Jarrett Stidham and David Blough started at quarterback for the Raiders and Cardinals, respectively, on Sunday, becoming the 63rd and 64th different signal-callers to start under center in 2022 – tying the 2007 season for the most in a non-strike year.
There are just 16 games left in the regular season, but still plenty of chances for the NFL record to become 65 – but who could the lucky QB be that breaks the record? Here are five candidates to start for the first time in Week 18 and set the mark:
TAYSOM HILL
Believe it or not, Hill has not actually taken the Saints’ first snap of a game at QB this season, as it’s been either Andy Dalton or Jameis Winston.
Saints-Panthers is for nothing but pride for both teams now, so why not let Hill, the best QB/WR/TE/RB hybrid in the game, set the record? Dennis Allen has said he’ll stick with Dalton, but will the Red Rifle really mind stepping aside for one play?
NATHAN PETERMAN
The Bears say Justin Fields will start Sunday’s finale against the Vikings “for the experience,” but we have just one question about that: why? There’s nothing really to gain, so why not sit him with an eye on the future and let Peterman – who almost started the one game Fields missed after Trevor Siemian was hurt in pregame warmups against the Jets – and journeyman Tim Boyle (yes, we actually know the Bears’ fourth-stringer) pilot the tattered clunker of a race car that is the 2022 Bears to the finish line?
SAM HOWELL
The Commanders’ playoff hopes went from “control their own destiny in the seventh spot” to “eliminated” in the span of a few hours Sunday, so now, Week 18 is huge for the Cowboys but means nothing for Washington. Carson Wentz struggled badly Sunday and Taylor Heinicke is in the doghouse, so would “Riverboat Ron” Rivera give fifth-round pick Howell his first NFL action? Wouldn’t be the first time a final-week Commanders game was used to “see what we have” in a no-name QB, right Eagles?
CHRIS STREVELER
The Jets are now eliminated as well after losing to Seattle, and with a Week 18 matchup in Miami against a possible third-stringer looming, would Gang Green try to “see what we have” and put Streveler into the lineup? Mike White may not be 100 percent but he is also a pending free agent, so you may want one more look, and Streveler would have to be signed to the active roster as he’s now out of practice squad call-ups, but stranger things have happened (all it takes is one guy who’s not going to play going on IR to make room for Streveler) – and it’s the Jets, after all.
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JARRETT GUARANTANO
Maybe the Bucs give ageless wonder Tom Brady a week off before the playoffs, so Blaine Gabbert gets some actual on-field action. Maybe, Brandon Staley has a fever dream and decides he’d rather play the Ravens or Bengals than the Jags or Titans in Round 1, and decides to sit Justin Herbert for Chase Daniel. Or, maybe, the Colts, fed up with all their awful quarterbacks, dip into the broadcasting pool again and sign Greg McElroy or Dan Orlovsky or someone like that to play behind center.
The former has never been Brady’s style and even Staley and Jim Irsay aren’t crazy enough for the latter, so we’re stuck with hoping some random out of contention team decides to bench their franchise QB and basically punt n Week 18 if we want to stretch this out to five.
And boy howdy, after some deep depth chart digging revealed that Kellen Mond is an actual person on the Cleveland roster and the Panthers have a dude named Cheek on their practice squad, we found this guy, a 25-year-old rookie who starred at Bergen Catholic and is the son of former Rutgers legend James Guarantano, on the Broncos’ depth chart. And, it’s kind of perfect that a guy who spent six seasons in college (five at Tennessee and one at Washington State), wasn’t drafted, and has been with his team for less than a month could be the one to set an NFL record for most starting QBs in a season, but we have faith in the Garden State!
Follow Lou DiPietro on Twitter: @LouDiPietroWFAN
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