Journeyman quarterback

J. T. O'Sullivan spent time with thirteen professional teams during his career.

A journeyman quarterback is a term used for an American football (typically NFL) quarterback who plays for several teams over a career. Such a player is typically signed to year-by-year contracts, and may be signed by a team to fill in for an injured starter. The term is normally pejorative.

The paradigm of a journeyman quarterback might be J. T. O'Sullivan, who spent time with 11 NFL teams (plus the Saskatchewan Roughriders and the Frankfurt Galaxy) during his career. Chris Chandler started for seven different NFL franchisees during his career.

There is no accepted definition or threshold at which a person is regarded as a journeyman quarterback, and the term is descriptive rather than definitive. Dave Krieg enjoyed a stable 11-year career with the Seattle Seahawks, before leaving through Plan B free agency, and then played for five different teams (usually as a starter) over the remaining seven years of his career. But because the years of transition occurred during the later part of his career, Krieg is not generally perceived as a classic journeyman quarterback. Similarly, Mark Rypien, who played for seven years with the Washington Redskins (including a Super Bowl MVP performance in Super Bowl XXVI) before playing for seven different teams for a single season each over the remainder of his career, is not normally regarded as a journeyman for that reason.

Stereotype

Many journeymen quarterbacks are seen as having mediocre talent, or having just enough talent to be the team's backup. True journeymen quarterbacks play for several teams in a career, and may go several years between starting jobs. However a number of journeyman quarterbacks clearly have talent, including some who won Super Bowls, were drafted no. 1 overall in the NFL draft, and/or who went on to amass significant career statistics.

Notable examples

There have been countless examples of journeymen quarterbacks in the NFL, but the following players are especially famous for their sporadic careers. Despite the caricature of the journeyman quarterback, they include Super Bowl winners (Super Bowl XXXV was contested between two journeyman quarterbacks (Trent Dilfer and Kerry Collins), and arguably so was Super Bowl XXXVII (Brad Johnson and Rich Gannon)), and players who finished their careers ranked in the top 20 of many key statistical categories.[1]

Notable journeyman quarterbacks
Name Teams Notes
Team Years
Steve Beuerlein Los Angeles Raiders (1987–1990) No. 1 overall pick in 1995 NFL Expansion Draft.
Led NFL in passing yards in 1999
One Pro Bowl
One Super Bowl.
Dallas Cowboys (1991–1992)
Phoenix/Arizona Cardinals (1993–1994)
Jacksonville Jaguars (1995)
Carolina Panthers (1996–2000)
Denver Broncos (2001–2003)
Jeff Blake New York Jets (1992–1993) One Pro Bowl (1995)
Cincinnati Bengals (1994–1999)
New Orleans Saints (2000–2001)
Baltimore Ravens (2002)
Arizona Cardinals (2003)
Philadelphia Eagles (2004)
Chicago Bears (2005)
Chris Chandler Indianapolis Colts (1988–1989) One Super Bowl appearance
Two Pro Bowls
Tampa Bay Buccaneers (1990–1991)
Phoenix Cardinals (1991–1993)
Los Angeles Rams (1994)
Houston Oilers (1995–1996)
Atlanta Falcons (1997–2001)
Chicago Bears (2002–2003)
St. Louis Rams (2004)
Kerry Collins Carolina Panthers (1995–1998) One Super Bowl appearance.
Top 15 in NFL career passing yards and career completions.
New Orleans Saints (1998)
New York Giants (1999–2003)
Oakland Raiders (2004–2005)
Tennessee Titans (2006–2010)
Indianapolis Colts (2011)
Steve DeBerg San Francisco 49ers (1977–1980) Top 25 in NFL career passing yards and career completions.
Denver Broncos (1981–1983)
Tampa Bay Buccaneers (1984–1987)
Kansas City Chiefs (1988–1991)
Tampa Bay Buccaneers (1992–1993)
Miami Dolphins (1993)
Atlanta Falcons (1998)
Ty Detmer Green Bay Packers (1992–1995) Former Heisman Trophy winner.
Philadelphia Eagles (1996–1997)
San Francisco 49ers (1998)
Cleveland Browns (1999–2000)
Detroit Lions (2001–2003)
Atlanta Falcons (2004–2005)
Trent Dilfer Tampa Bay Buccaneers (1994–1999) Winning quarterback in Super Bowl XXXV
One Pro Bowl.
Baltimore Ravens (2000)
Seattle Seahawks (2001–2004)
Cleveland Browns (2005)
San Francisco 49ers (2006–2007)
Ryan Fitzpatrick St. Louis Rams (2005–2006) Current starter for the New York Jets.
Cincinnati Bengals (2007–2008)
Buffalo Bills (2009–2012)
Tennessee Titans (2013)
Houston Texans (2014)
New York Jets (2015–present)
Jeff Garcia Calgary Stampeders (1994–1998) Four Pro Bowls
One Grey Cup
Led NFC in passing yards during 2000 season
San Francisco 49ers (1999–2003)
Cleveland Browns (2004)
Detroit Lions (2005)
Philadelphia Eagles (2006, 2009)
Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2007–2008)
Houston Texans (2011)
Jeff George Indianapolis Colts (1990–1993) No. 1 overall pick in 1990 NFL Draft.
Atlanta Falcons (1994–1996)
Oakland Raiders (1997–1998, 2006*)
Minnesota Vikings (1999)
Washington Redskins (2000–2001)
Seattle Seahawks (2002*)
Chicago Bears (2004*)
Brad Johnson Minnesota Vikings (1992–1998) Winning quarterback in Super Bowl XXXVII
London Monarchs (1995)
Washington Redskins (1999–2000)
Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2001–2004)
Minnesota Vikings (2005–2006)
Dallas Cowboys (2007–2008)
Josh McCown Arizona Cardinals (2002–2005)
Detroit Lions (2006)
Oakland Raiders (2007)
Miami Dolphins (2008*)
Carolina Panthers (2008–2009)
Hartford Colonials (2010)
San Francisco 49ers (2011*)
Chicago Bears (2011–2013)
Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2014)
Cleveland Browns (2015–present)
Jim McMahon Chicago Bears (1982–1988) Winning quarterback in Super Bowl XX.
San Diego Chargers (1988)
Philadelphia Eagles (1990–1992)
Minnesota Vikings (1993)
Arizona Cardinals (1994)
Cleveland Browns (1995)
Green Bay Packers (1995–1996)
Kyle Orton Chicago Bears (2005–2008)
Denver Broncos (2009–2011)
Kansas City Chiefs (2011)
Dallas Cowboys (2012–2013)
Buffalo Bills (2014)
Vinny Testaverde Tampa Bay Buccaneers (1987–1992) No. 1 overall pick in 1987 NFL draft.
Top 15 in NFL career passing yards and career completions.
Former Heisman Trophy winner.
Cleveland Browns (1993–1995)
Baltimore Ravens (1996–1997)
New York Jets (1998–2003, 2005)
Dallas Cowboys (2004)
New England Patriots (2006)
Carolina Panthers (2007)

References

  1. ↑ See in particular statistical summaries below for Vinny Testaverde, Kerry Collins and Steve DeBerg.
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