Football is the ultimate team sport, but some positions are still more important than others. You won’t be hoisting the Lombardi Trophy with lackluster quarterback play. We’ve seen Patrick Mahomes power a dynasty that reached the Super Bowl five times over a six-year span, while the greatest player of all time, Tom Brady, won a record seven Super Bowls during his Hall of Fame career.
A quarterback room is more than just the starter. Half of the starting quarterbacks around the NFL can’t stay healthy for a full season, and it’s up to the backup to come in and guide the offense. The Indianapolis Colts weren’t prepared for Daniel Jones going down, and it sank their season. Meanwhile, the San Francisco 49ers fared just fine when Brock Purdy was forced to miss some time. The second-string quarterback is the most overlooked position in today’s NFL.
Which NFL teams have the best quarterback situations and which have the worst? Below, we will break down the five worst and five best QB rooms in the league.
The worst QB situations
5. Atlanta Falcons
QBs: Michael Penix Jr., Tua Tagovailoa, Trevor Siemian, Jack Strand
One of the more strange moments from this offseason was when the Atlanta Falcons immediately pivoted to Tua Tagovailoa after the Miami Dolphins made the decision to take on an NFL-record $99 million in dead cap just to get rid of him. Tagovailoa led the NFL in passer rating in 2022 and passing yards in 2023, but has struggled with both consistency and injuries since signing that massive $212.4 million extension. It’s also understood that he’s not an electric playmaker who can carry offenses alone with his arm. He played his best football in a Mike McDaniel scheme that relied on timing, yet Miami reached the postseason just twice. Tagovailoa threw a career-high 15 interceptions last year while averaging a career-worst 6.9 yards per attempt. Can he resurrect his career under Kevin Stefanski?
If it’s not Tagovailoa, then it will be Michael Penix Jr. under center for Atlanta. The former No. 8 overall pick is recovering from the third torn ACL of his football career, and is just 4-8 as a starter. Penix is averaging one touchdown pass per start and has completed fewer than 60% of his passes. As a prospect, it was hard not to be intrigued by his arm, but Penix just hasn’t been good enough. His bad throw percentage (24%) ranked worst in the NFL last season, according to Pro Football Reference.
The Falcons’ offense features several fun weapons, including Bijan Robinson, Kyle Pitts and Drake London. However, if this group doesn’t have a legitimate starting quarterback that can get them the ball, Atlanta is in for its ninth-straight losing season.
4. Miami Dolphins
QBs: Malik Willis, Quinn Ewers, Cam Miller, Mark Gronowski
The Dolphins secured the most intriguing quarterback in this free agency class with Malik Willis. It wasn’t a surprise, as Miami hired a general manager and head coach that Willis was familiar with. Jon Eric-Sullivan, Jeff Hafley and Willis all come over from the Green Bay Packers.
Willis completed 79% of his passes while averaging 10.9 yards per attempt with six touchdowns and zero interceptions in his two seasons with the Packers. He became the first quarterback to complete 85% of his passes in a game while averaging 13+ yards per attempt and rushing for 60 yards. If you want to extrapolate his numbers over three starts, Willis would be a franchise quarterback. The problem is our sample size for Willis is very small. According to Kurt Warner, Willis had just 28 dropbacks over the past two seasons if you take out screen plays, “pick-n-stick” throws at five yards and quick scrambles. He will also be quarterbacking for what is expected to be one of the worst teams in the NFL. De’Von Achane is a fantastic running back, but Malik Washington, Jalen Tolbert and Tutu Atwell are not exactly elite wideouts.
Willis is a huge question mark in general, but even if you’re optimistic about his talent, you have to admit that the rebuilding Dolphins are not in a great situation right now. What are the odds Miami will be drafting a quarterback in the top three next year? It’s expected to be a loaded class with players like Arch Manning, Dante Moore, CJ Carr and LaNorris Sellers.
3. Arizona Cardinals
QBs: Jacoby Brissett, Gardner Minshew II, Carson Beck, Kedon Slovis
The Arizona Cardinals were a team expected to be in the market for a new quarterback this offseason, but they did not add one. It appears they are going to roll with Jacoby Brissett, who now wants a contract that resembles what a starting quarterback in the NFL makes. He held out of the Cardinals’ voluntary work before returning to the fold to avoid fines.
Brissett went 1-11 as the starter last year, but threw for a career-high 3,366 yards, a career-high 23 touchdowns and a career-high eight interceptions. He’s had a pretty fascinating career, as Brissett has started for more teams than any quarterback in NFL history, where he’s had a losing record for each franchise with a minimum of five starts per team. However, did you know he’s tied with Aaron Rodgers in owning the lowest interception percentage in NFL history (1.4%)? Brissett is probably considered one of the best backups in the NFL, but a bottom-tier full-time starter.
Arizona did go and sign Gardner Minshew, who has started for four different teams over the last four years. He’s coming off a knee injury and owns an overall record of 17-30 over seven years. The Cardinals hope they have their quarterback of the future in third-round pick Carson Beck, who was the FBS leader in QB wins, passing yards and passing touchdowns over the last three years.
2. New York Jets
QBs: Geno Smith, Cade Klubnik, Bailey Zappe, Brady Cook
Geno Smith is back in New York, and actually became the first quarterback to return to his original draft team since Fran Tarkenton in 1972, according to CBS Sports Research. However, Smith went from one of the most underrated quarterbacks in the NFL to one of the toughest to watch last season.
In his one year with the Las Vegas Raiders, Smith led the league in both sacks taken (55) and interceptions (17) while going 2-13 as the starter. He flailed behind a bad offensive line and with subpar weaponry, which is actually a reason to be optimistic in 2026. The New York Jets’ offensive line is certainly better than the Raiders’ unit from 2025, and so are the weapons. Smith can rely on Breece Hall, Garrett Wilson, Adonai Mitchell, Omar Cooper Jr. and Kenyon Sadiq to carry the load, but he still has to be an efficient distributor of the football. That’s his ceiling as a 35-year-old journeyman.
The Jets also have fourth-round pick Cade Klubnik from Clemson, Brady Cook, who went 0-4 as a starter last season with 2 touchdowns and 7 interceptions, and Western Kentucky legend Bailey Zappe.
1. Cleveland Browns
QBs: Deshaun Watson, Shedeur Sanders, Dillon Gabriel, Taylen Green
The Cleveland Browns have owned the weirdest quarterback room in the NFL for years now. Deshaun Watson is still on the roster thanks to that five-year, $230 million fully guaranteed deal he signed in 2022. He owns the worst completion percentage, yards per attempt and TD-INT ratio in the NFL in the five years since one of the worst trades of all time. To make matters worse, Watson hasn’t seen any NFL action since Oct. 2024 after tearing the same Achilles twice. Will he be able to win the competition he’s favored in?
It’s true that Shedeur Sanders made the Pro Bowl as a rookie last season, but he also didn’t play well. The son of Deion went 3-4 as the starter, and owned the second-worst completion percentage (57%) plus most interceptions (11) since his NFL debut in Week 11. With that reported, Sanders was definitely a better quarterback than Dillon Gabriel. It’s possible he is Cleveland’s best option to start Week 1.
On the one hand, the Browns do have more “options” than a team like the Jets or Dolphins. But that just adds to the confusion and chaos — especially if one can’t separate from the pack! New Browns coach Todd Monken ripped the room after his quarterbacks threw multiple interceptions against zero pass rush in 7-on-7s in May.
The Browns do have a rookie by the name of Taylen Green, who I can’t help but be intrigued by. This is a 6-foot-6 quarterback who tested better athletically than NFL Combine Hall of Famer Anthony Richardson. The Arkansas product ran a 4.36 40-yard dash, registered a 43.5-inch vertical and an 11’2 broad jump. Green led all SEC quarterbacks in yards per rush (5.6) last season, and ranked second in rushing yards (777). This was a weird quarterback class full of lottery tickets, and Green was a gamble I would take. Still, the Browns’ quarterback situation is rough overall.
The best QB situations
5. Baltimore Ravens
QBs: Lamar Jackson, Tyler Huntley, Skylar Thompson, Diego Pavia, Joe Fagnano
This spot came down to the Buffalo Bills vs. the Baltimore Ravens. It’s tough to make a list of the best quarterback situations without including Lamar Jackson or Josh Allen, but the Ravens edge out the Bills here because of the second-stringer. Allen may be the best quarterback in the game, but he doesn’t have a backup who has made a start since 2020, with Kyle Allen and Shane Buechele. The Ravens, on the other hand, have a former “Pro Bowler” who went 2-0 in relief of Jackson last year.
Tyler Huntley is a mobile quarterback like Jackson, which makes it just a bit easier for the Ravens offense if he needs to step in. “Snoop” has had his moments, too. Back in 2022, he won three of five games after Jackson injured his knee in Week 13 and got the Ravens to the playoffs. He threw for 226 yards, two touchdowns and one interception in a postseason loss to the Cincinnati Bengals, and was then invited to the Pro Bowl as an alternate. Overall, Huntley is 7-9 as an NFL starter, has scored 18 total touchdowns and thrown 10 interceptions. He won his starts against the Chicago Bears and Packers last year.
The Ravens are certainly worse without Jackson, but not completely dead. If the Bills lose Allen, they are toast.
As for the two-time NFL MVP ahead of Huntley on the depth chart, he’s simply electric. Apart from being the most famous dual-threat quarterback of all time, Jackson owns the fifth-best win percentage by a quarterback among signal-callers who have made at least 100 starts, and has the second-best touchdown to interception ratio (3.3) in NFL history behind Aaron Rodgers. At age 29, he’s still waiting for that first Super Bowl appearance. Maybe it will come this year. Peyton Manning didn’t play in his first Super Bowl until he was 30.
4. Los Angeles Rams
QBs: Matthew Stafford, Ty Simpson, Stetson Bennett, Matthew Caldwell
Even at 37-years-old, Matthew Stafford was the best quarterback in the NFL last season. He furthered his Hall of Fame case by leading the league in passing yards (4,707) and passing touchdowns (46). He also threw just eight interceptions, making it the fourth time a quarterback has thrown 45+ touchdowns and fewer than 10 interceptions. Stafford ranks in the top seven all-time in passing touchdowns, passing yards, game-winning drives, and fourth-quarter comeback wins. He can still sling it and is the best processor the game has to offer.
The Los Angeles Rams also drafted Ty Simpson out of Alabama with the No. 13 overall pick to be Stafford’s heir. It was a controversial decision, as Simpson became the highest-drafted quarterback to ever be selected by a team that had a reigning NFL MVP at quarterback! Simpson has just one season of legitimate starting experience and had his fair share of ups and downs in 2025. He certainly isn’t some generational prospect, but what did stand out from his tape is his ability to attack zone coverages.
We don’t know if Simpson will be a star quarterback or even a good backup, but he’s definitely intriguing, and in a fantastic room led by Sean McVay and Stafford.
3. Kansas City Chiefs
QBs: Patrick Mahomes, Justin Fields, Garrett Nussmeier, Chris Oladokun
Patrick Mahomes is still arguably the face of the NFL. The 6-11 aberration last season is not going to make me forget about five Super Bowl appearances in six years. I mean, 2025 was the first season in which Kansas City didn’t reach the conference championship game with Mahomes under center. It snapped a streak of seven straight appearances! He’s already a top 10 quarterback all-time. Only Tom Brady, Joe Montana and Terry Bradshaw have more Super Bowl wins, and Mahomes probably has 10 years left.
It’s true that the Kansas City Chiefs have been averaging fewer points and fewer passing yards per game over the last few seasons. There’s no more Tyreek Hill, and Travis Kelce is getting older. Still, it didn’t stop the Chiefs from getting to the Super Bowl three straight years, and the addition of running back Kenneth Walker III could be a massive one when it comes to opening up the passing game.
Mahomes also has a new electric backup quarterback in Justin Fields. His 2025 season with the Jets was a disaster, but unsurprising, considering he was working under a first-year head coach and a brand-new offensive coordinator who had never held that position or called plays. Fields needs structure, and that was very much lacking in New York. The former first-round pick is an electric runner and possesses arm talent, but his accuracy and processing are very questionable. I remember when Fields received an MVP vote in 2022 after rushing for 1,143 yards and eight touchdowns. It was the second-best rushing campaign for an NFL quarterback, ever. At just 27-years-old, this is a backup quarterback I would want in my room.
2. Cincinnati Bengals
QBs: Joe Burrow, Joe Flacco, Josh Johnson, Sean Clifford
Joe Burrow is elite, but injuries have been a concern. He missed nine games last year with a toe injury, and seven games in 2023 after tearing a ligament in his right wrist. Still, Burrow is incredible. When he remained healthy in 2024, the former No. 1 overall pick led the NFL with 4,918 passing yards and 43 touchdowns while throwing just nine interceptions. The Bengals still missed the playoffs thanks to their defense.
This franchise needs to stop wasting the prime years of its elite weapons. Burrow is actually the only quarterback in NFL history to register a 100+ passer rating while making zero playoff starts in a three-season span. He’s also been the most-sacked quarterback (242) since entering the league in 2020, if we include sacks taken in the playoffs.
The Bengals also have a former Super Bowl MVP and Comeback Player of the Year in their quarterback room, Joe Flacco — who made the Pro Bowl as an alternate last year. The 40-year-old was starting to look his age with the Browns at the start of 2025, but was rejuvenated by the trade to Cincinnati in October. In his second start with the Bengals, Flacco threw for 342 yards, three touchdowns, zero interceptions and registered his 30th career game-winning drive in an upset of the rival Pittsburgh Steelers. In Week 9, Flacco became the fifth player in NFL history to throw for 470 yards and four touchdowns while scoring 40 points … in a loss.
While Flacco won just one start thanks to Cincy’s stinky defense, he showed he can still play.
1. San Francisco 49ers
QBs: Brock Purdy, Mac Jones, Adrian Martinez, Kurtis Rourke
Brock Purdy is the coolest story in the NFL. The final pick of the 2022 NFL Draft came in and led the 49ers to the NFC Championship game as a rookie, despite receiving his first professional start in Week 14 that year. In Purdy’s first full season as a starter in 2023, he set the NFL record for most yards per attempt (9.6), set the franchise record for passing yards in a season (4,280), made the Pro Bowl, and finished fourth in MVP voting. While the 2024 season was a disaster for San Francisco overall, and Purdy missed about half of this past season, he’s still the NFL’s all-time leader in passer rating (104.0), and became the first quarterback in 49ers history to score five touchdowns over two straight games. A whopping 58.3% of his third-down and fourth-down attempts went for first downs in 2025. That was the highest success rate by any quarterback over the past 35 seasons. Kyle Shanahan obviously deserves credit for that stat as well.
A big reason why the 49ers have the best quarterback room in the NFL is because of the second-string signal-caller, Mac Jones. He finally found his way to Shanahan last offseason and played an important role in the 12-5 campaign, stepping in for the injured Purdy and going 5-3 as the starter. That includes a Week 5 upset of the Rams in Los Angeles on a Thursday night. In that 26-23 overtime victory, Jones threw for 342 yards and two touchdowns. It made him just the fourth quarterback since 1950 to start 3-0 while throwing for 800 yards and six touchdowns in a player’s first three games with a new team, according to CBS Sports Research. The others were Kurt Warner and Matthew Stafford with the Rams, and Patrick Mahomes with the Chiefs. Wild.
Maybe Jones isn’t Josh Allen, but he’s a starting quarterback in this league. And an asset for the 49ers.
