obviously the one who overplayed his draft status; however, he also played on either the best or second-best team in the NFC, so his performance was bolstered by significant talent around him and a brutal defense.  The first round pick, Pickett, underwhelmed on a Steelers that was fairly mediocre by Pittsburgh standards.  The only other player who stood out on this list is Malik Willis, who was terrible in limited action and was replaced by 2017 fourth round pick Joshua Dobbs.

As for Howell, his raw stats from his one appearance weren’t impressive, but we all saw him command the field in a positive win and look like he belongs.  It remains to be seen whether he’s worthy of an increased role next year – perhaps even a shot at starting – but it was a solid appearance for the rookie and fine way for him to finish out the season.

On another note, in case you were out of pocket yesterday, Washington fired offensive coordinator Scott Turner:

We’ll have more on both Howell and Scott Turner, as well as his eventual replacement in the coming weeks.