The NFL QB landscape has been turned on its head

The new league year has brought a lot of change to the most important position.

The NCAA may have “March Madness” trademarked, but the phrase could also describe what’s been happening with NFL quarterbacks in the past week. And I’m not even counting Aaron Donald’s retirement, which came as a relief to Kyler Murray and any other signal caller who has ever stared down the soon-to-be Hall of Famer. 

Instead, I’m referring to all the team-hopping and maneuvering we’ve seen at the position since the start of the new league year. Kirk Cousins was the first domino to fall when he joined the Falcons. Justin Fields’ trade to the Steelers was the most recent — and for a surprisingly low return. Based on the specifics of the market, it makes sense why the Bears weren’t able to recoup much value for Fields, but based on Fields’ potential, it doesn’t. (I recommend checking out Ben Solak’s analysis of the situation.)

After this hectic past week, it almost seems like we have an entirely new quarterback landscape in the NFL. That’s not quite true, even if there have been numerous changes. Below, I broke down which teams didn’t add any new quarterbacks, which teams did, and which ones still have work to do at the position.

The teams that haven’t added a QB — and don’t need to*

*Some of them should and will take a flier on a late-round pick or UDFA, however.

Baltimore Ravens: While the Ravens did lose one backup (Tyler Huntley) to free agency and re-signed another (Josh Johnson), they’ve stayed relatively quiet at QB. That’s what you’d expect, considering reigning MVP Lamar Jackson is under contract for four more years. They also have Malik Cunningham, Jackson’s former Louisville teammate, on the roster after signing him off the Patriots’ practice squad late last season. 

Carolina Panthers: The Panthers are rolling into 2024 just as they did 2023: with young starter Bryce Young and veteran backup Andy Dalton. This time, however, they have a whole new coaching staff. Hopefully for the sake of everyone in Carolina, this year will go exceedingly better. 

Cincinnati Bengals: Jake Browning proved he was a valuable backup after leading Cincinnati to a winning record following Joe Burrow’s season-ending injury. With a healthy Burrow back in the fold, Browning returns to his No. 2 role.

Dallas Cowboys: Even if the Cowboys didn’t still have Dak Prescott, Cooper Rush, and Trey Lance, they wouldn’t have the cap space right now to sign any QBs!

Detroit Lions: Now that Teddy Bridgewater has retired, Jared Goff’s primary backup will be a healthy Hendon Hooker. The Lions drafted Hooker, who tore his ACL in November 2022, last spring.

Green Bay Packers: In his first year as the starter, Jordan Love looked the part of franchise quarterback. Sean Clifford and Alex McGough are staying on as his No. 2 and No. 3, respectively.

Houston Texans: C.J. Stroud confirmed that he was the real deal early in his rookie season. And when Stroud missed a little time due to a concussion, Case Keenum and Davis Mills also showed that they’re capable backups. Both of their deals run through the 2024 season.

Kansas City Chiefs: I had to look it up, but apparently Patrick Mahomes’ backup right now is no longer Blaine Gabbert (who is a free agent), but Chris Oladokun (who has been on the Chiefs’ practice squad) and Ian Book (who signed a futures contract with the team). Does it really matter, though, when Mahomes is your QB1?

Los Angeles Chargers: The QB room is about the only thing that hasn’t changed for the Chargers this offseason. Justin Herbert remains the starter, Easton Stick (re-signed for one year) is his backup, and Max Duggan is third in line. 

Miami Dolphins: Like the Chargers, the Dolphins’ turnover this offseason isn’t happening at the QB position. Tua Tagovailoa, Mike White, and Skylar Thompson are all still around.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers: The Bucs’ QB group will stay intact after they negotiated a new deal with Baker Mayfield and re-signed third-stringer John Wolford. QB2, Kyle Trask, is under contract through this upcoming season.

The team that hasn’t added a QB — and really needs to

One team stands alone in this section.

Denver Broncos: After releasing Russell Wilson and eating $53 million in dead cap this year, Denver has otherwise stood pat at quarterback. Only Jarrett Stidham and Ben DiNucci remain on this roster. The Broncos will likely draft a quarterback, but unless they spend the capital to trade up, it’s unclear who will be available at No. 12. Bo Nix maybe, if Sean Payton likes him. And would he even be ready to start right away, or will they just ride with Stidham?

It’s not the most inspiring plan either way, but the Broncos are in rebuilding mode in 2024 no matter what.

The teams that have added a new starter

Both of these offenses should look quite different in 2024.

Atlanta Falcons: As we’ve all heard by now, the Falcons landed the top free agent QB on the market as they try to make the leap to a contender. Kirk Cousins will be wearing No. 18 — either because Kyle Pitts didn’t want to give it up or because Cousins didn’t want to pay whatever Pitts’ asking price was — in his third NFL home.

Pittsburgh Steelers: No team has undergone as dramatic of a QB overhaul as the Steelers. Kenny Pickett (traded), Mason Rudolph (signed with the Titans), and Mitchell Trubisky (released and signed with the Bills) are all gone. Russell Wilson and Justin Fields are in, and all it’s costing against Pittsburgh’s salary cap is a touch over $4.4 million — combined. That’s a low-cost risk worth taking to see if 1) Wilson can return to form and 2) Fields can take a big step forward.

On paper, that’s an improved and way more intriguing Steelers QB room. What their plan is for both Wilson and Fields, however, is up in the air, beyond Wilson apparently being the starter (for now).

The teams that have added a backup and are basically set*

*Again, they could still take a look at fringe roster QBs during training camp for depth purposes.

Arizona Cardinals: Last month, the Cardinals’ official account tweeted a graphic about Kyler Murray being their franchise QB, leading to a lot of jokes and perhaps some concern. But there shouldn’t have been any worry because Murray is still the face of the team, though now he has a new backup. Arizona traded speedy, but not all that productive, wide receiver Rondale Morre to Atlanta in exchange for Desmond Ridder.

Buffalo Bills: Josh Allen’s new backup is a familiar one. After an unsuccessful two-year stint with the Steelers, Mitchell Trubisky is back in Buffalo, where he spent the 2021 season and attempted just eight passes (hopefully history repeats itself in that regard)..

Cleveland Browns: The Browns opted not to re-sign Comeback Player of the Year Joe Flacco as insurance for Deshaun Watson. Instead, they signed two backups who, unlike Flacco, have appeared in a Pro Bowl: Jameis Winston and Tyler Huntley. That’s a, uh, chaotic QB room.

Indianapolis Colts: Anthony Richardson’s recovery is on schedule, but he needed a new No. 2 after Gardner Minshew left for Vegas. Enter Joe Flacco, who won’t have to wait around on the couch until November this year to get signed. 

Jacksonville Jaguars: Trevor Lawrence proved to be mortal in 2023; for the first time ever, he missed a game due to injury. C.J. Beathard is still in Jacksonville, but the Jags decided to take a chance and trade for Mac Jones as a depth piece in case Lawrence gets bit by the injury bug again. 

Los Angeles Rams: Last season, Matthew Stafford showed that he’s still a top-tier QB when healthy. In the game and a half that he wasn’t, Brett Rypien didn’t exactly instill confidence that the Rams were in good hands. So they brought Jimmy Garoppolo back to the NFC West following his release from the Raiders. Jimmy G. might not be a startin- caliber QB anymore, but he can step into the lineup in a pinch and manage a game.

New Orleans Saints: The Saints’ perennially messy cap situation precluded them from retaining Jameis Winston or replacing him with a strong backup to Derek Carr. Instead, they ended up with Nathan Peterman, who is starting to put together a journeyman career. 

New York Giants: The Seahawks wanted to re-sign Drew Lock, but the 27-year-old chose to head to New York. In his introductory presser, Lock maintained that he knows Daniel Jones is the starter, though if Jones can’t bounce back from his disappointing and injury-plagued 2023, then it wouldn’t be a surprise if Lock overtakes him. While the Giants could decide that they’re set at the position with Jones and Lock, they could also draft a QB with the No. 6 pick if there’s one available that they love. 

New York Jets: Tyrod Taylor will stay at MetLife Stadium, going from the Giants to the Jets. Even though Zach Wilson has yet to be traded, the Jets learned one lesson from Aaron Rodgers’ season-opening injury and made sure they had a trustworthy backup. (They learned another lesson, too, and beefed up their OL during free agency.)

Philadelphia Eagles: I don’t know how Kenny Pickett did or did not handle the Russell Wilson situation, but I do know the Steelers didn’t hesitate about moving on from their 2022 first-round pick. They kept Pickett in the state and sent him to Philadelphia, where he will take over as Jalen Hurts’ backup after Marcus Mariota left in free agency.

San Francisco 49ers: Though the Super Bowl runners-up had to say goodbye to free agent Sam Darnold, one of Brock Purdy’s backups returns. The Niners re-signed Brandon Allen, who spent all of 2023 as their third-stringer. They also picked up Joshua Dobbs on a one-year deal.

Seattle Seahawks: When their plan to re-up with Drew Lock fell through, the Seahawks traded for Sam Howell. Last year with the Commanders, Howell led the NFL in interceptions (21) and sacks taken (65), but he’s still only 23 years old. Maybe learning behind Geno Smith will help his development. 

Tennessee Titans: Will Levis will return as the starter after supplanting Ryan Tannehill, who is now a free agent. Considering Levis was sometimes shaky and injured, and Malik Willis has been similarly shaky in his career, the Titans needed to bring on a more experienced QB. They did so by agreeing to an affordable one-year deal with Mason Rudolph.

The teams that added a starter or backup — and aren’t done yet

The NFL Draft awaits for all (or some?) of the franchises in this final section.

Chicago Bears: Phew, what a roller coaster offseason it’s been for Chicago. It took longer than most thought, including probably the Bears, but they finally found a trade partner for Justin Fields. Supposedly, the Bears turned down more draft capital to send Fields to a more preferred destination, but that could just be the team’s spin. The fact is that the front office missed the best window to offload Fields. 

But it’s done now, and they are freed up to use the No. 1 pick on Caleb Williams, whose backups will be the newly signed vet Brett Rypien, as well second-year passer Tyson Bagent. At least the Bears are surrounding Williams with more help than they did with Fields as a rookie (and beyond), such as trading for six-time Pro Bowl receiver Keenan Allen and OL Ryan Bates.

Las Vegas Raiders: While the Bears’ plan is obvious (and has been for a while), I’m baffled at what the Raiders are doing. They signed Gardner Minshew at the start of the new league year as … their new starter? A backup to Aidan O’Connell? Competition for whichever rookie quarterback that they might be able to draft (say, Michael Penix)? 

If it’s the latter, I might be able to understand it, as long as they don’t use their No. 13 overall pick to overdraft a quarterback. Still, it feels like in a division with Patrick Mahomes, you should have a better strategy at QB than whatever is happening here.

Minnesota Vikings: It’s been an open secret what Minnesota’s intentions are. Once Kirk Cousins left for the Falcons, the Vikings signed a QB who is capable of starting if need be (Sam Darnold) and also acquired the Texans’ first-round pick in a clear attempt to package two first-rounders to move up in the draft. 

Their most likely targets are either Drake Maye at No. 3 or J.J. McCarthy at No. 5 or No. 6. The former is understandable. The latter is a risky move that could pay off if the McCarthy fanboys are right and he hasn’t even come close to reaching his ceiling. If the naysayers are right, though, and he’s just this year’s version of Zach Wilson, then good luck, Vikings.

New England Patriots: For at least the past few months, most have assumed that the Patriots will draft a quarterback with their first pick. I still lean that way too because next year’s draft class is not loaded at the position, but it wouldn’t be shocking if they decided to trade down, either. One conversation that I’ve seen happening around NFL circles this past week is how important it is to set a rookie QB up to succeed. Circumstances matter. 

And at the moment, the Patriots do not have the star power at receiver or offensive line that would make a rookie’s life easier. Of course, they could just start Jacoby Brissett, who they brought back to New England after parting ways with Mac Jones, and let whichever rookie wait his turn on the bench. Or they could throw the No. 3 pick into the fire and hope it works out for him in ways that it didn’t for Justin Fields in Chicago and Jones the past two seasons.

Washington Commanders: After trading Sam Howell, the only question with the Commanders is if they’ll draft Drake Maye or Jayden Daniels. I have not studied either one extensively, but I would probably rate Maye higher. That said, based on the offenses that Kliff Kingsbury has run before, I would slot Daniels here if I were to guess what the Commanders will do. 

Washington has had a productive free agency period, including signing an experienced backup QB (Marcus Mariota, who is aging like a president, wtf). Whichever prospect they select at No. 2 should be good to start right away.