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NFL Rankings: Top 10 seasons by a rookie QB

By Phil Watson

Dan Marino might have been the last of the first round picks in the famous 1983 quarterback draft, but he was the first to shine in the NFL.
Dan Marino might have been the last of the first round picks in the famous 1983 quarterback draft, but he was the first to shine in the NFL. /
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Dieter Brock, a 34-year-old "rookie" in 1985, led the Los Angeles Rams to the NFC Championship.
Dieter Brock, a 34-year-old “rookie” in 1985, led the Los Angeles Rams to the NFC Championship. /

6. Dieter Brock, Los Angeles Rams, 1985

This could be something of a controversial choice—yes, Brock was a rookie in 1985. But he was 34 years old and a veteran of 11 Canadian Football League seasons and was a two-time CFL Most Outstanding Player.

Brock was undrafted out of Jacksonville State in 1974 and is still holds the Winnipeg Blue Bombers career record with 29,623 passing yards.

Yeah … not so much with the rookie thing. But the NFL called Brock a rookie in 1985 and, as such, he counts.

Brock started 15 of the Rams’ 16 games, during which Los Angeles was 11-4. He completed 59.7 percent of his passes for 2,658 yards and 16 touchdowns, with 13 interceptions. Brock was also sacked 51 times, though.

He led the Rams to the NFC Championship, where they were pancaked by the eventual Super Bowl champion Chicago Bears. Brock was, frankly, awful in the playoffs, where he was 16-for-53 for 116 yards and two picks in a 20-0 Divisional Playoff win over the Dallas Cowboys and a 24-0 NFC Championship loss to the Bears.

Brock threw for a season-high 344 yards on 35-of-51 passing, with two touchdowns and three interceptions, in a 28-14 loss to the San Francisco 49ers on Oct. 27.

He was 16-for-20 for 215 yards and two touchdowns in a 17-6 win over the Atlanta Falcons on Sept. 29 and threw four touchdowns and no picks in a 46-14 win over the St. Louis Cardinals on Dec. 15.

Brock retired after his lone NFL campaign with a passer rating of 82.0, compared to the league collective in 1985 of 73.5.

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