Being the starting quarterback of an NFL team means carrying the burden of an entire franchise on one’s shoulders, and it also means being the recipient of lots of pressure.
Of course, some quarterbacks have to deal with more pressure than others, and Emmanuel Acho gave his list of the five signal-callers under the most pressure heading into the 2024 season on a recent episode of FS1’s “Speak.”
His list consists of Justin Herbert, Trevor Lawrence, Aaron Rodgers, Deshaun Watson, and Russell Wilson, in that order.
.@EmmanuelAcho‘s Top 5 QBs under the most pressure this season:
5. Justin Herbert
4. Trevor Lawrence
3. Aaron Rodgers
2. Deshaun Watson
1. Russell Wilson pic.twitter.com/ZNBvvOcPkr— Speak (@SpeakOnFS1) May 21, 2024
Herbert has been one of the league’s better QBs since coming out of the University of Oregon in 2020, but he has been to the playoffs just once and hasn’t won a single postseason game during that time.
His Los Angeles Chargers don’t have much offensive talent at the skill positions, however, and 2024 will likely be a transitional year under new head coach Jim Harbaugh, so perhaps he isn’t under that much pressure right now.
Lawrence’s Jacksonville Jaguars defeated Herbert in the latter’s only playoff game thus far, but the Jaguars regressed a bit last season, and Lawrence needs to prove to some that he’s a legitimate franchise quarterback.
Rodgers is always under pressure because of who he is, especially after he forced his way to the New York Jets last offseason.
He is working his way back from a torn Achilles, and with ample talent around him, the hype surrounding the Jets is building once again.
Since getting traded to the Cleveland Browns two years ago, Watson has been unable to duplicate the success he previously had with the Houston Texans despite being given a huge new contract upon his arrival in Northeast Ohio.
Wilson is now with the Pittsburgh Steelers after two dismal years with the Denver Broncos, and he appears to be in decline.
If Wilson doesn’t return to form, not to mention the playoffs, this coming season, his career could be viewed in a different light, as Acho alluded to.
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