THE TAKE
"If I had to bet on one, it would be Bryce." (picking Bryce Young as the QB who will make the biggest jump in 2025, over Caleb Williams, Jayden Daniels, Bo Nix, and Drake Maye)
BOLDNESS
78/100
GRADE
22/100
PLAYERS / TEAMS
Bryce YoungCaleb WilliamsJayden DanielsBo NixDrake Maye
GRADING CRITERIA
Bryce Young must show a greater year-over-year improvement in 2025 versus 2024 than Caleb Williams, Jayden Daniels, Bo Nix, and Drake Maye each show relative to their own prior season, measured by at least two of the following: passer rating, QBR, touchdown-to-interception ratio, yards per attempt, or team win total. If Young does not lead the group in measurable improvement across the majority of these metrics, the take is FALSE.
bold callcontrarianhot take
OUTCOME
CONFIRMED FALSEBryce Young made genuine strides in 2025 — setting career highs in completion percentage (63.6%), passing yards (3,011), and touchdowns (23) while leading Carolina to a surprise playoff berth — but Drake Maye's leap was on a completely different level: Maye led the NFL in completion percentage (72%), QBR (77.1), and yards per attempt (8.9), finished as runner-up for MVP, and guided the Patriots to the Super Bowl in what Britannica called a '10-win improvement' that 'tied a record.' Caleb Williams also had a clear breakout year, winning the NFC North title with Chicago. Young's improvement was real but ranked well below Maye's historic leap and arguably below Williams's turnaround, failing to satisfy the 'bigger jump than all peers' standard the take required.