# Danny Etling
**Danny Etling** is an [American football](https://www.edgepedia.org/american-football) coach and former quarterback who was drafted by the [New England Patriots](https://www.edgepedia.org/new-england-patriots) in the seventh round (219th overall) of the 2018 NFL Draft and now serves as an assistant quarterbacks coach for the [Washington Commanders](https://www.edgepedia.org/washington-commanders).[1](https://www.nfl.com/news/patriots-select-lsu-qb-danny-etling-in-seventh-round-0ap3000000930120) • [2](https://www.commanders.com/team/coaches-roster/danny-etling) He played college football at Purdue and Louisiana State University (LSU), then spent six seasons as an NFL quarterback, most recently with the Green Bay Packers, without starting a regular-season game.[2](https://www.commanders.com/team/coaches-roster/danny-etling)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Draft | Seventh round, 219th overall, 2018 NFL Draft, by the New England Patriots[1](https://www.nfl.com/news/patriots-select-lsu-qb-danny-etling-in-seventh-round-0ap3000000930120) |
| College | Purdue 2013–14; LSU 2016–17; sat out 2015 under NCAA transfer rules[1](https://www.nfl.com/news/patriots-select-lsu-qb-danny-etling-in-seventh-round-0ap3000000930120) |
| LSU totals | 325 of 544 passes (59.7%) for 4,586 yards, 27 touchdowns, 7 interceptions; 16–7 as a starter[1](https://www.nfl.com/news/patriots-select-lsu-qb-danny-etling-in-seventh-round-0ap3000000930120) • [3](https://lsusports.net/sports/fb/roster/season/2016/player/danny-etling) |
| Purdue totals | 238 of 429 passes (55.5%) for 2,490 yards, 16 touchdowns, 12 interceptions[1](https://www.nfl.com/news/patriots-select-lsu-qb-danny-etling-in-seventh-round-0ap3000000930120) |
| NFL career | Practice squads of New England, Atlanta, Seattle, and Green Bay; no regular-season game action[4](https://www.nfl.com/news/patriots-cut-qb-danny-etling-after-brief-move-to-wr-0ap3000001041157) • [5](https://static.www.nfl.com/image/upload/v1690582708/league/apps/league-site/media-guides/2023/GB.pdf) |
| CFL stint | Signed with the BC Lions on September 13, 2021; released that October[5](https://static.www.nfl.com/image/upload/v1690582708/league/apps/league-site/media-guides/2023/GB.pdf) |
| Current role | Assistant quarterbacks coach, Washington Commanders[2](https://www.commanders.com/team/coaches-roster/danny-etling) |
## Early life and high school
Etling is from [Terre Haute, Indiana](https://www.edgepedia.org/terre-haute-indiana), and played at South Vigo High School.[6](https://www.profootballarchives.com/players/e/etli00020.html) According to an LSU Athletics profile, he took up football at age 10 after winning a local tennis tournament his mother had set as the condition for joining a team, and a youth coach moved him to quarterback on the grounds that he was the smartest player on the field and could throw.[7](https://lsusports.net/news/2017/09/29/211670146) As a junior at South Vigo he committed to Purdue as one of the top quarterback prospects in the nation.[7](https://lsusports.net/news/2017/09/29/211670146)
## College career
**Purdue.** Etling played his first two college seasons (2013–14) at Purdue, starting 12 games and throwing for 2,490 yards and 16 touchdowns against 12 interceptions.[1](https://www.nfl.com/news/patriots-select-lsu-qb-danny-etling-in-seventh-round-0ap3000000930120) He started the final seven games of his freshman year and the first five games of his sophomore season before being benched for the rest of the year.[7](https://lsusports.net/news/2017/09/29/211670146) After the 2015 spring season he decided to transfer.[7](https://lsusports.net/news/2017/09/29/211670146)
**LSU.** [Les Miles](https://www.edgepedia.org/les-miles) offered Etling a scholarship by phone during an official visit to Arkansas, and Etling signed with the Tigers.[7](https://lsusports.net/news/2017/09/29/211670146) NCAA transfer rules forced him to sit out the 2015 season, during which he worked as LSU's scout-team quarterback.[1](https://www.nfl.com/news/patriots-select-lsu-qb-danny-etling-in-seventh-round-0ap3000000930120) • [7](https://lsusports.net/news/2017/09/29/211670146) He took over as the starter in the second quarter of the Jacksonville State game in Week 2 of 2016 and never gave up the job, finishing that season with a 7–3 mark as the starter.[8](https://static.lsusports.net/assets/docs/fb/pdf/17guide.pdf) Over two seasons in Baton Rouge he completed 325 of 544 passes (59.7 percent) for 4,586 yards and 27 touchdowns against seven interceptions, and posted a 16–7 record as LSU's starting quarterback.[1](https://www.nfl.com/news/patriots-select-lsu-qb-danny-etling-in-seventh-round-0ap3000000930120) • [3](https://lsusports.net/sports/fb/roster/season/2016/player/danny-etling) His career interception ratio of one per 77.1 attempts ranked second in SEC history among quarterbacks with at least 500 attempts, behind only AJ McCarron of Alabama.[3](https://lsusports.net/sports/fb/roster/season/2016/player/danny-etling)
Off the field, Etling graduated in May 2017 with a 3.9 grade point average in mass communications, was named the 2017 SEC Football Scholar-Athlete of the Year, served as Vice-Chair of the SEC Football Leadership Council, and made the SEC Academic Honor Roll and Community Service Team in 2016.[3](https://lsusports.net/sports/fb/roster/season/2016/player/danny-etling) Across both schools his career line was 563 of 973 passes (57.9 percent) for 7,076 yards and 43 touchdowns.[9](https://www.sports-reference.com/cfb/players/danny-etling-1.html)
## NFL career
The Patriots selected Etling with the 219th overall pick, the first of their three seventh-round selections in 2018, joining a quarterback room that held [Tom Brady](https://www.edgepedia.org/tom-brady) and [Brian Hoyer](https://www.edgepedia.org/brian-hoyer).[1](https://www.nfl.com/news/patriots-select-lsu-qb-danny-etling-in-seventh-round-0ap3000000930120) He was the 11th quarterback taken in that draft.[10](https://www.patriots.com/news/experts-react-to-patriots-2018-nfl-draft-picks-329591) He spent the entire 2018 season on New England's practice squad, and his best-known moment came in Week 4 of the preseason, when he ran 86 yards for a touchdown on an option play.[4](https://www.nfl.com/news/patriots-cut-qb-danny-etling-after-brief-move-to-wr-0ap3000001041157)
In August 2019 the Patriots briefly moved him to wide receiver before releasing him.[4](https://www.nfl.com/news/patriots-cut-qb-danny-etling-after-brief-move-to-wr-0ap3000001041157) He signed with the [BC Lions](https://www.edgepedia.org/bc-lions) of the [Canadian Football League](https://www.edgepedia.org/canadian-football-league) on September 13, 2021, and was released that October.[5](https://static.www.nfl.com/image/upload/v1690582708/league/apps/league-site/media-guides/2023/GB.pdf) He spent the entire 2022 season on Green Bay's practice squad.[5](https://static.www.nfl.com/image/upload/v1690582708/league/apps/league-site/media-guides/2023/GB.pdf)
## Coaching career
Etling joined the Washington Commanders as an assistant quarterbacks coach after his six seasons as an NFL quarterback, which ended with the Packers.[2](https://www.commanders.com/team/coaches-roster/danny-etling) He earned his bachelor's degree in mass communication from LSU.[2](https://www.commanders.com/team/coaches-roster/danny-etling)
## Scouting profile
At the 2018 Scouting Combine Etling measured 6 feet 2 inches and 215 pounds with a 4.76-second 40-yard dash; NFL.com's draft coverage listed him at 6-foot-3 and 222 pounds.[11](https://walterfootball.com/combine2018QB.php) • [1](https://www.nfl.com/news/patriots-select-lsu-qb-danny-etling-in-seventh-round-0ap3000000930120) NFL.com's draft assessment described him as having decent size and an NFL arm, with mechanical inconsistencies under pressure as the main concern.[12](https://www.nfl.com/draft/tracker/2018/rounds/7) [Pro Football Focus](https://www.edgepedia.org/pro-football-focus) credited him with a career-high 78.9 overall grade in 2017.[10](https://www.patriots.com/news/experts-react-to-patriots-2018-nfl-draft-picks-329591)
## References
1. [Patriots select LSU QB Danny Etling in seventh round, NFL.com](https://www.nfl.com/news/patriots-select-lsu-qb-danny-etling-in-seventh-round-0ap3000000930120)
2. [Danny Etling, Washington Commanders coaches and roster](https://www.commanders.com/team/coaches-roster/danny-etling)
3. [Danny Etling, Football 2016 roster, LSUsports.net](https://lsusports.net/sports/fb/roster/season/2016/player/danny-etling)
4. [Patriots cut QB Danny Etling after brief move to WR, NFL.com](https://www.nfl.com/news/patriots-cut-qb-danny-etling-after-brief-move-to-wr-0ap3000001041157)
5. [Green Bay Packers 2023 Media Guide, free agents and first-year players](https://static.www.nfl.com/image/upload/v1690582708/league/apps/league-site/media-guides/2023/GB.pdf)
6. [Danny Etling, Pro Football Archives](https://www.profootballarchives.com/players/e/etli00020.html)
7. [IN FOCUS: Danny Etling, LSUsports.net](https://lsusports.net/news/2017/09/29/211670146)
8. [LSU 2017 Football Media Guide, player profiles](https://static.lsusports.net/assets/docs/fb/pdf/17guide.pdf)
9. [Danny Etling College Stats, Sports Reference](https://www.sports-reference.com/cfb/players/danny-etling-1.html)
10. [Experts react to Patriots 2018 NFL Draft picks, Patriots.com](https://www.patriots.com/news/experts-react-to-patriots-2018-nfl-draft-picks-329591)
11. [2018 NFL Scouting Combine: Quarterbacks, WalterFootball](https://walterfootball.com/combine2018QB.php)
12. [2018 NFL Draft Tracker, Round 7, NFL.com](https://www.nfl.com/draft/tracker/2018/rounds/7)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Sports, games, and recreation › Other team and ball sports › Rugby and other football codes › American football players, coaches, and executives › Quarterbacks › 2010s quarterbacks › Quarterbacks entering the NFL 2016–2019*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 17, 2026; Oct 21, 2026 · Edited: Sep 17, 2026; Oct 12, 2026; Oct 15, 2026; Oct 21, 2026 · Last review: Oct 21, 2026*
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