It’s possible that some NFL team will see fit to put in a waiver claim on former Titans quarterback Zach Mettenberger this afternoon.
But if he goes on to play any meaningful role for another team, he will be bucking an extremely large trend (as well as his own shortcomings as a player).
According to Kevin Seifert of ESPN.com, the actual numbers which depict Mettenberger’s struggle are stark.
There have been 62 quarterbacks drafted between 2010 and 2014, and 21 of them have already been waived by their first team (none of 2015’s drafted quarterbacks have been cut — yet).
Of those 21 to reach the unemployment line, only one, Brandon Weeden, has gone on to start for another team. And that didn’t go so well as to inspire anyone to ask for an encore.
That says as much about the number of chances teams are willing to give scarce commodities as it does about the quarterbacks in particular (anyone with a shred of hope wouldn’t be cut while on a cheap rookie contract). But it’s not a positive sign for Mettenberger as he seeks to extend his career.
Then again, he could have helped himself by winning, oh, I don’t know, maybe one of his 10 NFL starts. He’s big and has a good arm and hasn’t been surrounded by very much talent in those starts, so someone may be willing to give him a shot to be their third.
But ever expecting more than that might be unrealistic.
