Facing the white-hot Dolphins with a depleted lineup, the odds were already stacked against Saints rookie quarterback Ian Book when he took the field for his NFL debut on Monday night. Perhaps unbeknownst to him, there was another factor at play working against him: the recent history of former Notre Dame quarterbacks losing in the NFL.
With the Saints’s 20–3 loss, former Fighting Irish quarterbacks have now lost in 24 consecutive NFL starts, according to ESPN Stats & Info. The streak dates back to 2012, and stands as the longest such drought since 1950.
It started with Brady Quinn, who lost the last four starts of his career with the Chiefs in 2012.