The best seasons by a Washington quarterback in team history
July 14, 2025
by Steve Thomas
I’ve spent the last month writing about the best players in Washington history, including the following:
- Kick and punt returners (click here to read)
- Running backs (click here to read)
- Wide receivers (click here to read)
- Tight ends (click here to read)
I’m going to cover quarterbacks today. This is obviously a difficult position to study given that so much has changed with regard to quarterback play since 1932, and in my view it is fairly difficult to compare eras. Therefore, my purpose is to try to figure out which quarterback’s annual performance in each category is the most impressive. Additionally, I’ll take a stab at determining how Daniels’ 2024 season compares in Washington history.
Jayden Daniels obviously had a fabulous rookie year in 2024, better even than the realistic hopes of many. In total, he played in and started all 17 regular season games, and had 331 completions in 480 attempts, for a 69.0% completion percentage, 3568 yards, 10.8 yards per completion, 25 touchdowns, and 9 interceptions, for a 100.1 quarterback rating. He also had 148 rushing attempts for 891 yards, 6.0 yards per carry, and 6 touchdowns. The question going through my head right now is how his season compared to the seasons of prior Washington quarterbacks.
Readers should be aware that not all of the stats kept today are available for the early years of Washington football, which goes all the way back to 1932. I’ll do my best to deal with that issue, as well as the obvious statistical differences in eras. Let’s get started.
Passing yards
The following chart is a list of the top 10 passing yards in a single season by a Washington quarterback:
| Name | Year | Yards |
| Kirk Cousins | 2016 | 4917 |
| Kirk Cousins | 2015 | 4166 |
| Jay Schroeder | 1986 | 4109 |
| Kirk Cousins | 2017 | 4093 |
| Brad Johnson | 1999 | 4005 |
| Sam Howell | 2023 | 3946 |
| Mark Rypien | 1989 | 3768 |
| Sonny Jurgensen | 1967 | 3747 |
| Joe Theismann | 1983 | 3714 |
| Jason Campbell | 2009 | 3618 |
I’d also like to throw out there that Sammy Baugh’s career high was 2938 passing yards in 1947.
For context, the following chart shows the average NFL team passing yardage for the years indicated:
| Year | Ave passing yds |
| 2024 | 3699 |
| 2020 | 3842 |
| 2010 | 3544 |
| 2000 | 3309 |
| 1990 | 3116 |
| 1980 | 3135 |
| 1970 | 2259 |
| 1960 | 2047 |
| 1950 | 1988 |
| 1940 | 1378 |
| 1932 | 662 |
It appears as though average passing yardage went down by about 200 yards per season in each decade back to 1980. At that point, the average in 1970 plummeted about 800 yards all the way down to 2259. In the interest of time and space, I’m not going to publish the averages for each year or spend time calculating averages by decade, but just trust me when I say that these years are good estimates of the annual averages.
Based on this information, Kirk Cousins’ 2016 yardage was pretty significantly above the mean for the era. Jay Schroeder’s 4109 yards in 1986 and Baugh’s 2938 yards in 1947 were both as well. However, it was Sonny Jurgensen’s results in 1967 that are the most impressive – his 3747 yards is approximately 65% over the 1970 average. In contrast, Baugh’s 2938 in 1947 was just under 50% over the 1950 average; however, the average in 1947, specifically, was 2167 yards, which would place Baugh’s 2938 at approximately 135% of the 1947 average. Cousins’ 4917 yards in 2016 is approximately 30% over the 2020 average. Schroeder’s 4109 yards in 1986 is approximately 30% over the averages for both 1980 and 1990.
Therefore, I’m scoring this one for Jurgensen – his 3768 passing yards in 1967 is the most impressing single season passing yardage in Washington history.
Completion percentage
The following chart is a list of the top 10 completion percentages in a single season by a Washington quarterback:
| Name | Year | Comp % |
| Sammy Baugh | 1945 | 70.3% |
| Kirk Cousins | 2015 | 69.8% |
| Jayden Daniels | 2024 | 69.0% |
| Kirk Cousins | 2016 | 67.0% |
| Robert Griffin III | 2012 | 65.6% |
| Taylor Heinicke | 2021 | 65.0% |
| Jason Campbell | 2009 | 64.5% |
| Kirk Cousins | 2017 | 64.3% |
| Joe Theismann | 1982 | 63.9% |
| Sam Howell | 2023 | 63.4% |
Jurgensen’s highest mark was 59.9% in 1970.
The following chart shows the average NFL team completion percentage for the years indicated:
| Year | Ave comp % |
| 2024 | 65.3% |
| 2020 | 65.2% |
| 2010 | 60.8% |
| 2000 | 58.2% |
| 1990 | 56.0% |
| 1980 | 56.2% |
| 1970 | 51.1% |
| 1960 | 50.2% |
| 1950 | 46.6% |
| 1940 | 42.9% |
| 1932 | 35.6% |
As you can see, there’s been a dramatic improvement in completion percentage over the decades. A major reason for this is that the NFL has changed the rules of the game pretty significantly in favor of the offense over the years – the things defensive backs could do in 1975 are dramatically more than what they can get away with in 2025. Given this situation, Sammy Baugh’s 70.3% in 1945 is unquestionably the most impressive passer rating in franchise history. All of the rest of the top 10 are slightly higher than average, but in the realm of ordinary, whereas Baugh’s 70.3% is more than 50% more than the 1950 average. No one else is anywhere close to Baugh’s mark.
Passer rating
The following chart is a list of the top 10 passer ratings in a single season by a Washington quarterback:
| Name | Year | Passer rtg |
| Sammy Baugh | 1945 | 109.9 |
| Robert Griffin III | 2012 | 102.4 |
| Kirk Cousins | 2015 | 101.6 |
| Jayden Daniels | 2024 | 100.1 |
| Mark Rypien | 1991 | 97.9 |
| Kirk Cousins | 2016 | 97.2 |
| Joe Theismann | 1983 | 97.0 |
| Kirk Cousins | 2017 | 93.9 |
| Sammy Baugh | 1947 | 92.0 |
| Sonny Jurgensen | 1970 | 91.5 |
The following chart shows the average NFL team passer rating for the years indicated:
| Year | Ave passer rtg |
| 2024 | 92.3 |
| 2020 | 93.6 |
| 2010 | 84.1 |
| 2000 | 78.1 |
| 1990 | 77.3 |
| 1980 | 73.7 |
| 1970 | 65.6 |
| 1960 | 64.2 |
| 1950 | 52.9 |
| 1940 | 38.6 |
| 1932 | 27.2 |
Passer rating is another statistic which has been dramatically impacted by NFL rules changes favoring quarterbacks, so a strict comparison of eras isn’t particularly useful. However, adjusting for eras reveals that, once again, Sammy Baugh easily wins by this statistic – his 109.9 rating in 1945 is absurd, more than 200% of the average rating in 1950, and more than 280% of the 1940 rating. In terms of passer rating, no other Washington quarterback is even in the vicinity of Baugh in this regard. I’d venture to guess than Baugh’s 1945 rating is probably one of the most impressive in NFL history, regardless of the team.
The others that stick out on this list is Joe Theismann, whose 1983 results are more than 30% over the 180 average. Robert Griffin III’s 102.4 in 2012, which was more than 20% over the 2010 average. In contrast, Daniels’ mark of 100.1 is a little more than 8% over the 2024 average, which is certainly good, but not historically so.
Touchdown passes
The following chart is a list of the top 10 number of touchdowns thrown in a single season by a Washington quarterback:
| Name | Year | #TDs |
| Sonny Jurgensen | 1967 | 31 |
| Joe Theismann | 1983 | 29 |
| Kirk Cousins | 2015 | 29 |
| Sonny Jurgensen | 1966 | 28 |
| Mark Rypien | 1991 | 28 |
| Kirk Cousins | 2017 | 27 |
| Sammy Baugh | 1947 | 25 |
| Jayden Daniels | 2024 | 25 |
| Sonny Jurgensen | 1964 | 24 |
| Brad Johnson | 1999 | 24 |
| Joe Theismann | 1984 | 24 |
The following chart shows the average number of touchdown passes thrown by NFL teams for the indicated years:
| Year | Ave # TDs |
| 2024 | 25.3 |
| 2020 | 27.2 |
| 2010 | 23.5 |
| 2000 | 20.5 |
| 1990 | 20.5 |
| 1980 | 21.6 |
| 1970 | 16.4 |
| 1960 | 17.0 |
| 1950 | 16.9 |
| 1940 | 10.0 |
| 1932 | 5.3 |
Sonny Jurgensen’s 1967 season, in which he passed for 31 touchdowns, is unquestionably the most impressive in Washington history – his number is more than 90% above the 1970 average of 16.4. His 28 touchdowns in 1966 is next, at more than 70% above average. Sammy Baugh’s 1947 is also impressive. His 25 touchdowns is approximately 50% higher than the 1950 average. The rest of these results are above the average for the time, but much less so than Jurgensen and Baugh. Joe Theismann’s 29 touchdowns in 1983 is next at approximately 35% above the 1980 average of 21.6. None of the rest of these stats are in the same ballpark.
Interception %
The following chart shows the top 10 lowest interception % statistics posted by Washington quarterbacks since 1932. The data includes quarterbacks with at least 8 starts between 1932 and 2024:
| Name | Year | Int % |
| Jason Campbell | 2008 | 1.2 |
| Robert Griffin III | 2012 | 1.3 |
| Alex Smith | 2018 | 1.5 |
| Mark Brunell | 2006 | 1.5 |
| Jayden Daniels | 2024 | 1.9 |
| Kirk Cousins | 2016 | 2.0 |
| Kirk Cousins | 2015 | 2.0 |
| Sammy Baugh | 1945 | 2.2 |
| Trent Green | 1998 | 2.2 |
| Mark Brunell | 2005 | 2.2 |
The following chart shows the average team interception % for the years indicated:
| Year | Ave int % |
| 2024 | 2.2 |
| 2020 | 2.2 |
| 2010 | 3.0 |
| 2000 | 3.3 |
| 1990 | 3.6 |
| 1980 | 4.6 |
| 1970 | 5.2 |
| 1960 | 5.4 |
| 1950 | 5.1 |
| 1940 | 9.9 |
| 1932 | 9.4 |
Obviously, lower is better with this statistic. You’ll see general downward trend in interception percentage as the seasons went by, but the numbers really skyrocketed in the 1930s and 40s. With that in mind, once again, Sammy Baugh’s best year is the most impressive, by far. His 2.2% in 1945 is more than 4 times less than the league average. That having been said, the numbers posted by Jason Campbell in 2008, Robert Griffin III in 2012, and Mark Brunell in 2006 are all very impressive, roughly half of the league average, or better.
For those wondering, the worst interception percentage for a quarterback in the modern era – i.e., since 1980 – is Joe Theismann in 1985, with 5.3%, followed by Heath Shuler in 1994, with 4.5%, and Rex Grossman in 2011, with 4.4%.
Who’s the best quarterback in Washington history and how does Jayden Daniels stack up?
After going through this exercise, there’s no doubt that – newsflash – Sammy Baugh the best quarterback in Washington history, followed by Sonny Jurgensen. Some of Baugh’s numbers don’t measure up to the present day, but, adjusted by era as I’ve done here, Baugh was far ahead of his time. We may never see another quarterback in Washington who can play as much ahead of the mean, statistically, as did Baugh. Sonny Jurgensen is next on the list. Jurgensen never won a Super Bowl, but he is justifiably a hall of famer.
Jayden Daniels certainly had a great 2024 rookie season and is hopefully a sign of great things to come. However, when his numbers are adjusted for era as I’ve tried to do here, they don’t quite measure up to the incredible heights posted by Baugh, Jurgensen, and company in the best seasons of all time. He has a bright future, though, and I don’t doubt that future seasons will be included on these lists.
What do you think? Let me know in the comment section.