Top Five Under 25: Daniels leads contingent of young NFL QBs

The next generation of the NFL looks to be in good hands.

Heading into the 2025 season, only six of the league’s 32 starting quarterbacks will be over the age of 30, with 13 of the remaining 26 starters aged 25 and under. Perennial MVP candidates Josh Allen and Patrick Mahomes are both 29-years-old, while Joe Burrow and Lamar Jackson are each 28.

With the next generation ready to step into the spotlight next season, TSN.ca takes a look at the top five starting quarterbacks under the age of 25.
 

Jayden Daniels, Washington Commanders (Age: 24)

Daniels will turn 25 in December but will enter the season as the runaway best quarterback under 25. Drafted second overall in the 2024 NFL Draft, Daniels ran away with the Offensive Rookie of the Year award as he led the Commanders’ remarkable turnaround. The club finished second in the NFC East at 12-5 after finishing 2023 at 4-13 and finished over .500 for the first time since 2016.

Daniels continued his breakout campaign in the playoffs, leading Washington to its first postseason win in 19 years en route to the NFC Championship game against the eventual Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles.

The LSU product finished his rookie year with 3,568 passing yards, 25 touchdowns and nine interceptions, adding 891 rushing yards and another six scores on the ground. Daniels set the new rookie record for completion percentage (69 per cent) and also broke former Washington QB Robert Griffin III’s rookie rushing record (815) as part of one of the most impressive rookie seasons for a quarterback in NFL history.

The Commanders added former All-Pro Deebo Samuel to their receiving corps, hoping Daniels can replicate his success and lead the team to even loftier heights in 2025.
 

Caleb Williams, Chicago Bears (Age: 23)

Williams entered the NFL with plenty of hype after he was selected first overall by the Bears in 2023. However, the USC product did not live up to the hype in his rookie year, leading the Bears to a 5-12 record as he struggled with inconsistency.

He finished with 3,541 passing yards and 20 touchdowns, both Bears rookie passing records, to go along with six interceptions, while adding 489 rushing yards. He also set the NFL record for most consecutive passing attempts by a rookie without an interception at 354.

However, Williams absorbed a league-high 68 sacks behind a porous offensive line and endured questionable play-calling under offensive coordinator Shane Waldron, who was fired mid-season. He also struggled with his accuracy last season, completing 62.5 per cent of his passes.

The 2022 Heisman Trophy winner will look to take a big step forward this season, as the Bears hired a strong offensive head coach in Ben Johnson, added a pair of pass catchers in the draft in tight end Colston Loveland and receiver Luther Burden, and upgraded the offensive line with three new starters on the interior, including First-Team All-Pro Joe Thuney.
 

C.J. Stroud, Houston Texans (Age: 23)

Before Daniels re-wrote the record book for rookie quarterbacks, Stroud had an impressive first campaign of his own as he won the Offensive Rookie of the Year award in 2023, throwing for 4,108 yards and 23 touchdowns.

The former second-overall pick experienced a statistical dip last season as top targets Nico Collins, Tank Dell, and Stefon Diggs missed a combined 17 games due to injury and finished with 3,727 yards and 20 touchdowns.

When healthy, Collins was one of the most dangerous receivers in the league last season, as he reached 99 receptions, 1,006 yards and seven touchdowns in just 12 games. He and Stroud should be one of the most electric combos in the league this season.

With a revamped offensive line and the addition of veteran receiver Christian Kirk and rookie wideouts Jayden Higgins and Jaylin Noel, Stroud is primed for a bounce-back to his rookie form.
 

Drake Maye, New England Patriots (Age: 23)

Maye walked into one of the poorest situations in the NFL last season, as the Patriots had one of the worst receiving corps and offensive lines in the league.

The 2024 third-overall pick stepped in as the starter in Week 6 and showed flashes of his potential, despite the subpar supporting cast. He threw for 243 yards and three touchdowns in his NFL debut as a starter and finished the season with 2,276 yards and 15 touchdowns in 12 starts. The North Carolina product also showed prowess on the ground, rushing for 421 yards and two touchdowns.

The Patriots fired Jerod Mayo after one season and brought in team Hall of Famer Mike Vrabel as head coach, along with Josh McDaniels for a third stint as offensive coordinator. The team also added more firepower by signing Diggs in free agency and drafting electric running back TreyVeon Henderson.

If he can improve his decision-making (10 interceptions) behind an improved offensive line, Maye could be in for a breakout in his second NFL season.
 

Bryce Young, Carolina Panthers (Age: 24)

Young had a tough first year and a half in the NFL but finally broke out at the end of last season and reminded the league why the Panthers took him first overall two years ago.

After being benched after two starts last year, Young looked like a different player after regaining the top role in Week 8. Over the final 10 games of the season, the Alabama product averaged 243 passing yards per game and threw 15 touchdowns to just six interceptions. Young also showed off his legs, scoring five rushing touchdowns over the final six games of the season.

Carolina spent the eighth overall pick on wide receiver Tetairoa McMillan to give Young an elite weapon. The 6-foot-4 wideout caught 26 touchdowns over his three-year NCAA career at Arizona and was named a consensus All-American last year.

With the addition of McMillan to the receiver corps and the emergence of Canadian Chubba Hubbard as a true No. 1 running back, Young will have the best supporting cast of his career heading into Year 3.