Heading into the 2013 NFL Draft, it was well-known that the quarterback class was not the strongest. The year prior yielded talents like Andrew Luck, Kirk Cousins, and Russell Wilson. The 2014 class was not much better but it had Derek Carr and Jimmy Garoppolo. The 2013 NFL Draft was not great as 10 years have passed.
The 2013 NFL Draft Quarterback Class Re-visited
Draft classes are often regarded based on how strong or poor its quarterbacks are. Looking back to the 2013 class, it was an unfortunate time to need a quarterback. Every year, quarterbacks are selected as the hope of a franchise and the odds of a player turning around a franchise are long, but not impossible. Going back to 2013, a friend could Google the odds of multiple quarterbacks taken and introduce you to the world of 1xbet, a leading online sportsbook. It would not have been the best in the world but placing fun long-odds bets could be a low-risk entry into the industry.
11. Tyler Wilson
There were three quarterbacks taken in the 2013 NFL Draft who did not record any stats. The thing that sets Tyler Wilson apart from the other two was the draft capital spent on him. Wilson was a fourth-round pick by the Oakland Raiders. Despite passing for over 7,000 yards and 45 touchdowns in two years as a starter, Wilson was never able to get anything going in the NFL.
He was not on the active roster after ended up as QB4 and bounced around between the practice squads of the Raiders, Titans, and Bengals over the following two years.
10. Brad Sorenson
The first-ever Southern Utah player to be drafted was quarterback Brad Sorenson in the seventh round. He never really had a sure-fire opportunity to compete for a roster spot and bounced around the Chargers, Titans, and Vikings.
9. Zac Dysert
Finally, the third quarterback to not get a shot, Zac Dysert was the first player selected from his tiny high school in rural Ohio. In college, Dysert shattered Ben Roethlisberger’s records at Miami (OH) and was a seventh-round pick by the Denver Broncos.
He was an active member of the Broncos’ 53-man roster for the 2013 season to learn from Peyton Manning. Over the next four years, Dysert would man the practice squads of the Broncos, Bears, Texans, Bills, Dolphins, Cardinals, and Cowboys. His career would end with an injury with the Cowboys.
8. B.J. Daniels
The seventh-round selection by the 49ers made his albeit brief impact after he was waived and eventually claimed by the Seahawks during the 2013 season. He spent the next two-plus seasons with the Seahawks in a pattern of waive, re-sign, waive, re-sign, etc. Daniels even made the switch to wide receiver and recorded 18 yards off of two receptions.
The Texans then took a shot on him and he made the switch back. He appeared in a game against the Titans, throwing for seven yards and rushing for six. After that, he bounced around the Giants, Bears, and Falcons before spending a year in the Canadian Football League, the Alliance of American Football, and XFL each.
7. Sean Renfree
Now it’s getting into the weeds. Renfree was selected in the seventh round by the Falcons out of Duke. In three-plus years in Atlanta, Renfree appeared in just two games where he threw for 11 yards. He finished 3/7 passing with an interception.
After getting waived prior to the 2016 season, Renfree signed with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Once the team signed Rayn Fitspatrick, however, Renfree was cut loose and has not played in the NFL since.
6. Ryan Nassib
The Giants selected Ryan Nassib in the fourth round to be the back up to Eli Manning. In his four years in New York, Nassib appeared in just five games and threw for 128 yards and a score.
After suffering an injury, the Giants waived Nassib where he signed with the Saints. After a few months, the Saints waived him and the Jaguars gave him a short-lived shot.
5. Landry Jones
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He threw for 16,646 yards and 123 touchdowns at Oklahoma but fell to the Steelers in the fourth and was not really able to get much going.
Jones spent five years in Pittsburgh to be the long-term backup to Ben Roethlisberger. He finished with 1,310 yards and eight touchdowns in that time. After Pittsburgh drafted Mason Rudolph, they cut Jones. From there, he spent time with the Jaguars and Raiders before landing with the Dallas Renegades in the revived XFL.
4. Matt Barkley
Matt Barkley was the latest in a long line of impressive USC quarterbacks but unfortunately, where one goes to college does not guarantee success or condemn a player. Barkley was projected as a first-round talent prior to the 2012 NFL Draft but he returned to USC and ended up falling to the Eagles in the fourth-round.
In Philly, Barkley did not do much. He appeared in just four games and threw for 300 yards, no touchdowns, and four interceptions. He got his chance with the Bears in 2015 after being traded and subsequently released by the Cardinals. He started six games in 2016 for Chicago. From there, he signed with the Bills and made one start. Across his career, Barkley spend time with the 49ers, Cardinals (again) Bengals, Titans, Panthers, Falcons, and Bills (again) practice squads.
3. Mike Glennon
The gap between one and two is vast but Mike Glennon, third-round selection by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Glennon’s best year was his rookie year where he took over for Josh Freeman in Week 4 where he finished with 2,608 yards and 19 touchdowns but the team managed a lousy 4-9 record with Glennon at the helm.
After that, he did not managed much as a starter. He lost the job to Josh McCown and then never played in 2015 due to the job going to first-overall pick, Jameis Winston.
Glennon made a career as a journeyman, bouncing around the Bears, Cardinals, Raiders, Jaguars, Giants, and Dolphins. He spend the end of the 2022-23 season with Miami as their quarterback depth.
2. EJ Manuel
The first quarterback selected in the 2013 NFL Draft was EJ Manuel out of Florida State. Many believed this honor was going to be Geno Smith but it went to Manuel and he was lone quarterback in the first round.
Manuel’s best season was his rookie year with the Bills where he finished with just 1,972 yards and 11 touchdowns in 10 starts. From then on, Manuel was the Bills’ backup quarterback before spending just one year with the Raiders.
1. Geno Smith
By far the best quarterback of the 2013 NFL Draft class was Geno Smith. Smith was given the starting job as a rookie and was below average and eventually lost the job in his second season. Unfortunately, his next two seasons were marred by injuries which resulted in his relegation to back up for the Jets.
As a free agent, Smith signed with the Giants and became both the first-ever Black starting quarterback for the Giants and the first-ever player to start five games for both the Jets and Giants. The following year, Smith signed with the Chargers. Then, in 2019, Smith signed with the Seahawks to back-up Russell Wilson. He was buried on the depth chart until the 2021 season where he threw for 4,282 yards and 30 touchdowns to win Comeback Player of the Year.
Since then, he’s been the unquestioned starter in Seattle and has been the only even semi-viable starting quarterback from this draft class.
