The 1983 rookie quarterback class
featured Dan Marino, John Elway, and Jim Kelly, all of whom would eventually be
enshrined into the NFL Hall of Fame. The 1983 class is thought to be the greatest
quarterback class of all-time. After watching the 2012 NFL Season, the 2012
rookie quarterback class will knock the 1983 class off their throne and become
the greatest quarterback class ever. These
rookie quarterbacks include Robert Griffin III, Andrew Luck, Russell Wilson,
Brandon Weeden, and Ryan Tannehill.
Indianapolis
Colts QB Andrew Luck had a lot of pressure on him during the 2012 season as he
had to replace Peyton Manning, who left Indianapolis for Denver. The #1 pick in
the 2012 NFL Draft received comparisons to John Elway as he was called the
greatest quarterback coming out of college since Elway. The Colts were 2-14 in
2011 but experienced an 11-5 season in Luck’s first season including a playoff
appearance. Luck broke the NFL record for most passing yards in a single season
by a rookie with 4,374 and also threw for 23 touchdowns. Luck showed all season
why he was the #1 pick in the draft and looked like a season veteran at points
including his seven fourth quarter comebacks. Although it is early in his
career, I think Luck has the ability to be a Hall of Famer and already has
Colts fans forgetting about Manning.
There was a
reason why the Washington Redskins traded up to the #2 spot. His name is Robert
Griffin III. “RG3” became the leader of the Redskins team that made the
playoffs for the first time since 2007. It was also their first division title
since 1999. Griffin threw for 3,200 yards and 20 touchdowns and ran for 815
yards and 7 touchdowns en route to being named the AP Offensive Rookie of the
Year. Although he had a successful year, Griffin suffered an LCL and ACL injury
during the NFC Wild Card Game against the Seahawks that required offseason
surgery. The big question on everyone’s mind is can Griffin come back from the
injury and be as successful as he was in 2012? Griffin will have to change up
his game a little and learn not to run as much even if he is a mobile
quarterback, but has the arm strength and accuracy to be one of the best
quarterbacks in the league.
Taken with
the 75th pick in the 2012 Draft, Russell Wilson was drafted to the
Seattle Seahawks to be the backup behind Matt Flynn. But Wilson had other ideas
and won the starting job during training camp. At 5’11”, Wilson dropped in the
draft because he didn’t have the typical “NFL quarterback size” but he showed
that quarterbacks under 6 feet can be successful. Wilson threw for over 3,100
yards in the regular season and also tied the NFL record set by Peyton Manning
for most passing touchdowns by a rookie in a single season with 26. In the
playoffs, Wilson led his team to victory in the Wild Card round against
Griffin’s Redskins before traveling to Atlanta to face the top seed Falcons.
Down by 20 after three quarters, Wilson led his team back to take the 28-27
lead with 31 seconds left. The Seahawks would eventually lose on a Matt Bryant
field goal but the game against the Falcons showed just how good Wilson is. He
is a great decision maker and is loved around the organization making him the
future of the team.
Ryan Tanneihill
and Brandon Weeden both helped to improve their teams’ records from the
previous year but if they want to become elite, they will have to work on their
decision making as they both had double-digit interceptions.
Dan Marino was the only quarterback from the '83 class to make it to the playoffs as a rookie. Griffin, Luck, and Wilson all made it to the playoffs this past year.There was
never a thought of a quarterback class being as good as the 1983 class but the
2012 class has already shown in one year that they have the tools to be the
best class ever.
images was used from fantasyfootballcounselor.com and bleacherreport.com
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