February 25, 2026
New Las Vegas Raiders head coach Klint Kubiak said that the team is "trying to see every possible avenue we can go next year at quarterback" and that incumbent quarterback
Geno Smith is "definitely one of those options." Smith battled through a miserable season in his first year with the Raiders in 2025. Across 15 starts, the 35-year-old completed 67.4% of his pass attempts for 3,025 yards, 19 touchdowns, and 17 interceptions. The Raiders went 2-13 in Smith's starts, and Las Vegas fired former head coach Pete Caroll at the conclusion of the year. Smith is just one year removed from throwing for over 4,300 yards with the Seattle Seahawks in 2024, and he made back-to-back Pro Bowl appearances in 2022 and 2023. He could have more in the tank in a more favorable offensive environment than the one he experienced in 2025. However, the Raiders are widely expected to select University of Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza with the number one overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft. If that happens, Smith would likely profile as a temporary starter in Las Vegas at best, if he even remains on the team's roster.
--Will BradySource: ESPN - Ryan McFadden
February 25, 2026
New Cleveland Browns head coach Todd Monken said Wednesday that he thinks the team's starting quarterback job is "an open competition" and said he "doesn't know why it wouldn't be" when questioned by the media, per Zac Jackson of The Athletic. Jackson reports that Monken said he sees "elite playmaking ability" in Browns quarterback
Shedeur Sanders, but remained noncommittal about Sanders' status as the QB1 favorite. As a rookie in 2025, Sanders completed 56.6% of his pass attempts for 1,400 yards, seven touchdowns, and 10 interceptions across eight games (seven starts). Sanders took over as the team's starter in Week 12, replacing fellow rookie signal-caller
Dillon Gabriel. In 10 games (six starts), Gabriel completed 59.5% of his pass attempts for 937 yards, seven touchdowns, and two interceptions. While Sanders could very well open 2026 as the starter in Cleveland, it appears as though the team is leaving the door open to the possibility of bringing in another quarterback over the offseason or simply staging more internal competition.
--Will BradySource: The Athletic - Zac Jackson
February 25, 2026
The NFL announced on Wednesday that the Jacksonville Jaguars will host two games in London during the 2026 season, according to Demetrius Harvey of The Florida Times-Union. The Jaguars have played in London annually every year since 2013, except for 2020, but this will be the first time they've played two games there in one season. They will play one contest at Wembley Stadium and another at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium against unnamed opponents. Jacksonville is expected to play back-to-back weeks in London in October. It will be the 15th time the Jags have played in London, with all but three games taking place at Wembley. They have gone 7-7, including going 2-1 at Tottenham. Jacksonville will be looking to build on a strong 2025 season that saw them finish first in the AFC South with a 13-4 regular-season record, only to fall to the Bills in the Wild-Card round of the postseason.
--Keith HernandezSource: The Florida Times-Union - Demetrius Harvey
February 25, 2026
The Washington Commanders announced on Wednesday that they will have a regular-season game in London in 2026. The Commanders will be the host team at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium against an unnamed opponent. It will be Washington's third international game. They lost to the Miami Dolphins in their last international game in Madrid, Spain, in 2025 and tied with the Cincinnati Bengals at Wembley Stadium in London in 2016. The Commanders surprised everyone by making it to the NFC Championship in 2024 in quarterback
Jayden Daniels' rookie season. Daniels struggled with injuries last year, though, and the team finished 5-12 and in third place in the NFC East to miss the postseason in 2025. Washington's game in London will be one of three that the NFL hosts there next season, with the Jacksonville Jaguars serving as the host team in the other two.
--Keith HernandezSource: Washington Commanders
February 25, 2026
Former Penn State quarterback Drew Allar (ankle), who has recovered from season-ending ankle surgery, will throw at the NFL scouting combine in Indianapolis this week, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN. Allar played in only six games in his senior year for the Nittany Lions in 2025, going 103-for-159 with 1,100 passing yards, eight touchdowns, and three interceptions. In his junior year in 2024, Allar threw for a career-high 3,327 yards, 24 touchdowns, and eight interceptions in 16 games played. He'll have a chance to improve his 2026 NFL draft stock this week and then again potentially at his school's pro day. Right now, Allar is considered a mid-round QB prospect as he begins his journey to the next level. He's not expected to land in a situation where an NFL team is relying on him to be their starter in 2026.
--Keith HernandezSource: ESPN - Adam Schefter
February 25, 2026
The Minnesota Vikings are "exploring all possibilities" as they look to improve their quarterback play in 2026, executive vice president of football operations Rob Brzezinski said on Tuesday at the NFL scouting combine. The Vikings are still hoping that former first-rounder
J.J. McCarthy can be their franchise QB, but his injury history and poor performance last year have led the team to consider options that will, at the very least, add competition going into 2026. ESPN's Kevin Seifert writes that neither Brzezinski nor head coach Kevin O'Connell committed to keeping McCarthy in the starter's role going into next season. Brzezinski termed the process "casting a wide net" and said, "I don't think we're ruling anything out." McCarthy had a strong training camp going into his rookie year, but then suffered a season-ending meniscus tear in his right knee. The bottom line is that McCarthy is going to need to stay healthy and perform better this summer to be named the Week 1 starter this fall in Minnesota.
--Keith HernandezSource: ESPN.com - Kevin Seifert
February 25, 2026
The San Francisco 49ers hired former Minnesota Vikings general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah as a personnel executive on Tuesday, general manager John Lynch told The Athletic's Matt Barrows. Adofo-Mensah was surprisingly fired by the Vikings after the 2025 season after four years as the team's GM. Minnesota went 14-3 during the regular season with
Sam Darnold as the quarterback in 2024, but they struggled last year as they handed over the keys to the offense to former first-rounder
J.J. McCarthy. Meanwhile, the Seattle Seahawks won the Super Bowl with Darnold. It will be a reunion for Adofo-Mensah, as he spent 2013 to 2019 with the 49ers in the football research and development department. It's a big pickup for a team that already has a championship-caliber front office in place.
--Keith HernandezSource: The Athletic - Matt Barrows
February 25, 2026
San Francisco 49ers general manager John Lynch reiterated the team's desire to keep backup quarterback
Mac Jones at the NFL scouting combine on Tuesday, according to Nick Wagoner of ESPN. "He's really good for us, and we value that. And so somebody would have to come with something fairly strong for us to consider (trading him). And then I don't know what we do. Obviously, there's always something that would make you (do it), but I think we're a better team with him on it and we just like having him around," Lynch said. The 27-year-old signed a two-year, $8.41 million deal with San Fran in March of last year and ended up playing in 11 games (eight starts) with
Brock Purdy missing a good chunk of the season with a turf-toe injury. Jones played well, too, throwing for 2,151 yards, 13 touchdowns, and six picks while going 5-3. QB-needy teams will come calling, but it sounds like the Niners will need to be blown away by a trade offer to even consider dealing him.
--Keith HernandezSource: ESPN.com - Nick Wagoner
February 24, 2026
Carolina Panthers head coach Dave Canales announced on Tuesday that offensive coordinator Brad Idzik will call offensive plays in 2026, according to Cameron Wolfe of the NFL Network. The 34-year-old will have more on his plate next season after having a big role in the team's offensive game-planning last year. It's a shift in strategy, as Canales was saying at the end of the 2025 season that he would remain the play-caller. Canales made the switch to allow him to broaden his ability to coach all aspects of the team instead of being too focused on the offense during games. Having veteran coach Darrell Bevell on the staff as an associate head coach and offensive assistant will help first-time coordinator Idzik. It remains to be seen how the change will affect quarterback
Bryce Young and the rest of the offense moving forward.
--Keith HernandezSource: NFL Network - Cameron Wolfe
February 24, 2026
Denver Broncos head coach Sean Payton said that offensive coordinator
Davis Webb will be the team's offensive play-caller in 2026, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN. It's an interesting and notable move for Denver's offense and for Payton, who has always called the offensive plays as a head coach in the NFL. Webb, 31, is a former backup quarterback in the NFL and was a head-coaching candidate for a few teams this offseason before the Broncos fired former OC Joe Lombardi and promoted Webb, who was formerly the QBs coach. If the Broncos' offense goes backwards under Webb, Payton can always take back over. If Webb has a very tight relationship with QB
Bo Nix (ankle), this could ultimately be a good thing for the Broncos' offense moving forward. One of the top priorities for Webb in his first year as the OC will be to fix a running game that has been subpar the last two years.
--Keith HernandezSource: ESPN - Adam Schefter
February 24, 2026
Cleveland Browns general manager Andrew Berry said that "it's too early to say" if quarterbacks
Deshaun Watson (Achilles) or
Shedeur Sanders will be the Week 1 starter for the 2026 season, according to Mary Kay Cabot of The Cleveland Plain Dealer. The Browns have also been reportedly looking outside the organization for a potential addition to the QB room this offseason. Cleveland has been loosely linked to Alabama QB Ty Simpson and Green Bay Packers impending free-agent QB
Malik Willis, and they could also look to trade for a signal-caller if they aren't satisfied with their current options. It's still very early in the offseason, so it's not really a surprise they don't have a good read on the QB competition just yet. If the Browns don't add to the position in the offseason, Sanders will probably be the slight favorite to start over Watson, who missed all of 2025 while recovering from a torn Achilles.
--Keith HernandezSource: The Cleveland Plain Dealer - Mary Kay Cabot
February 24, 2026
Arizona Cardinals general manager Monti Ossenfort said that he talked with quarterback
Kyler Murray (foot) since the 2025 season ended, but a source told ESPN's Josh Weinfuss that the two have not talked since the season ended. Murray didn't play last year beyond Week 5 after suffering a foot injury, and his future in Arizona is in question. If Murray is on the active roster on the fifth day of the new league year, he'll be due a guaranteed roster bonus for 2027 of $19.5 million. Ossenfort said on Tuesday that talks about Murray's future with the organization take place "daily." The GM also said that "all options are on the table for us" with Murray. Veteran
Jacoby Brissett remains under contract with the team and played better than Murray when he took over for the injured QB. The most likely scenario is that Arizona trades Murray within the next three weeks.
--Keith HernandezSource: ESPN.com - Josh Weinfuss
February 24, 2026
The Atlanta Falcons continue to be non-commital on quarterback
Michael Penix Jr. (knee) being their starter under center in 2026, according to Josh Kendall of The Athletic. "I'm not big on giving out positions in February. I think you guys know how I feel about Michael, and I'm excited about his trajectory. I also know he's focused on his rehab, which is the right thing to do," head coach Kevin Stefanski said. Penix is recovering from a torn left ACL in 2025, so it's understandable for Atlanta's new front office and coaching staff to be non-committal on him going into next season. Penix expects to be ready for Week 1 of the regular season this fall, but the reality is we won't have a better idea of his availability until this summer. The former first-rounder wasn't all that impressive in 2025 before his injury, and he's now rehabbing from his third torn ACL. Penix is determined to heal up and return as the starter, but he'll have to prove it to the team's new brass first. Now might be a perfect time to buy low on Penix in dynasty/keeper leagues, although his injury history dating back to college is worrisome.
--Keith HernandezSource: The Athletic - Josh Kendall
February 24, 2026
Minnesota Vikings head coach Kevin O'Connell said on Tuesday that he still views quarterback
J.J. McCarthy as a franchise signal-caller, according to Kevin Seifert of ESPN. "A lot of those feelings are still the same. It's just the timeline is in a different place for all of us than it was [in 2024]," McConnell said. The Vikings drafted the 23-year-old with the 10th overall pick in 2024 out of Michigan with the intentions of him being the team's long-term QB, but it hasn't gone as planned in his first two years in the NFL. McCarthy missed all of his rookie campaign due to a knee injury that required surgery, and he was extremely inconsistent in his first 10 starts in 2025 while missing time with various injuries. He completed 57.6% of his passes for 1,632 yards, 11 touchdowns and 12 interceptions. Decision-making and accuracy were a big issue, but durability is the primary concern for Minnesota and fantasy managers who have him rostered in dynasty/keeper leagues. There's still time for McCarthy to develop under O'Connell, one of the best QB gurus in the league, but the Vikes may bring in some competition to push him this offseason.
--Keith HernandezSource: ESPN.com - Kevin Seifert
February 24, 2026
Chicago Bears general manager Ryan Poles said at the NFL scouting combine on Tuesday that the team has gotten calls on backup quarterback
Tyson Bagent, according to Kevin Fishbain of The Athletic. The Arizona Cardinals are one team that is reportedly interested in acquiring Bagent from the Bears this offseason as they contemplate life without
Kyler Murray (foot) going into the 2026 season. At best, the 25-year-old former undrafted free agent QB would be in the mix for a starting job for a team like the rebuilding Cardinals. In his first three seasons in the NFL with the Bears, Bagent has appeared in 12 regular-season games (four starts) and has gone 99-for-149 passing for 917 yards, three touchdowns, and six interceptions. Bagent signed a two-year, $10 million contract with the Bears in August of last year, so he has one year left on his current deal.
--Keith HernandezSource: The Athletic - Kevin Fishbain
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