# NFL 2020: Week 15

**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-2020-week-15/928265
**Category:** The Game Room
**Created:** [December 17, 2020, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-2020-week-15/928265 "2020-12-17T15:59:07Z")
**Posts on this page:** 3
**Page:** 3

<div class="post-metadata">

### Author: ![Railer13](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/railer13/32/9742_2.png) [@Railer13](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Railer13)
#### Post date: [December 23, 2020, 3:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-2020-week-15/928265/41 "2020-12-23T15:43:53Z")

</div>

> [@Chisquirrel](#):
>
> Plugged it all in to the [playoff machine](http://www.espn.com/nfl/playoffs/machine) and it checks out

I did the same thing after I posted. I didn’t take it as far as you did, however. I was quite surprised to see that the Steelers still have an outside shot at the #1 seed.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

### Author: ![FlikTheBlue](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fliktheblue/32/10972_2.png) [@FlikTheBlue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FlikTheBlue)
#### Post date: [December 24, 2020, 4:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-2020-week-15/928265/42 "2020-12-24T04:03:15Z")

</div>

> [@Hamlet](#):
>
> Or QB’s are just getting older and teams want shiny new toys. I’ve heard it both ways.

As a casual fan, it does seem that there is a lack of good QBs in the “prime” age range. There’s the old veterans in their late 30s to 40s like Brees, Brady, Rodgers, Rivers, and Roethlisberger. There’s a bunch of young guys like in their early to mid 20s like Mahomes, Jackson, Watson, Mayfield, Jones, Murray, Burrow, Lock, and so on. But there seems to be a lack of quality QBs in their late 20s to mid 30s. Russell Wilson is the only one I can think of off the top of my head. That probably explains what’s going on with QB contracts.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

### Author: ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)
#### Post date: [December 24, 2020, 5:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-2020-week-15/928265/43 "2020-12-24T05:00:00Z")

</div>

> [@FlikTheBlue](#):
>
> But there seems to be a lack of quality QBs in their late 20s to mid 30s. Russell Wilson is the only one I can think of off the top of my head.

If we look at the QB classes by year, who would now be in that age range, we see a lot of guys who either didn’t pan out at all, were promising but got hurt, or who wound up as journeymen. Other than Wilson, I’d put Stafford, Carr, and maybe Tannehill in the “quality QB” camp (Newton and Dalton belonged on that list at one point, but probably not any longer), but I agree, there wound up not being many lasting stars from those years.

Listed below are QBs who were drafted in the first three rounds in the years 2009-2014. ([source](http://www.drafthistory.com/index.php/positions/qb))

2009  
Matthew Stafford  
Mark Sanchez  
Josh Freeman  
Pat White

2010  
Sam Bradford  
Tim Tebow  
Jimmy Clausen  
Colt McCoy

2011  
Cam Newton  
Jake Locker  
Blaine Gabbert  
Christian Ponder  
Andy Dalton  
Colin Kaepernick  
Ryan Mallett  
Terrelle Pryor (supplemental)

2012  
Andrew Luck  
Robert Griffin III  
Ryan Tannehill  
Brandon Weeden  
Brock Osweiler  
Russell Wilson  
Nick Foles

2013  
E.J. Manuel  
Geno Smith  
Mike Glennon

2014  
Blake Bortles  
Johnny Manziel  
Teddy Bridgewater  
Derek Carr  
Jimmy Garoppolo

[Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nfl-2020-week-15/928265.md?page=2)
