New Orleans Saints and NFL Europe Delhomme went undrafted in the
1997 NFL draft, but was later signed by the
New Orleans Saints as an
undrafted free agent. After another stint on the Saints' practice squad, he was sent back to NFL Europe, this time as a member of the
Frankfurt Galaxy. The Galaxy operated under a rare two-quarterback strategy, utilizing both Delhomme and
Pat Barnes; the pair was known as the "Double-Headed Quarterback Monster". The unorthodox strategy worked, as the Galaxy won
World Bowl '99 over the
Barcelona Dragons. Delhomme would later say about his time in Europe: Following his success in Europe, he was brought back to the New Orleans Saints as the full-time third-string quarterback. In his first NFL start against the
Dallas Cowboys, he threw two touchdowns en route to a Saints victory, the team's third.
Carolina Panthers from 2003 to 2009, including an appearance in
Super Bowl XXXVIII. With Aaron Brooks cemented as the starter in New Orleans, Delhomme was interested in fighting for a starting spot in the NFL. In the 2003 offseason, he met with representatives from both the Carolina Panthers and the Dallas Cowboys. He eventually signed with Carolina as a free agent. It was his performance against Dallas in 1999 that made new Panthers coach
John Fox take notice. Although
Rodney Peete was the Panthers' starter, Delhomme was looked at to be the future of the franchise. He started the following week against the
Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and proceeded to start every remaining game during the 2003 season. Delhomme led the Panthers on a
Cinderella run through the playoffs, including a double-overtime victory against the
St. Louis Rams. After beating the top-seeded Philadelphia Eagles in the NFC Championship game, the Panthers made it through to
Super Bowl XXXVIII to face the
New England Patriots. Despite his personal success in the game (16-of-33 for 323 yards, 3 passing touchdowns, no interceptions, and a 113.6 passer rating), as well as setting a record for longest offensive play from scrimmage in Super Bowl history (an 85-yard pass to
Muhsin Muhammad), the Panthers fell on a last-minute field goal by
Adam Vinatieri. The team was stricken with injuries, fielding five different combinations in their offensive line alone. as well as
Steve Smith, their leading wide receiver, the Panthers rallied for a strong second half of the season. Delhomme finished the final eight games of the season with a passer rating of 102.8, fourth best in the league during that period. He also threw 17 touchdowns and just 4 interceptions en route to winning six of their last eight games.
2005 season In 2005, Delhomme helped return the Panthers to the playoffs. In addition to the team's success, Delhomme had one of his most productive seasons as a quarterback. His 11 victories as a starting quarterback set a team record, which he later broke in 2008, and was later broken again by Cam Newton in 2015. He set career highs in completion percentage (60.2) and passer rating (88.1). Once again, he led the Panthers through the playoffs, including a shutout of the
New York Giants, and a road victory over the
Chicago Bears although the team ultimately fell to the
Seattle Seahawks in the NFC Championship game.
2006 season Delhomme started the 2006 season as the Panthers' quarterback, the first time in franchise history that the same quarterback was the starter for three straight seasons. Weinke could only manage a single victory in Delhomme's absence (against the rival
Atlanta Falcons, only his second victory as an NFL starter), and Delhomme returned for the season finale against the
New Orleans Saints.
David Carr, who signed with Carolina in the off-season, took over as the Panthers' starting quarterback. After Carr injured his back in a defeat of the
New Orleans Saints, the Panthers signed
Vinny Testaverde, who started the next game against the
Arizona Cardinals just four days later, and in the process became the oldest starting quarterback to win a game in the NFL. However, an injury to Testaverde coupled with Carr's spinal cord injury led to rookie
Matt Moore starting in week 15 against the
Seattle Seahawks, a game he won. Meanwhile, Delhomme opted for season ending
Tommy John surgery on the elbow after two weeks of testing his arm.
2008 season and return on September 14, 2008. Delhomme returned to the starting position for the 2008 season. In the first game of the 2008 season, Delhomme restarted his career by coming back on the San Diego Chargers with a touchdown pass on fourth down as time expired to win the game. This is similar to his debut game in 2003. After finishing the regular season 12–4, tying the Panthers' 2nd best record in franchise history, the Panthers were eliminated from the playoffs when on January 10, 2009, on his 34th birthday, Delhomme threw for a career worst five interceptions (and lost one fumble) against the
Arizona Cardinals in the
divisional round of the playoffs, ending the season with an overall record of 12–5 including the loss in the playoffs.
2009 season On April 23, 2009, the Panthers signed Delhomme to a 5-year extension worth $42.5 million, with a $20 million guarantee, putting him under contract through 2014. In the season opener loss against the Philadelphia Eagles, Delhomme went 7 of 17 for 73 yards with four interceptions and a lost fumble, before getting benched for journeyman
Josh McCown. Delhomme threw game-ending interceptions the next 2 games, and despite throwing for 2 touchdowns and 7 interceptions with a 54.3 rating through the first 3 games, coach John Fox kept Delhomme as the Panthers' starting quarterback.
Steve Smith jokingly told Delhomme after their loss against the Eagles "I never liked you as a quarterback." After the team's bye week, Delhomme still struggled. In his next three games, he had 2 more touchdowns to 6 more interceptions. In the next four games however, Delhomme only threw 1 interception. In spite of this improved performance, the team went 2–2 in those 4 games. Delhomme's bad performance continued with a 0 TD, 4 INT game against the New York Jets. During the loss to the Jets, Delhomme broke a finger on his throwing hand and was replaced by backup
Matt Moore for the next two games, a 16–6 win over the
Tampa Bay Buccaneers and a 20–10 loss to the
New England Patriots. After those games, Moore started to heat up. He beat the Minnesota Vikings 26–7, then beat the Giants in their final game at
Giants Stadium with a 41–9 win, and went on to beat the New Orleans Saints 23–10. Delhomme was placed on season-ending injured reserve on December 24, 2009, and was released by the Panthers on March 5, 2010.
Cleveland Browns On March 13, 2010, Delhomme signed a two-year deal with the
Cleveland Browns. Delhomme won the starting quarterback job over
Seneca Wallace after competing with him during training camp. However, he suffered a high ankle sprain during the second quarter of the Browns' first game of the season, a loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (Delhomme had been notably grounded and thrown to the ground by Lions defensive tackle
Ndamukong Suh, in a preseason game.) Delhomme saw action again midway through the team's Week 5 game after Wallace also injured his ankle. However, he was noticeably not 100% while playing and ultimately re-injured his ankle. Delhomme started against his former team the Carolina Panthers, after
Colt McCoy suffered a high ankle sprain. It was Delhomme's first start since Week 1. For the season, he threw two touchdowns and seven interceptions while going 2–3 as a starter. On July 28, 2011, he was released by Cleveland.
Houston Texans for one game on January 1, 2012 Delhomme signed with the
Houston Texans on November 29, 2011, after quarterbacks
Matt Schaub and
Matt Leinart went down with season-ending injuries. Despite his experience, Delhomme was signed to back up rookie fifth-round draft pick
T. J. Yates, as Yates had been with the team the entire season. Delhomme entered the Texans' season finale against the Titans after Yates suffered a bruised throwing shoulder. He would go on to lead his team on a potential game-winning drive, completing 18 of 28 passes for 211 yards and a touchdown. But the Texans would lose 23–22 after a botched snap on a two-point attempt play. After the season ended, Delhomme told media that he would most likely retire. ==Career statistics==