When you think of the worst quarterbacks in NFL history, the mind goes to the same names. Tim Boyle, Nathan Peterman, Ryan Lindley, and DeShone Kizer are among the usual suspects. But then there's the draft busts like JaMarcus Russell and Akili Smith who were genuinely painful to watch.
But what if I told you that the Atlanta Falcons rostered one of the worst quarterbacks in legaue history? And no, I'm not referring to Desmond Ridder or Byron Leftwich, there's a signal-caller the Falcons started back in the 1970s who makes you say "hold by beer" to how awful Leftwich was.
The man in question is Kim McQuilken, who played for the franchise in the 1970s. And if you don't remember him, there's probably a really good reason for that. Thankfully the majority of the current fanbase wasn't alive yet or does not remember being subjected to one of the worst NFL QBs ever.
The nightmarish story of former Falcons' quarterback Kim McQuilken
Atlanta drafted McQuilken in the third round of the 1974 NFL Draft out of Lehigh, which should tell you everything you need to know about him. But for however low your expectations might be, I can assure you that will be let down. So I guess Falcons QBs (besides Matt Ryan) tend to have that effect.
Across four seasons with the Dirty Birds, McQuilken made 23 appearances and started seven games. And in those games, he barely cleared 1,100 passing yards and threw four touchdowns. Yes, you read that right. In four seasons and over 20 games, this guy only mustered four passing touchdowns.
And that's not the worst part. McQuilken threw 29 interceptions in his first three seasons. A 4: 29 TD:INT ratio means that he threw over seven times as many picks as he did touchdowns, which has to be one of the worst marks in NFL history. Even a geriatric Peyton Manning in 2015 wasn't this bad.
The league was different back then, but he was basically better at targeting the defense than he was his own receivers. McQuilken's career-high in completion percentage came in his rookie year, where he completed 43% of his pass attempts. So much for Michael Penix Jr. having accuracy issues.
But it wasn't just his affinity for throwing interceptions that made McQuilken such a disaster. In 1975 he completed 32.8% of his pass attempts, and 39.7% in 1976. Yikes. This guy wasn't even a full-time starter, but the 70s Falcons were such a clown show that they continued to turn to him as a starter.
McQuilken flamed out so bad that he spent one season with the then- Redskins in 1979, which later marked the end of his NFL playing career. It's surprising that a guy who threw four touchdowns and 29 picks last as long as he did, as he would've been out of the NFL after a year, if that, in 2026.
Kim McQuilken didn't need a major sample size to prove he was one of the worst quarterbacks in NFL history, and he's almost certainly still the worst player to ever appear under center for the Atlanta Falcons.
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