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Player

Will Levis

QB

21 games, 21 TDs is a 1-TD-per-game pace — average enough that TEN drafted Cam Ward #1 overall two years later. The total quantifies how short the runway was.

2-year career with TEN. 3,899 passing yards, 21 TDs. The 2023 2nd-round Tannehill successor.

Milestone

Career regular-season totals

StatTotal
Games21
Yards3,899
TDs21
INTs16
Comp%61.0%
Rush Yds240

Why it matters. 21 games, 21 TDs is a 1-TD-per-game pace — average enough that TEN drafted Cam Ward #1 overall two years later. The total quantifies how short the runway was.

Rookie year: 9 starts after Tannehill benched. 2024: 12 starts before being benched and replaced.

Trend

Levis year-by-year

YearGPYdsTDsINTs
202391,80884
2024122,0911312

Why it matters. The arc is the warning: volume grew but accuracy and ball security collapsed. INTs going 4 -> 12 in one off-season is why Mason Rudolph took the job and Cam Ward got drafted #1.

Wk 8 2023 NFL debut: 238 yds, 4 TDs vs ATL. Only Mariota (2015) has matched a 4-TD rookie debut since 2010.

Rare

4+ TD rookie-debut QB games since 2010

PlayerSeasonWkOppYdsTDs
Marcus Mariota20151TB2094
Will Levis20238ATL2384

Levis's biggest passing games (verified)

YearWkOppYdsTDsINTs
202314MIA32711
202411MIN29511
202412HOU27821
20239PIT26201
20243GB26022
20238ATL23840

Why it matters. The debut tape was the franchise pitch. In a 15-year window only one other rookie (Mariota) opened with 4 passing TDs — so the early ceiling was real, even if the floor caught up.

Year 1: 1.78 TD/INT ratio (8/4). Year 2: 1.08 TD/INT (13/12). The turnover regression is the story.

Split

Levis TD/INT trajectory

YearTDsINTsRatio
2023841.78
202413121.08

Why it matters. At 1-to-1 TD/INT a QB is donating possessions; benchings follow. Levis's Year-2 ratio is the mechanism behind Mason Rudolph getting the second half of 2024 and Cam Ward getting the franchise.

2023 QB class through 2024: Levis (#33) out-TD'd Richardson (#4) 21-11 in 6 more games.

Comparison

2023 QB class — career through 2024

PlayerPickGPYdsTDsINTs
Bryce Young#1305,2802619
C.J. Stroud#2368,8114718
Anthony Richardson#4152,3911113
Will Levis#33213,8992116
Aidan O'Connell#135203,8302011

Why it matters. The pick number suggests Levis was an afterthought next to Young, Stroud, Richardson. The numbers show he matched or beat two of the three Day-1 picks — context for why TEN gave him real run before benching him.

Led ALL NFL QBs (200+ att) in air yards per attempt in 2023 at 10.54 — deeper than Stroud, Allen, Lamar.

Anomaly

2023 deepest passers (min 200 attempts)

QBAir Yds/AttAttempts
Will Levis10.54255
Joe Flacco8.90250
C.J. Stroud8.88553
Jalen Hurts8.57573
Baker Mayfield8.54643
Lamar Jackson8.43516
Josh Allen8.42648

Why it matters. Air yards per attempt measures how aggressive a QB is throwing downfield. Leading the league as a rookie by 1.6 yards is the kind of outlier that gets a coach fired or a QB benched — it's high-variance, and the variance broke against Levis in Year 2.

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