NFL’s 10 Worst QB Rooms Entering 2026

Daniel Jones actually played like an MVP candidate before a Week 14 torn Achilles in 2025, ranking first in EPA per play through that point. The worry is whether he returns to form, with the alternatives being the maddeningly inconsistent Anthony Richardson and raw rookie Riley Leonard. Indianapolis was desperate enough late last season to coax 44-year-old Philip Rivers out of retirement rather than start Leonard. Projected Week 1 starter: Daniel Jones.

9. Pittsburgh Steelers

Aaron Rodgers re-signed at age 42 for his 22nd season, but the four-time MVP’s magic is clearly waning. His final 2025 game, a 30-6 wild-card loss to Houston, featured four sacks, an interception, and two fumbles. Behind him, half the room (Will Howard, Drew Allar) has never thrown an NFL regular-season pass. Projected Week 1 starter: Aaron Rodgers.

8. Carolina Panthers

Bryce Young set career highs in 2025 and led Carolina to an 8-9 NFC South title, but his numbers stayed modest. He threw for the third-fewest passing yards by any playoff quarterback in the last 20 seasons. The depth behind him, Kenny Pickett and career backup Will Grier, inspires little confidence. Projected Week 1 starter: Bryce Young.

7. Minnesota Vikings

Adding two-time Pro Bowler Kyler Murray wasn’t enough to keep Minnesota off the list. Murray’s Pro Bowls came in 2020 and 2021, and he’s missed 30 of 68 possible games since 2022. The signing was triggered by J.J. McCarthy, who ranked dead last in completion percentage, TD-to-INT ratio, and passer rating as a 2025 rookie. Projected Week 1 starter: Kyler Murray.

6. Miami Dolphins

Miami swallowed an NFL-record $99 million dead-cap hit to move on from Tua Tagovailoa and handed Malik Willis a three-year, $67.5 million deal. Willis showed flashes in Green Bay, including an 18-of-21, 288-yard explosion against Baltimore in Week 17. But he’s making one start’s worth of money on a thin résumé, with rookie Quinn Ewers behind him. Projected Week 1 starter: Malik Willis.

5. Atlanta Falcons

This is where it gets uncomfortable: Atlanta’s starter went down before the season even began. Michael Penix Jr. tore his ACL in Week 11, the third ACL tear of his football career. That pressed Tagovailoa, signed for just $1.215 million and coming off a career-worst 15-interception season, into early-season duty. Both quarterbacks are significant injury risks. Projected Week 1 starter: Tua Tagovailoa.

4. Arizona Cardinals

Jacoby Brissett piled up the second-most passing yards in the NFL after Week 6, but Arizona won just one of his 11 starts because most production came in garbage time. Behind him sit journeyman Gardner Minshew and rookie Carson Beck, whose last college throw was a championship-game interception. Despite the thin room, Brissett was confident enough to demand a new contract. Projected Week 1 starter: Jacoby Brissett.

3. New Orleans Saints

The Saints opened 2025 losing seven of eight with Spencer Rattler before turning to rookie Tyler Shough, who sparked a 4-1 finish. Shough became the first rookie since 1950 with back-to-back 300-yard, one-TD, zero-turnover games. He outplayed Rattler decisively but is still learning on the job, with Zach Wilson as further insurance. Projected Week 1 starter: Tyler Shough.

2. New York Jets

The biggest near-miss for the top spot: Geno Smith came home to the Jets after a disastrous Raiders season. He became just the sixth quarterback since the 1970 merger to lead the NFL in both interceptions and sacks in one season, helping Las Vegas land the No. 1 pick. The fallback options, rookie Cade Klubnik plus Brady Cook and Bailey Zappe, offer little, and the Jets may be angling to tank for a 2027 quarterback. Projected Week 1 starter: Geno Smith.

1. Cleveland Browns: The $230 Million Trap

No room is more chaotic than Cleveland’s, and the reason starts with a contract that rewrote the league. Deshaun Watson is entering the final year of a five-year, fully guaranteed $230 million deal, and the Browns gave up three first-round picks to acquire him. He has played just 19 games in four seasons, with zero 300-yard passing games and a 6.0 yards-per-attempt mark that ranked 41st of 42 qualifying passers from 2022 to 2024. His original Achilles tear came in Week 7 of 2024, and a re-rupture during rehab wiped out all of 2025. The fallback options are no safer. Shedeur Sanders, the 2025 fifth-round pick and son of Deion, ranked second-worst in completion percentage and passer rating and worst in interceptions since his Week 11 debut. Dillon Gabriel went 1-5 as a starter, and 2026 sixth-rounder Taylen Green is so raw that fans want him to switch to receiver, having racked up 37 turnovers since 2024. CBS Sports projects Watson, the only Browns QB with NFL success (three Pro Bowls), as the Week 1 starter, but even after a March 2026 restructure his cap charge remains among the heaviest in the league, and Cleveland faces roughly $90 million in obligations to him beyond this season.