Five NFL Quarterbacks Who Appear Poised To Win Starting Jobs In 2026 | Deadspin.com 
Nov 3, 2025; Arlington, Texas, USA; Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray (1) warms up before the game against the Dallas Cowboys at AT&T Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images It’s an easy year for predicting NFL quarterback competitions.
As teams across the NFL landscape put a bow on voluntary OTAs this week before turning the page to mandatory veteran minicamps, quarterback competitions will begin to take form.
This year, it feels like the quarterback competitions are a little bit more obvious than they’ve been in previous years. Let’s look at the obvious winners first, before we get into some of the more complex battles.
Minnesota Vikings: Kyler Murray
There’s no way that Murray signed with the Vikings in free agency without some sort of guarantee that he’d have an upper hand over J.J. McCarthy.
The Vikings should probably give up on McCarthy, the No. 10 pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, who underwhelmed during his first season as the starter, throwing more interceptions than touchdown passes. Minnesota employed Justin Jefferson, the best receiver in the NFL. The Vikings should see if Murray could get Jefferson the football and turn his career around similar to Sam Darnold a few seasons ago.
Indianapolis Colts: Daniel Jones
Oct 19, 2025; Inglewood, California, USA; Indianapolis Colts quarterback Daniel Jones (17) speaks with head coach Shane Steichen in the first quarter against the Los Angeles Chargers at SoFi Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images
At the NFL Combine in Indianapolis, the Colts gave Anthony Richardson’s representatives permission to seek a trade.
While Richardson could still be moved before Week 1 in mid-September, it feels like there aren’t many suitors for the 24-year-old quarterback. The Colts looked prime to finish as a top seed in the AFC before Jones ruptured his Achilles tendon last season. He’s a no-brainer QB1 in 2026, assuming he’s fully recovered.
Atlanta Falcons: Tua Tagovailoa
Kevin Stefanski just can’t help himself from starting quarterback controversies. He arrived in Atlanta with Michael Penix Jr. on his rookie deal after the Falcons selected the former Washington quarterback with the No. 8 overall selection in 2024.
Injuries have complicated Penix’s outlook, clearing the way for the veteran Tagovailoa to start the season in Atlanta.
The Falcons gave Stefanski a high price tag coaching contract to turn Atlanta around in a very winnable division. Expect the former two-time Coach of the Year to trust Tagovailoa over Penix.
Las Vegas Raiders: Kirk Cousins
Aug 23, 2025; Glendale, Arizona, USA; Detailed view of a Las Vegas Raiders helmet during a preseason NFL game at State Farm Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images The Raiders gave Cousins a five-year, $172 million contract, but the deal is essentially a one-year, fully guaranteed $20 million contract. It’s split between the Raiders and Falcons, who had to release him after just two seasons.
$20 million is an expensive backup. The Raiders could decide to let the veteran start the first few games before turning the keys over to No. 1 overall pick Fernando Mendoza.
Cleveland Browns: Shedeur Sanders
Even though all reports indicate that Deshaun Watson is ahead of Shedeur Sanders to start Cleveland’s quarterback competition, the Myles Garrett trade to the Los Angeles Rams should change some things.
There’s no denying that the youth movement is underway in Cleveland, moving on from Garrett in favor of 25-year-old EDGE Jared Verse. That benefits Sanders, who is six years younger than Watson.
Watson hasn’t played good football since 2020, and after three big injuries and two full seasons on the sideline, it’s impossible to expect the 30-year-old to return to form in the final year of the disastrous contract he received upon arriving in Cleveland.
#NFL #Quarterbacks #Poised #Win #Starting #Jobs #Deadspin.com
Nov 3, 2025; Arlington, Texas, USA; Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray (1) warms up before the game against the Dallas Cowboys at AT&T Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images It’s an easy year for predicting NFL quarterback competitions.
As teams across the NFL landscape put a bow on voluntary OTAs this week before turning the page to mandatory veteran minicamps, quarterback competitions will begin to take form.
This year, it feels like the quarterback competitions are a little bit more obvious than they’ve been in previous years. Let’s look at the obvious winners first, before we get into some of the more complex battles.
Minnesota Vikings: Kyler Murray
There’s no way that Murray signed with the Vikings in free agency without some sort of guarantee that he’d have an upper hand over J.J. McCarthy.
The Vikings should probably give up on McCarthy, the No. 10 pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, who underwhelmed during his first season as the starter, throwing more interceptions than touchdown passes. Minnesota employed Justin Jefferson, the best receiver in the NFL. The Vikings should see if Murray could get Jefferson the football and turn his career around similar to Sam Darnold a few seasons ago.
Indianapolis Colts: Daniel Jones
Oct 19, 2025; Inglewood, California, USA; Indianapolis Colts quarterback Daniel Jones (17) speaks with head coach Shane Steichen in the first quarter against the Los Angeles Chargers at SoFi Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images At the NFL Combine in Indianapolis, the Colts gave Anthony Richardson’s representatives permission to seek a trade.
While Richardson could still be moved before Week 1 in mid-September, it feels like there aren’t many suitors for the 24-year-old quarterback. The Colts looked prime to finish as a top seed in the AFC before Jones ruptured his Achilles tendon last season. He’s a no-brainer QB1 in 2026, assuming he’s fully recovered.
Atlanta Falcons: Tua Tagovailoa
Kevin Stefanski just can’t help himself from starting quarterback controversies. He arrived in Atlanta with Michael Penix Jr. on his rookie deal after the Falcons selected the former Washington quarterback with the No. 8 overall selection in 2024.
Injuries have complicated Penix’s outlook, clearing the way for the veteran Tagovailoa to start the season in Atlanta.
The Falcons gave Stefanski a high price tag coaching contract to turn Atlanta around in a very winnable division. Expect the former two-time Coach of the Year to trust Tagovailoa over Penix.
Las Vegas Raiders: Kirk Cousins
Aug 23, 2025; Glendale, Arizona, USA; Detailed view of a Las Vegas Raiders helmet during a preseason NFL game at State Farm Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images The Raiders gave Cousins a five-year, $172 million contract, but the deal is essentially a one-year, fully guaranteed $20 million contract. It’s split between the Raiders and Falcons, who had to release him after just two seasons.
$20 million is an expensive backup. The Raiders could decide to let the veteran start the first few games before turning the keys over to No. 1 overall pick Fernando Mendoza.
Cleveland Browns: Shedeur Sanders
Even though all reports indicate that Deshaun Watson is ahead of Shedeur Sanders to start Cleveland’s quarterback competition, the Myles Garrett trade to the Los Angeles Rams should change some things.
There’s no denying that the youth movement is underway in Cleveland, moving on from Garrett in favor of 25-year-old EDGE Jared Verse. That benefits Sanders, who is six years younger than Watson.
Watson hasn’t played good football since 2020, and after three big injuries and two full seasons on the sideline, it’s impossible to expect the 30-year-old to return to form in the final year of the disastrous contract he received upon arriving in Cleveland.
![Stephanie White blasts officials after ‘cheap shots’ on Caitlin Clark INDIANAPOLIS — After a second straight game defined largely by non-basketball plays involving Caitlin Clark, Fever head coach Stephanie White hit her breaking point.Wednesday’s 111-109 loss to the Mercury featured Clark leaving with an injury midway through the third quarter. Still plenty took place before then.A pair of incidents in the second quarter saw Clark take a beating before eventually leaving the game with a back injury. White unloaded on the officials in her postgame press conference, calling the lack of calls “egregious” and “utterly disrespectful.”“We have a generational talent and a WNBA superstar who had two cheap shots right there that weren’t called,” White said. “And I just say again, absolutely unacceptable.“We spent all offseason looking at officiating. All offseason. And I still say the one thing that we keep asking for is consistency. She is not called the same way everybody else is called.”First, Clark and Alyssa Thomas got tangled in the paint while battling for a loose ball in a sequence that saw Thomas push her fist into Clark’s neck, knee her in the stomach and then step over her. No foul was called and the play wasn’t reviewed.One possession later, Clark was fouled on a 3-pointer, leading to an awkward landing. Clark, who has dealt with a back injury most of the season, was slow to get up and looked to be in discomfort. The officials reviewed the play, but not for a potential flagrant foul or a landing zone violation.Instead, the review was for a potential hostile act by Clark for hitting her defender in the face.She remained in the game and even started the second half. However, Clark left near the midway point of the quarter and was ruled out for the rest of the game due to the back injury. White did not have an update on Clark’s status after the game.All of this came on the heels of these two teams having multiple scuffles in their meeting on Monday, resulting in a slew of technical fouls and plenty of bad blood.“Number one, you got to call [the foul on Thomas],” White said. “It’s absolutely egregious and utterly disrespectful. And then No. 2, you’re coming in here aware of what happened two nights ago and that s— still happens? Absolutely unacceptable. Absolutely unacceptable.“And the reckless closeout that they’ve actually reviewed, and the foot still comes down on top of the defender’s foot that wasn’t upgraded? Absolutely disrespectful.”White is not new to calling out officials. Last season, she also called the officiating “disrespectful” following a controversial late play against the Liberty. Nearly a month later, following a game that saw multiple technicals, flagrants and ejections against the Sun, White again criticized the officials for not improving along with the rest of the league.White has also defended her star player this season, but never as passionately as she did on Wednesday.“Because they were so egregious,” White said of what was different this time. “I mean, the fist in the throat is crazy. It’s crazy. It’s dangerous. The landing spot, when you went to review it and she still comes down on top of another foot. Like, I don’t know, cause to me, that’s like a do-over on a test. How do you screw it up again?”When you have these things continue to happen time and time and time and time and time again, eventually it gets frustrating, but I thought those were just more egregious.”Frustration this season has piled up for the Fever, who fell to 10-7 with the loss. Indiana has struggled to string together wins and set the league record for most losses when scoring 100+ points in a season on Wednesday.But, too often, the game itself is taking a back seat to moments like Wednesday’s. And for White, enough was enough. #Stephanie #White #blasts #officials #cheap #shots #Caitlin #Clark](https://i0.wp.com/platform.sbnation.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/06/imagn-29265574.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&crop=0%2C10.745438151648%2C100%2C78.509123696704&w=1200&ssl=1 "Stephanie White blasts officials after ‘cheap shots’ on Caitlin Clark INDIANAPOLIS — After a second straight game defined largely by non-basketball plays involving Caitlin Clark, Fever head coach Stephanie White hit her breaking point.Wednesday’s 111-109 loss to the Mercury featured Clark leaving with an injury midway through the third quarter. Still plenty took place before then.A pair of incidents in the second quarter saw Clark take a beating before eventually leaving the game with a back injury. White unloaded on the officials in her postgame press conference, calling the lack of calls “egregious” and “utterly disrespectful.”“We have a generational talent and a WNBA superstar who had two cheap shots right there that weren’t called,” White said. “And I just say again, absolutely unacceptable.“We spent all offseason looking at officiating. All offseason. And I still say the one thing that we keep asking for is consistency. She is not called the same way everybody else is called.”First, Clark and Alyssa Thomas got tangled in the paint while battling for a loose ball in a sequence that saw Thomas push her fist into Clark’s neck, knee her in the stomach and then step over her. No foul was called and the play wasn’t reviewed.One possession later, Clark was fouled on a 3-pointer, leading to an awkward landing. Clark, who has dealt with a back injury most of the season, was slow to get up and looked to be in discomfort. The officials reviewed the play, but not for a potential flagrant foul or a landing zone violation.Instead, the review was for a potential hostile act by Clark for hitting her defender in the face.She remained in the game and even started the second half. However, Clark left near the midway point of the quarter and was ruled out for the rest of the game due to the back injury. White did not have an update on Clark’s status after the game.All of this came on the heels of these two teams having multiple scuffles in their meeting on Monday, resulting in a slew of technical fouls and plenty of bad blood.“Number one, you got to call [the foul on Thomas],” White said. “It’s absolutely egregious and utterly disrespectful. And then No. 2, you’re coming in here aware of what happened two nights ago and that s— still happens? Absolutely unacceptable. Absolutely unacceptable.“And the reckless closeout that they’ve actually reviewed, and the foot still comes down on top of the defender’s foot that wasn’t upgraded? Absolutely disrespectful.”White is not new to calling out officials. Last season, she also called the officiating “disrespectful” following a controversial late play against the Liberty. Nearly a month later, following a game that saw multiple technicals, flagrants and ejections against the Sun, White again criticized the officials for not improving along with the rest of the league.White has also defended her star player this season, but never as passionately as she did on Wednesday.“Because they were so egregious,” White said of what was different this time. “I mean, the fist in the throat is crazy. It’s crazy. It’s dangerous. The landing spot, when you went to review it and she still comes down on top of another foot. Like, I don’t know, cause to me, that’s like a do-over on a test. How do you screw it up again?”When you have these things continue to happen time and time and time and time and time again, eventually it gets frustrating, but I thought those were just more egregious.”Frustration this season has piled up for the Fever, who fell to 10-7 with the loss. Indiana has struggled to string together wins and set the league record for most losses when scoring 100+ points in a season on Wednesday.But, too often, the game itself is taking a back seat to moments like Wednesday’s. And for White, enough was enough. #Stephanie #White #blasts #officials #cheap #shots #Caitlin #Clark")
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