The next generation of NFL quarterbacks has arrived. As the postseason pushes ahead, playoff staples like Tom Brady and Patrick Mahomes are nowhere to be found as a young crop of signal-callers vie for a title.
The quarterbacks left in the NFL postseason find themselves in uncharted territory. Each of the eight remaining passers needs three more wins to hoist the Lombardi Trophy.
Only one of the quarterbacks — Los Angeles Rams captain Matthew Stafford — has summited the NFL mountaintop before.
San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy came close, falling to Mahomes’ Kansas City Chiefs in the Super Bowl two years ago.
Josh Allen of the Buffalo Bills can relate. The 29-year-old has more playoff experience than any other quarterback left in the bracket, but the Chiefs eliminated him in four of his six postseason appearances, including in the last two years.
But Mahomes is recovering from a torn ACL. The Chiefs missed the postseason for the first time in his career. The only other playoff quarterbacks with substantial playoff experience — Jalen Hurts of the Philadelphia Eagles and Aaron Rodgers of the Pittsburgh Steelers — were eliminated in the Wild Card round.
The door is wide open for a new contender to rise from the crowd.
The AFC’s half of the bracket features quarterbacks with a combined 21 postseason starts. Mahomes, who turned 30 in September, has started 21 playoff games on his own.
With 14 postseason games, Allen finds himself as the elder statesman in the AFC. There is no Mahomes-sized obstacle between him and the Bills’ first Super Bowl appearance in 32 years.
Last season’s MVP started the postseason with a hard-fought, 27-24 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars. Allen carried the team, throwing for 273 yards with three total touchdowns.
“Our guys are tough, resilient,” Bills coach Sean McDermott said. “When your quarterback’s that type of warrior, that type of competitor, it just goes through the whole team.”
Allen’s Bills will face the top-seeded Denver Broncos and second-year quarterback Bo Nix on Saturday. Nix lost his postseason debut to the Bills last year.
On Sunday, second-year quarterback Drake Maye will lead the New England Patriots against C.J. Stroud and the Houston Texans. Maye secured a win in his first postseason start on Sunday night in a dominant 16-3 win against the Los Angeles Chargers.
“We made plays when we had to do it,” Maye said after New England’s first playoff win in nearly seven years.
Stroud’s been riding a nightmare-inducing defense that has terrorized opposing offenses on a 10-game winning streak. But the third-year passer is looking to win consecutive playoff games for the first time in his career. Stroud and the Texans have lost in the divisional round in each of the last two years.
The AFC features an experienced postseason performer in Allen, a rising star in Stroud and two newcomers in Nix and Maye. The NFC paints a similar picture. Stafford plays the Allen role, while Purdy, with seven postseason starts, is the Stroud-like intermediary.
Bears quarterback Caleb Williams and Seahawks signal-caller Sam Darnold are the wild cards. The duo has combined for a pair of postseason starts with vastly different results.
Williams led the Bears to an electric comeback win against the rival Green Bay Packers in his playoff debut on Saturday night. The top pick in the 2024 draft tossed a pair of fourth-quarter touchdowns to help Chicago erase Green Bay’s 18-point lead.
The District native isn’t happy with just one playoff win. He’s looking for a repeat performance as his Bears host Stafford and the Rams on Sunday.
“We’re here, and I’m going to be here for a while, is my plan,” Williams said after the game. “Be in a bunch of games, be in these moments and come out victorious. That’s the mindset for right now this year. That’s also the mindset for the future.
Darnold, whose Seahawks host the 49ers on Saturday, is looking for redemption. The third pick in the 2018 draft was widely considered a bust after a rough tenure with the New York Jets to start his career.
But Darnold revived his reputation as a starter with the Minnesota Vikings last season. He looked like an MVP candidate until his final two games — a horrific performance against the Detroit Lions in the regular season finale and an uninspired showing in a 27-9 postseason loss to the Rams.
But his Seahawks split the season series with both the Rams and the 49ers en route to the top seed in the NFC.
“The success speaks for itself,” Seahawks right tackle Abe Lucas said. “He’s a Pro Bowl quarterback this year, and happy to see him have that success and really dial it in for everything that goes into it and the process that goes into it. So, he deserves it.”
Darnold and the Seahawks — like the Texans and Broncos — feel confident that their stout defense can help carry the load in a championship run.
“I don’t care if he throws for negative-10 yards, we’re going to find a way to win the game,” Seattle receiver Jake Bobo said. “He’s going to make plays on a play late in the game when he needs to make a play.”
For the first time since the Chiefs’ run of dominance began in 2018, every team left in the playoffs feels similarly. They all have a reasonable shot at a title. Most major sportsbooks have the Seahawks as slim favorites with +200 odds to win the Super Bowl. The Texans, despite holding the longest odds, aren’t far behind at +900.
• This story is based in part on wire service reports.
• Liam Griffin can be reached at lgriffin@washingtontimes.com.
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