2012 saw a wave of rookie quarterbacks generate success in the NFL. More teams started rookies than ever before and a lot of them turned out to be rather productive. Quarterbacks like Colin Kaepernick, Robert Griffin III, Russell Wilson and Andrew all had impressive starts to their football career, yet one veteran quarterback is challenging them. Ben Roethlisberger is waiting to see if these young guns can build off their starts in their second year before giving them the stamp of approval.
"People ask me all the time about these young quarterbacks. Let's wait. One year does not mean a lot in this league. Let's see what happens in two, three years. I'm not trying to take anything away from them. I think they did some great things last year, and they all have the potential to be great quarterbacks. But you don't want people to jump on their bandwagon so fast and put so much pressure on them to live up to those expectations. My advice to them is to keep doing what you're doing," Roethlisberger said.
Four rookie quarterbacks all led their team to postseason success. Griffin, Luck and Wilson are brought their respective teams to the postseason, while Kaepernick led the San Francisco 49ers to the Super Bowl in his second season in the league. The foursome bolstered a new trend of fast, mobile quarterbacks in the NFL. Players like them are becoming the new trend for teams.
Roethlisberger has been keeping his eye on the quarterbacks, but is not admitting that he is watching his back with them. He notes that it is incredibly difficult to build off a hot start and prove to people that one season was not a fluke.
In Roethlisberger's rookie season, he set an NFL record for passer rating for a rookie with 98.1. In 2012, that was shattered. Griffin posted a 102.4 rating while Wilson posted a 100.0. The talent has definitely gotten bigger since Roethlisberger was first in the league.
Roethlisberger is the old man of the bunch. He is entering into his 10th season in the league. As a rookie with the Steelers, he started 13 games and won a playoff game. He has since led the team to two Super Bowl victories.
