2016 Heisman Trophy winner Lamar Jackson while quarterbacking the Baltimore Ravens in a 2023 NFL playoff win over Houston. Credit: Baltimore Ravens
Heisman Winners Turn In Prolific NFL Seasons
Heisman winners in the NFL turned in prolific 2024 regular seasons and six of the 11 active Heisman pros are set for the postseason.
No Heisman winner has won a Super Bowl since Charles Woodson with Green Bay in 2011. Six will take another crack at it this year, including Baltimore’s Lamar Jackson and Derrick Henry, Philadelphia’s DeVonta Smith, Tampa Bay’s Baker Mayfield and Washington’s Jayden Daniels and Marcus Mariota.
But first, let’s cover some of the amazing seasons registered by our Heisman fraternity members.
Joe Burrow led Cincinnati to wins in its final five games but the Bengals fell a game short of making the playoffs despite his MVP-level season.
Burrow led the NFL with career highs passing yards (4,918), TD passes (43), completions (460) and attempts (652). But he certainly was not alone in standout Heisman seasons.
Mayfield led the Buccaneers to a division title while completing 407-of-570 passes (71.4&%) for 4,500 passing yards and 41 touchdowns, all career-best efforts. His passing yards were third-most in the NFL while his passing TDs were tied for second.
Who was he tied with? Fellow Heisman winner Jackson, whose 41 TDs and 4,172 passing yards were also career bests. He also rushed for 915 yards — the third-highest total of his career — and four TDs.
Jackson now has the most rushing yards among NFL quarterbacks in league history with 6,173. Heisman winner Cam Newton is third on the list (5,631).
Jackson’s Ravens teammate Henry had his own historic season, rushing for 1,921 yards and 16 touchdowns, averaging 5.9 yards per carry. His rushing yards were the second-most of his career and were second-most in the league in 2024 while his TDs were tied for first. In fact, he became the first player in NFL history with at least 1,800 rushing yards and 15+ rushing scores in multiple seasons.
Henry has moved into the top 20 of the NFL’s career rushing list at No. 19 with 11,423 yards. He passed fellow Heisman winners Ricky Williams (10,009), Eddie George (10,441) and O.J. Simpson (11,236) this season. The next nearest Heisman winner ahead of him on the career chart is Marcus Allen in 14th (12,243) while Tony Dorsett is 10th (12,739) and Barry Sanders is fourth (15,269).
Then there’s Daniels’ epic rookie season that will likely result in him becoming the latest Heisman winner to win the NFL Rookie of the Year award.
Daniels led the Commanders to their list NFL playoff appearance since 2020 thanks to an amazing season that saw him throw for 3,568 yards on 331-of-480 passing with 25 touchdowns. He also ran for 891 yards and scored six TDs on the ground.
Fellow 2024 rookie Caleb Williams turned in impressive numbers as well despite Chicago’s disappointing season. Williams finished with 3,541 passing yards and 20 touchdowns against just six interceptions. He also rushed for 489 yards.
The Eagles’ Smith completed his fourth NFL season with 68 receptions for 833 yards and a career-best eight receiving touchdowns, despite missing four games with injuries.
Mariota, Daniels’ backup in Washington, led the Commanders to a pair of wins as their No. 2 QB, throwing a pair of touchdowns in both games, including in the season finale. He also ran for a score.
Carolina Panther QB Bryce Young, in his NFL sophomore season, led the Panthers to two overtime wins in the last three weeks of the season. He finished with 2,403 yards passing and 15 TDs in 14 games.
Arizona’s Kyler Murray neared his career-best with 3,851 passing yards and 21 TD passes while he ran for 572 yards and another five scores.
Finally, Cleveland’s Jameis Winston saw frequent action as the Browns’ No. 2 QB, leading them to a pair of wins. He threw for 2,121 yards and 13 TDs, his best numbers since 2019.