Originally Posted by SmashMouth (Post 830024)

Since signing with the New Orleans Saints in 2006, quarterback Drew Brees has built such a memorable career that it makes it easy to forget all the starting signal callers who have tried -- and, more often than not, failed -- to lead the team in years past.



Remember the three Bobbys? The two Billy Joes? The one and only Guido Merkens?



For better and for worse, here's a look at all 31 players who has started a game under center for the Saints since the team's inaugural season in 1967, with considerable statistical help from Pro Football Reference.



https://expo.advance.net/img/d5e7f5d...manning02.jpeg



Gary Cuozzo (No. 15)

If nothing else, Gary Cuozzo is the answer to a pretty cool bit of New Orleans Saints trivia: He was the first quarterback ever to line up under center for the team. That's probably the only thing worth remembering about his short tenure in the black and gold, though.



Upon the Saints' creation in 1967, team leadership recognized -- accurately, it must be said -- that they needed a good quarterback. So, they set about arranging a trade for Cuozzo, then the backup to Baltimore Colts legend Johnny Unitas.



The asking price: The first overall pick in the NFL Draft. The Saints agreed, making the first of what would be many ill-advised trades over the years.



The Colts used their newly acquired pick to draft two-time Pro Bowler -- and future movie star -- Bubba Smith. As for Cuozzo, he started 10 games for the Saints before being benched in favor of Billy Kilmer. Cuozzo was then traded in the offseason to the Minnesota Vikings, helping guide them to a league-best 12-2 record and earn a trip to the playoffs.



https://expo.advance.net/img/2dba711...arycuozzo.jpeg



Billy Kilmer (No. 17)

Picked by the Saints in the 1967 expansion draft, Kilmer would assume signal-caller duties in the 11th game of the team's inaugural year. While the Saints enjoyed limited success during his four-year tenure with the team -- never winning more than five games -- he made a name for himself as a scrappy knuckleballer who often played through injuries.



He also holds the distinction of being one of the few Saints quarterbacks to throw six touchdowns in a single game, which he did in November 1969 against the St. Louis Cardinals.



Kilmer's time with the team would end in 1971, when, on the eve of the Saints' selection of Archie Manning second overall in the NFL Draft, Kilmer asked to be traded. The team obliged, sending him to Washington in exchange for linebacker Tom Roussel and two draft picks.



In a similar storyline to Cuozzo's, Kilmer would lead Washington to success, becoming the league's leading passer in 1972 and guiding the team to Super Bowl VII, which they lost to the unbeaten Miami Dolphins.



https://expo.advance.net/img/d828188...llykilmer.jpeg



Karl Sweetan (No. 14)

A one-year backup to Kilmer, Sweetan's time in the NFL lasted only five seasons, but he got a chance to start for the Saints three times in the 1968 season. He would finish the season with one touchdown and nine interceptions.



If Sweetan is remembered at all by football fans, it's probably for the time he was charged by federal authorities in an alleged scheme to sell a playbook belonging to the Los Angeles Rams, for whom he played before signing with the Saints.



The charges were never proven.



https://expo.advance.net/img/b1f3ec7...rlsweetan.jpeg



See the entire list here on NOLA