Comparing Patrick Mahomes to the NFL’s rookie quarterback class
By Matt Conner
How does Kansas City Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes compare statistically to the rest of the NFL’s rookie quarterback class?
It’s always interesting to look back at an NFL draft class to see how certain players compare when the dust settles at particular points. It’s the reason why you’ll read so many “redraft” or “grade the draft” columns every offseason, as we want to contrast how players have fared against their classmates, so to speak, or how an entire class of performers did when compared against another particular year.
Patrick Mahomes of the Kansas City Chiefs is just one of several rookie quarterbacks getting a decent amount of playing time this preseason. While he’s going to sit the bench during the regular season, regardless of how he performs in the preseason, many of Mahomes’s colleagues will suit up for plenty of regular season action as well.
While it’s only a couple games played in the preseason, which is basically all meaningless football, we still wanted to see how the Chiefs rookie would stack up against his peers. Mahomes was the second quarterback drafted at No. 10 overall, just before Deshaun Watson went to the Houston Texans at No. 12 and 8 spots after the Chicago Bears selected Mitchell Trubisky.
Here’s a look at several rookie quarterbacks and their basic passing stats through two preseason games.
| Name | Comp. | Att. | Comp. % | Yards | TDs | INTs | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Patrick Mahomes | 17 | 23 | 73.9 | 137 | 3 | 0 | 128.1 |
| Deshaun Watson | 18 | 35 | 51.4 | 281 | 0 | 0 | 78.4 |
| Mitchell Trubisky | 24 | 33 | 72.7 | 226 | 2 | 0 | 111.4 |
| DeShone Kizer | 19 | 31 | 61.3 | 184 | 1 | 0 | 98.6 |
| Davis Webb | 8 | 16 | 50 | 67 | 0 | 0 | 61.2 |
| Nathan Peterman | 23 | 45 | 51.1 | 279 | 1 | 0 | 77.9 |
| Joshua Dobbs | 18 | 34 | 52.9 | 170 | 1 | 3 | 40.1 |
Joshua Dobbs earned an interview with the Chiefs and was rumored to be a potential mid-round target for the team, so it’s odd to see him having such a poor preseason, by far the worst of any rookie quarterback this preseason. His 3 interceptions lead the NFL with 8 players tied at 2 apiece.
Davis Webb has hardly played and didn’t even get in on the game this week against the Cleveland Browns. Instead Eli Manning played a few snaps and then Josh Johnson and Geno Smith took over. The Giants already know they’re keeping Webb as their long-term prospect but they’re still sorting out the No. 2 position on the depth chart, hence the reason to give two veterans playing time while leaving Webb, their third round pick, on the bench.
Peterman might be moving up the depth chart in Buffalo given the spotty play of Tyrod Taylor and the new leadership regime in power for the Bills. The only quarterback they have any ties to is Peterman, who was selected in the fifth round, and they’ve already traded last year’s QB prospect to the L.A. Chargers in the Cardale Jones deal.
Watson’s middling stats have clarified the quarterback picture in Houston, giving the starting nod to Tom Savage in an easier than expected competition. That’s not to say that Watson won’t eventually play but for now, it’s Savage’s show without much worry for quick replacement early in the season.
Mahomes certainly looks the part of a top 10 quarterback with such a strong completion percentage and red zone numbers. While Andy Reid says that Alex Smith is definitely the starter for this year, Mahomes is doing everything he can to not only earn playing time sooner than later but he’s making next year’s decision as easy as possible.