The NFL season is two weeks old. Well, for four teams, Week 2 will conclude after the Monday Night Football doubleheader, but for the majority of the league, we already know where they sit going into Week 3. For some, like the Cleveland Browns, it might already be time for a major change at the quarterback position or some other big move.
Still others, looking at you, Cincinnati Bengals, a 2-0 start helps cover up a lot of warts, but Joe Burrow’s injury really clouds things for now and the future.
With the extra first-round pick in the 2026 NFL draft, the Browns might have competition for trying to secure their quarterback of the future. Unless Dillon Gabriel or Shedeur Sanders proves they are the guy, Cleveland is once again on quarterback watch and is currently joined by these other 11 teams who have some level of questions around the most important position in the game:
- New Orleans Saints
- New York Jets
- Miami Dolphins
- Cleveland Browns
- New York Giants
- Carolina Panthers
- Chicago Bears
- Minnesota Vikings
- Jacksonville Jaguars
- Seattle Seahawks
- Pittsburgh Steelers
- Cincinnati Bengals
The Denver Broncos could make 13, but Sean Payton has conviction on his quarterback and Bo Nix will get a long leash after his rookie season. The Indianapolis Colts should be on the list, and probably will be by season’s end, but we have to give Daniel Jones credit for completing 71% of his passes for 588 yards with two touchdowns and zero turnovers. The Colts have not punted yet this season.
Let’s take a look at the list and what the quarterback situation looks like so far:
- Saints – Spencer Rattler has completed 65% of his passes with three TDs and zero INTs. Tyler Shough waits in the wings but looked totally unprepared in preseason.
- Jets – Justin Fields remains exciting with the ball in his hand, but has only completed 58% of his passes for 245 yards, taken three sacks, and then left Week 2 with a concussion.
- Dolphins – With three interceptions in two games, Tua Tagovailoa looks like a shell of the player who got a huge extension. He’s also taken eight sacks already.
- Browns – Flacco’s career as a starter is all but over, Gabriel and Sanders were drafted in the third and fifth rounds, where very few franchise QBs come from.
- Giants – Jaxson Dart has not seen the field yet, leading to their place on the list. It will be interesting to see how much time Dart sees on the field this year and if he can prove New York right in trading up for him.
- Panthers – Through two games, Bryce Young hasn’t been bad, but he hasn’t shown that he is ready to take the team to another level, either. With owner Dave Tepper being generally impatient, it’s possible a whole new regime is coming in going into Young’s fourth season next year.
- Bears – Caleb Williams + Ben Johnson was supposed to equal amazing. Instead, Williams is completing just 62% of his passes, has taken six sacks and looks like a quarterback who is not comfortable playing in the pocket.
- Vikings – A late comeback in Week 1 put JJ McCarthy’s name up on a pedestal despite a very rough start overall. Week 2 saw a complete game of poor play. Minnesota might be excited by McCarthy, but he’ll have to show something by the end of Year 2 or the organization might get antsy, quick.
- Jaguars – Maybe a surprising addition to the list, Trevor Lawrence continues to run hot and cold, with a whole lot of lukewarm. This reaction to his new head coach, Liam Coen, isn’t a good sign either:
- Seahawks – Free agent addition Sam Darnold has been okay (68% completion, 2 TDs, 2 INTs, 3 sacks), but the contract he signed this offseason is set up for Seattle to get out of it after the year if he is not very good. He hasn’t been so far.
- Steelers – A 40-something-year-old quarterback behind an offensive line that has been porous at times, leading to seven sacks in two games, things are going swimmingly for Aaron Rodgers in Pittsburgh. Even if Rodgers looked great, he hasn’t, the Steelers were going to be in the market for a quarterback in this year’s NFL draft.
- Bengals – Can we be honest? Joe Burrow is very good, maybe a step below elite, but Cincinnati’s offensive line and his health issues just cannot be ignored. Andrew Luck comparisons are apt at this point, except the Colts QB, before he retired, didn’t have the number of major injuries Burrow has since coming into the league in 2020:
- Tore all the knee ligaments – 2020 – Missed a full season
- Calf strain/torn wrist ligaments – 2023 – Missed six plus games
- Turf Toe – 2025 – Will miss three months
While we are just two weeks into the season, there are a few teams that have to already have their scouting departments focused on the upcoming quarterback class, especially the Browns. Maybe some of the teams above will come off the list as the season goes forward, while others will be added. What seems certain is that the upcoming NFL draft needs to have a lot of top-end quarterbacks to fulfill all the needs around the league.
Are there teams you think should not be on this list? Teams that should have been added?
Share your thoughts in the comment section below, including whether you are surprised that so many teams seem to have QB questions already!
