Ranking every Heisman Trophy winner currently in the NFL: Derrick Henry, Lamar Jackson headline
By John Buhler
QB. Las Vegas Raiders. player. Pick Analysis. 8. 28. Scouting Report. Marcus Mariota
Health and an inability to take over games has Mariota riding the bench
Marcus Mariota won the Heisman Trophy the year after Winston, beating his Florida State Seminoles in the 2015 Rose Bowl, only to end up being taken a pick after him in the 2015 NFL Draft by the Tennessee Titans. The former Oregon Ducks quarterback had a so-so five-year run in Nashville, but now backs up Derek Carr as a member of the Las Vegas Raiders. What happened?
The Titans went 9-7 in Mariota’s last four seasons with the Titans. Though they made the AFC playoffs a few times, they never won a division crown under him. He broke his ankle on the same day as Carr in 2016, losing his starting job to Ryan Tannehill a few years later in 2019. Mariota can be an NFL starter at some point, but he may be on the path towards being a high-end backup.
QB. Cam Newton. player. 47. New England Patriots. 7. Scouting Report. Pick Analysis
The former MVP could be nearing the end of a Hall-of-Fame career
Only a few years ago would Cam Newton be higher on this list. The 2011 No. 1 overall pick by the Carolina Panthers came off an unforgettable 2010 campaign with the Auburn Tigers. He would go on to lead the Panthers to three straight NFC South titles, winning NFL MVP en route to a Super Bowl 50 appearance for Carolina. Unfortunately, it has been a rough five years for him since.
The Panthers struggled in their Super Bowl defeat at the hands of the Denver Broncos. Carolina made the NFC playoffs in 2017, but injury-riddle campaigns in 2018 and 2019 led to Newton washing out of Charlotte after nine years. He resurfaced as the New England Patriots‘ starter in 2020, but was 100 percent a shell of himself in Foxborough. It could be his last year in the NFL.