National Football League Druckenmiller was
drafted in the first round (26th overall) of the
1997 NFL draft by the
San Francisco 49ers, which intended to groom him as
Steve Young's successor; after the draft, 49ers coach
Steve Mariucci commented about Druckenmiller: "I would like to think he's our quarterback of the future." Although the 49ers won 15–12, Druckenmiller completed only 10 of his 28 attempted passes for 102 yards with one
touchdown pass and three
interceptions. In the fourth quarter, Druckenmiller was 0-for-5 with one interception and two near-interceptions. Druckenmiller played in three more games: first in week 3 backing up Steve Young in the 49ers' 33–7 win over the
New Orleans Saints. In that game, Druckenmiller completed 4 of 6 pass attempts for 41 yards, was
sacked once for 9 yards, and lost one yard on a rush attempt. The following week, the 49ers beat the
Atlanta Falcons 34–7. Druckenmiller was 2-for-7 for 32 yards and a 6-yard sack, and -3 yards rushing. Druckenmiller's next game action was in the 49ers' final 1997 regular season game, a 38–9 loss to the
Seattle Seahawks in which Druckenmiller was 5-for-11 for 64 yards, one interception, one sack, and one rushing yard. He finished the 1997 season 21-for-52 with one touchdown pass and four interceptions. In the 1998 season, Druckenmiller played only two games: week 2 against the
Washington Redskins and week 6 against the New Orleans Saints. After the season, General Manager
Bill Walsh belittled his football skills and implied that Druckenmiller would have been released but for salary cap ramifications. On September 6, 1999, the 49ers traded Druckenmiller to the
Miami Dolphins for a conditional draft choice. Druckenmiller did not play a down in 1999. In a preseason game on August 9, 2000, Druckenmiller completed 13 of 21 pass attempts in the Dolphins' 13–10 loss to the
Pittsburgh Steelers for 141 yards including the 78-yard first touchdown drive. The Dolphins cut Druckenmiller on August 16. In 2008,
ESPN named him the 11th-biggest bust since the
AFL-NFL merger.
Later career In 2001, he had limited action as a backup with the
Arena Football League's
Los Angeles Avengers. He also played for the
Memphis Maniax of the
XFL in 2001. The XFL used the
angle of Druckenmiller's history and his unusually strong arm and passing range to promote Maniax games. He ranked 13th in the league in rushing yards (208, leading all quarterbacks) and fourth in
passer rating, with 13 touchdowns and seven interceptions. In 2003, just as Druckenmiller was offered a job as a sales manager for a
Little Rock, Arkansas-based
cargo trailer company, the
Indianapolis Colts offered Druckenmiller a tryout to be
Peyton Manning's third-string backup, but the Colts ultimately signed
Jim Kubiak. ==Career statistics==