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USA Today Sports Media Group
USA Today Sports Media Group
Sport
Anthony Rizzuti

Bryce Young has chance to end crazy 20-year drought in Week 1

This weekend, Bryce Young has the chance to go where no one in his position has gone in the last two decades—on the left side of the column.

Sunday, of course, marks the regular-season premiere of the Carolina Panthers rookie passer. But it could also mark the 15th straight outing in which a quarterback who was selected first overall fails to come up with a win in their first career start.

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Yeah, welcome to the NFL, kiddos.

The last No. 1 overall pick to lead his team to victory in his debut start was David Carr—way back in 2002. Carr, who was actually taken right before a certain Carolina legend, completed 10 of his 22 passing attempts for 145 yards, two touchdowns and an interception in the Houston Texans’ 19-10 triumph over the Dallas Cowboys.

As for the No. 1’s who have gone under center since . . .

Year Team Opponent Result Yards TD-INT
Carson Palmer 2004 Cincinnati Bengals New York Jets L 24-31 248 2-1
Eli Manning 2004 New York Giants Atlanta Falcons L 10-14 162 1-2
Alex Smith 2005 San Francisco 49ers Indianapolis Colts L 3-28 74 0-4
JaMarcus Russell 2007 Oakland Raiders San Diego Chargers L 17-30 224 1-1
Matthew Stafford 2009 Detroit Lions New Orleans Saints L 27-45 205 0-3
Sam Bradford 2010 St. Louis Rams Arizona Cardinals L 10-13 253 1-3
Cam Newton 2011 Carolina Panthers Arizona Cardinals L 21-28 422 2-1
Andrew Luck 2012 Indianapolis Colts Chicago Bears L 21-41 309 1-3
Jameis Winston 2015 Tampa Bay Buccaneers Tennessee Titans L 14-42 210 2-2
Jared Goff 2016 Los Angeles Rams Miami Dolphins L 10-14 134 0-0
Baker Mayfield 2018 Cleveland Browns Oakland Raiders L 42-45 295 2-2
Kyler Murray 2019 Arizona Cardinals Detroit Lions T 27-27 308 2-1
Joe Burrow 2020 Cincinnati Bengals Los Angeles Chargers L 13-16 193 0-1
Trevor Lawrence 2021 Jacksonville Jaguars Houston Texans L 21-37 332 3-3

You’re up, Bryce.

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