What is the farthest a rookie QB has gone in the NFL Playoffs?

At the professional level, NFL offenses place a significant burden on the quarterback's shoulders. That has always been a major factor in the difficulty of scouting the quarterback position. Star college quarterbacks have trouble making the transition to the professional level not just because the opponents are bigger and faster, but so are the playbooks and games.

Even the league's greatest quarterbacks need time to develop. Tom Brady and Aaron Rodgers spent the earliest parts of their careers on the bench. Peyton Manning, who was thrust into the starting role as a young prodigy, threw 28 interceptions in his rookie season.

Young quarterbacks typically need time to adjust to the speed and complexity of the NFL. That's what makes Houston Texans' rookie quarterback C.J. Stroud so impressive.

Houston's 45-14 postseason victory was the latest sign of the team's remarkable turnaround under the tutelage of first-year head coach DeMeco Ryans. Just a year after finishing with a 3-13-1 record, the Texans went from irrelevancy to championship contenders in just one offseason.

Stroud has likely locked up the AP 2023 NFL Rookie of the Year award. He finished the regular season with 4,108 passing yards, 23 touchdowns and 5 interceptions, resulting in a 100.8 passer rating. With the Wild Card win, Stroud became the youngest quarterback to ever win a playoff game in NFL history.

History, however, still doesn't favor C.J. Stroud and the Texans.

Rookie quarterbacks haven't done well in the playoffs

Only eight rookie quarterbacks have led their teams to a postseason victory. Two of those quarterbacks — T.J Yates and Russell Wilson — got their win because they were playing against a team that was also starting a rookie quarterback.

Only three of the remaining six quarterbacks — Mark Sanchez, Joe Flacco and Brock Purdy — won more than one playoff game and reached the conference championship game. No rookie quarterback has won more than two playoff games, and none have reached the Super Bowl.

While Dieter Brock did pick up a playoff win as a 34-year-old rookie for the Los Angeles Rams in 1985, he played a decade in the Canadian Football League. Pat Haden also picked up a playoff win in 1976 with the Rams, he played one season for the World Football League one year prior. This information comes courtesy of The Athletic.

Here's a look at every rookie quarterback that have won at least one playoff game.

If Stroud wants to become the next rookie to reach the conference championship, he'll have to take down the No. 1 seed Baltimore Ravens in the AFC Divisional Round game on Saturday.