Since the turn of the millennium, there have only been 6 instances of rookie quarterbacks cracking the top 12 in fantasy (and half of those happened the same year). Here are the top performances, listed in order of finish:
6. Vince Young (2006)
Here, Young shows his impression of a cell phone tower, an eerily accurate prediction of his future selling wireless plans from a kiosk at the mall
Vince Young finished 12th among all QBs his rookie hear, scoring 255.3 points (6 points per passing TD). To illustrate how far the passing game has come since the last decade, note that this total would have put him 25th among QBs in 2016.
Young struggled in the 15 games he started, throwing 12 TDs and 13 INTs while leading Tennessee to an 8-8 record. It was his 553 rushing yards and 7 touchdown carries that put him into the QB1 conversation.
5. Russell Wilson (2012)
Fun fact: Russell Wilson’s career started after he magically came to life in a department store window
Russell Wilson was a viable fantasy starter for his 16 rookie games. His 26 passing TDs and 10 INTs made him 11th, with 332.8 fantasy point scored.
3. (tie) Prescott (2016)
Prescott never fails to recognize the ethereal source from which all his talent comes: Jerry Jones’ Skybox
Dak Prescott surprised almost everyone with his stellar debut, last year. His stunning 23 Passing TDs with only 4 interceptions helped him net 339.6 fantasy points, good enough for a 9th place finish in fantasy.
3. (tie) Robert Griffin III (2012)
- RG III continues to coast off his one good performance (not unlike some other hack you may have heard of)
RG III had a stunning rookie year, rising to heights that he never saw again. His whopping 833 rushing yards (7 TDs) and 20-5 passing TD-INT ratio fetched 365.9 fantasy points and a 9th place finish.
2. Andrew Luck (2012)
The Colts’, man. They lose Peyton Manning after utterly mismanaging him, then they are rewarded with a top draft pick to get another franchise QB to mismanage
Buoyed by a rookie record 4,374 passing yards, Andrew Luck finished 8th in fantasy with 366.2 points.
1. Cam Newton (2011)
This shot was taken during the Super Bowl with a live fumble bouncing around, nearby
The exemplary season to which all others are compared, Newton’s 4th place finish was due in large part to a whopping 14 rushing touchdowns and 4,051 passing yards. His 441.2 fantasy points are the 10th most by any quarterback, this century
