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List of left-handed quarterbacks

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This is a list of notable left-handed quarterbacks who have played professionally or for a major college program. In gridiron football, quarterbacks have been predominantly right-handed; only 33 left-handed quarterbacks have appeared in the National Football League (NFL);[1] whilst twelve others were drafted but never played in the NFL.[2] The rarity of left-handed NFL quarterbacks has been a topic of discussion and debate among players, coaches, and analysts.[3]

Left-handed quarterbacks were relatively prominent in the NFL between the 1970s and the 2000s, but became mostly absent from the league after 2010.[4] The most successful have been Pro Football Hall of Fame inductees Steve Young and Ken Stabler, 1988 Most Valuable Player Boomer Esiason, and Pro Bowl selections Frankie Albert, Mark Brunell, and Michael Vick. Tua Tagovailoa and Michael Penix Jr. are currently the NFL's only left-handed quarterbacks.

List

[edit]
Key
^ Inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame
Ken Stabler was the first left-handed quarterback to be named Most Valuable Player and win a Super Bowl
Prior to his coaching career, Jim Zorn was the original quarterback of the Seattle Seahawks
Boomer Esiason was named Most Valuable Player in 1988 en route to a Super Bowl XXIII appearance
Considered the greatest left-handed quarterback of all time, Steve Young was the first inducted to the Pro Football Hall of Fame
Mark Brunell led the Jacksonville Jaguars to four consecutive playoff runs and two AFC Championship Games in their first five seasons
Michael Vick is the NFL leader in quarterback rushing yards
Heisman-winner Tim Tebow led the Denver Broncos to the 2012 postseason, but would not have another NFL start
As of 2021, Tua Tagovailoa is the NFL's most recent left-handed quarterback and the only currently playing in the league
Name Career Teams Notes References
Frankie Albert 1942–53

Stanford (college)
San Francisco 49ers (AAFC/NFL)
Calgary Stampeders (CFL)

[5]
Allie Sherman 1943–47

Brooklyn (college)
Philadelphia-Pittsburgh Steagles (1943)
Philadelphia Eagles (1944-1947)

[6]
John Karrs 1944–45

Duquesne (college)
Cleveland Rams (1944-1945)
Pittsburgh Steelers (1945)

  • Attempted ten passes during the 1944 season, completing four for 49 yards.
 [7]
Harry Agganis 1952

Boston University (college)
Cleveland Browns

[8]
Fred Wyant 1956–57

West Virginia (college)
Washington Redskins (NFL)
Toronto Argonauts (CFL)

  • West Virginia University Sports Hall of Fame (1994)
  • Inaugural member of WVU’s “Mountaineer Legends Society” (2016)
  • NFL referee between 1971 and 1990
  • NFL line judge 1966-1970 and 1991-1992
 [9][10]
Terry Baker 1963–67

Oregon State (college)
Los Angeles Rams (NFL)
Edmonton Eskimos (CFL)

[11]
Bobby Douglass 1969–78

Kansas (college)
Chicago Bears (NFL)
San Diego Chargers (NFL)
New Orleans Saints (NFL)
Green Bay Packers (NFL)

  • Former holder of several NFL QB rushing records
 [5]
Ken Stabler 1970–84

Alabama (college)
Oakland Raiders (AFL/NFL)
Houston Oilers (NFL)
New Orleans Saints (NFL)

[5]
Jim Del Gaizo 1971–75

Syracuse (college)
Tampa (college)
Miami Dolphins (NFL)
Green Bay Packers (NFL)
New York Giants (NFL)

[12]
Dennis Morrison 1973–74

Kansas State (college)
San Francisco 49ers (NFL)

[13]
David Humm 1975–84

Nebraska (college)
Oakland Raiders (NFL)
Buffalo Bills (NFL)
Baltimore Colts (NFL)
Los Angeles Rams (NFL)

[11]
Jim Zorn 1975–87

Cal Poly Pomona (college)
Dallas Cowboys (NFL)
Seattle Seahawks (NFL)
Green Bay Packers (NFL)
Winnipeg Blue Bombers (CFL)
Tampa Bay Buccaneers (NFL)

[5]
Rick Leach 1979 Michigan (college)
Denver Broncos 		[14]
Paul McDonald 1980–87

USC (college)
Cleveland Browns (NFL)
Seattle Seahawks (NFL)
Dallas Cowboys (NFL)

[11]
Boomer Esiason 1984–97

Maryland (college)
Cincinnati Bengals (NFL)
New York Jets (NFL)
Arizona Cardinals (NFL)

[5]
Steve Young 1984–99

BYU (college)
Los Angeles Express (USFL)
Tampa Bay Buccaneers (NFL)
San Francisco 49ers (NFL)

[5]
Erik Wilhelm 1989–2001

Oregon State (college)
Cincinnati Bengals (NFL)
Phoenix Cardinals (NFL)
New York Jets (NFL)
Portland Prowlers (AFL)
Los Angeles Avengers (AFL)
Tampa Bay Storm (AFL)

  • Second at the time of his departure[a] in career passing yards in the Pac-10 (now Pac-12).[15]
 [16]
Jeff Carlson 1989–92 Weber State (college)
Los Angeles Rams (NFL)
Tampa Bay Buccaneers (NFL)
New England Patriots (NFL) 		[17]
Scott Mitchell 1990–2001

Utah (college)
Miami Dolphins (NFL)
Orlando Thunder (WLAF)
Detroit Lions (NFL)
Baltimore Ravens (NFL)
Cincinnati Bengals (NFL)

  • Former holder of several Detroit Lions passing records
 [4]
Todd Marinovich 1990–93,
1999–2001

USC (college)
Los Angeles Raiders (NFL)
Winnipeg Blue Bombers (CFL)
BC Lions (CFL)
Los Angeles Avengers (Arena Football)

[18]
Will Furrer 1992–95 Virginia Tech (college)
Chicago Bears (NFL)
Houston Oilers (NFL) 		[19]
Mark Brunell 1993–2011

Washington (college)
Green Bay Packers (NFL)
Jacksonville Jaguars (NFL)
Washington Redskins (NFL)
New Orleans Saints (NFL)
New York Jets (NFL)

[4]
Doug Nussmeier 1994–2000

Idaho (college)
New Orleans Saints (NFL)
Indianapolis Colts (NFL)
BC Lions (CFL)

  • Walter Payton Award winner (1993)
  • Holds numerous Idaho passing records
  • Only one of five quarterbacks in NCAA history to pass for over 10,000 yards and rush for over 1,000
 [11]
Tony Graziani 1997–2008 Oregon (college)
Atlanta Falcons (NFL)
Los Angeles Avengers (AFL)
Philadelphia Soul (AFL) 		[21]
Brock Huard 1999–2004

Washington (college)
Seattle Seahawks (NFL)
Indianapolis Colts (NFL)
  • Brother of quarterback Damon Huard
  • First set of brothers in NFL History to start at quarterback on the same weekend [22]
 [23]
Cade McNown 1999–2002

UCLA (college)
Chicago Bears (NFL)
Miami Dolphins (NFL)
San Francisco 49ers (NFL)

 [24]
Michael Vick 2001–15

Virginia Tech (college)
Atlanta Falcons (NFL)
Philadelphia Eagles (NFL)
New York Jets (NFL)
Pittsburgh Steelers (NFL)

[4]
Chris Simms 2003–10

Texas (college)
Green Bay Packers (NFL)
Tampa Bay Buccaneers (NFL)
Tennessee Titans (NFL)
Denver Broncos (NFL)

  • Former holder of several Texas Longhorns football passing records
  • Son of quarterback Phil Simms
 [4]
Jared Lorenzen 2004–14

Kentucky (college)
New York Giants (NFL)
Indianapolis Colts (NFL)
Kentucky Horsemen (AF2)
Northern Kentucky River Monsters (UIFL/CIFL)
Owensboro Rage (CIFL)

  • Second Team All-SEC (2002)
  • Most pass attempts and yards in Kentucky Wildcats football history
  • Super Bowl XLII champion
 [26]
Tyler Palko 2004–11

Pittsburgh (college)
New Orleans Saints (NFL)
Arizona Cardinals (NFL)
California Redwoods (UFL)
Montreal Alouettes (CFL)
Pittsburgh Steelers (NFL)
Kansas City Chiefs (NFL)

  • USA Today All-America Team (Second-team) (2001)
  • University of Pittsburgh Team MVP (2004)
  • 2× Second-team Big East (2004, 2005)
 [27]
Matt Leinart 2006–13

USC (college)
Arizona Cardinals (NFL)
Houston Texans (NFL)
Oakland Raiders (NFL)
Buffalo Bills (NFL)

[4][28]
Pat White 2009–14

West Virginia (college)
Miami Dolphins (NFL)
Virginia Destroyers (UFL)
Washington Redskins (NFL)
Edmonton Eskimos (CFL)

[27]
Tim Tebow 2010–15[b]

Florida (college)
Denver Broncos (NFL)
New York Jets (NFL)
New England Patriots (NFL)
Philadelphia Eagles (NFL)

[4][30][11]
Kellen Moore 2012–17

Boise State (college)
Dallas Cowboys (NFL)
Detroit Lions (NFL)

 [4][3]
Tua Tagovailoa 2020–present Alabama (college)
Miami Dolphins (NFL) 		[27]
Holton Ahlers 2022–present East Carolina (college)
Seattle Seahawks (NFL) 		[32][33][34]
Michael Penix Jr. 2024–present Washington (college)
Atlanta Falcons (NFL)

See also

[edit]

Notes

[edit]
  1. ^ Behind only John Elway.
  2. ^ Tebow converted to tight end upon returning to professional football before the 2021 NFL season.[29]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Holcomb, Dave (16 December 2020). "The most notable lefty NFL quarterbacks". MSN. Retrieved 17 December 2020.
  2. ^ Maxymuk, John (2009). "Left Wingers". The Coffin Corner. Vol. 31, no. 8. pp. 9–11.
  3. ^ a b Toney, Nick (August 13, 2018). "Why are there no lefty quarterbacks in the NFL?". NFL.com. Retrieved August 20, 2018.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h Edholm, Eric. "Are Lefty Quarterbacks Going Extinct?". FiveThirtyEight.
  5. ^ a b c d e f Left-handed QBs | Pro Football Hall of Fame Official Site
  6. ^ "Allie Sherman Stats". Pro Football Reference.
  7. ^ "Donelli Has Tough Job in Pro League". The Herald-Press. September 8, 1944 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  8. ^ Maxymuk, John (November 30, 2007). Strong Arm Tactics: A History and Statistical Analysis of the Professional Quarterback. McFarland Incorporated. p. 13. ISBN 0786432772.
  9. ^ "Fred Wyant (1994)". West Virginia Mountaineers.
  10. ^ Rolfe, Shelley (1953-11-03). "Wyant Is Big-Leaguer on Big League Club". The Times Dispatch. Richmond, Virginia. Retrieved 2022-02-02. (noting that he was left-handed)
  11. ^ a b c d e Stine, Carl. "Tim Tebow and the 14 Greatest Left-Handed CFB Quarterbacks of All Time". Bleacher Report. Retrieved 2019-04-05.
  12. ^ "Jim Del Gaizo Stats". Pro Football Reference.
  13. ^ "Dennis Morrison Stats". Pro Football Reference.
  14. ^ "For "As Long As They Want Me" Leach Is a Tiger". Petoskey News-Review. June 8, 1979. p. 17.
  15. ^ "Pacific-12 Conference Career Leaders and Records for Total Yards". Sports Reference — College Football. Archived from the original on 27 March 2015.
  16. ^ "Erik Wilhelm Stats". Pro Football Reference.
  17. ^ "Jeff Carlson". Pro-Football-Reference.com.
  18. ^ Todd Marinovich Stats | Pro Football Reference
  19. ^ "Will Furrer". Pro-Football-Reference.com.
  20. ^ "Plenty to learn and like about AFL". 25 February 2007.
  21. ^ "Tony Graziani". Pro-Football-Reference.com.
  22. ^ "The NFL: Which Son To Watch?". Kitsap Sun. 2000.
  23. ^ Brock Huard Stats | Pro Football Reference
  24. ^ Cade McNown Stats | Pro Football Reference
  25. ^ "Michael Vick Biography". Biography.com. 17 July 2020. Retrieved 19 December 2020.
  26. ^ Jared Lorenzen Stats | Pro Football Reference
  27. ^ a b c Brief, Sam (2018-11-02). "Tua Tagovailoa is making left-handed college QB history". SI.com. Retrieved 2019-07-04.
  28. ^ Matt Leinart Stats | Pro Football Reference
  29. ^ Reid, John (2021-05-20). "Jaguars sign Tim Tebow to play tight end". USA TODAY. Retrieved 2021-05-31.
  30. ^ Tim Tebow Stats | Pro Football Reference
  31. ^ Casagrande, Michael. "How Alabama QB Tua Tagovailoa became left-handed". AL.com. Retrieved 4 March 2020.
  32. ^ "NFL Draft Profile: Holton Ahlers, Quarterback, East Carolina Pirates". SI.com. Retrieved November 8, 2022.
  33. ^ "Packers reportedly met with ECU QB Holton Ahlers: What to Know". dairylandexpress.com. February 7, 2023.
  34. ^ "2023 Senior Bowl Watchlist Scouting Notes: QB Holton Ahlers, East Carolina". nfldraftblitz.com. October 18, 2022.
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