The pickings are going to be slim for teams in need of a
quarterback once free agency comes calling. As of right now, former Super Bowl
MVP Nick Foles is the best option. Unfortunately, there’s not much more to look
at behind Foles.
When checking in on the 2019 NFL Draft, two quarterbacks —
Kyler Murray and Dwayne Haskins — are almost guaranteed to be top-five picks.
After that, the draft class is filled with major projects.
It’s in this that we check in on the 10 worst quarterback
situations around the NFL heading into free agency. It’s not great, folks.
1. JACKSONVILLE
JAGUARS
It became apparent last season that Blake Bortles has no
real future with the Jaguars. He was benched in favor Cody Kessler after 12 games and
while in the midst of an eight-game losing streak. Even with Kessler
struggling, the Jaguars refused to go back to their first-round bust.
Now that Jacksonville is set to move on from Bortles, we have
absolutely no idea what the future will bring under center in Duval. Kessler
obviously isn’t the answer. Jacksonville pushed back against offering up draft picks for Nick Foles.
Now that Foles is set to become a free agent, the Jags will face competition
for his services. Meanwhile, Jacksonville is picking No. 7 overall in April’s
draft. Neither Dwayne Haskins or Kyler Murray figure to be available.
2. NEW YORK GIANTS
General Manager David Gettleman made it clear during the NFL
Scouting Combine that Eli Manning will return to the Giants next season.
Though, it’s less clear if that will be as the team’s starting quarterback. Talk about both a
smack in Manning’s face and a potential drama-filled situation in New Jersey.
There’s not a whole lot behind Manning on the depth chart.
Alex Tanney has been nothing more than a No. 2 or No. 3 quarterback in his
career. Meanwhile, 2018 first-round pick Kyle Lauletta couldn’t even be
bothered to see the field last season and was involved in an off-field
situation resulting in an arrest. Picking sixth overall, New York might
be able to move up for one of the top quarterbacks in the 2019 NFL Draft. Even
then, their quarterback situation is a complete mess.
3. WASHINGTON
REDSKINS
This is more happenstance than anything else. Washington
figured it had at least a stopgap option when it traded for Alex Smith at about this point last year.
Unfortunately, Smith suffered a serious leg injury back in November. Complications from surgery have not only put Smith’s 2019
season at risk; his career is now in jeopardy.
Instead of signing an unnamed free agent following Smith’s
injury, Washington added Mark Sanchez and Josh Freeman to the mix. This came
after Colt McCoy also suffered a serious injury. Now, with free
agency on the horizon, Washington is apparently comfortable with McCoy under
center. He’s thrown exactly 55 regular-season passes over the past four years.
4. MIAMI DOLPHINS
Dolphins General Manager Chris Grier might be considered an
up-and-comer in the business, but he has a huge task ahead of himself in terms
of fixing the team’s quarterback situation. After holding on to a washed-up
Ryan Tannehill for far too long, Miami is expected to release the injury-plagued former
first-round pick. Immediately behind him on the depth chart, Brock Osweiler and
David Fales are slated to become free agents — not like either are
starter-caliber quarterbacks or should even be in the NFL.
Meanwhile, Miami is selecting 13th overall in April’s draft.
Given the team’s brass seems to be honing in on 2020 prospect Tua Tagovailoa; it might avoid
quarterback this year. If not, the Dolphins would be forced to go with a
project like Duke’s Daniel Jones or Missouri’s Drew Lock. But hey, maybe Nick
Foles could act the savior in South Beach.
5. BUFFALO BILLS
Josh Allen was surprisingly effective as a rookie last
season. Seen by most to be a major project, he flashed times in the face of a horrible situation in
Western New York. Even then, the former top-10 pick was nowhere near consistent
enough to be counted on. He averaged less than 173 yards per game and threw 10
touchdowns compared to 12 interceptions in 11 starts. Allen needs to take a
dramatic step forward this offseason.
Outside of that, Buffalo has two quarterbacks hanging on to
their NFL careers in the form of Derek Anderson and Matt Barkley still under
contract. The two have combined to throw less than 400 passes over the past
four seasons — tallying 12 touchdowns and 23 interceptions in the process.
Ouch!
6. ARIZONA
CARDINALS
Let’s dispel the myths now. Despite the narrative of him
being in a less-than-stellar situation under the dumpster fire that was Steve
Wilks last season, Rosen was an absolute disaster himself under center. The
rookie No. 10 overall pick threw 11 touchdowns and 14 interceptions in 13
starts. He led Arizona to 14 points or less in nearly half those starts.
There’s a reason that the Cardinals have been linked to
reigning Heisman winner Kyler Murray less than a calendar year after drafting
Rosen. Sure the team wants to deny said interest, but its willingness to even engage on the matter is troublesome.
Veteran backup Mike Glennon remains the No. 2 in Arizona. All he’s done in the
past three seasons is throwing six touchdowns and five interceptions in four
starts.
7. CINCINNATI
BENGALS
We’re honestly not sure if Andy Dalton will be back as Cincinnati’s starter under
first-year head coach Zac Taylor. What we do know is that Dalton has more lives
than a cat at a dog park. He’s legitimately been a bottom-10 starting
quarterback in each of the past three seasons. It might be time for the Bengals
to move on from him. Unfortunately, there just aren’t a ton of options
available to the team.
Former San Francisco 49ers late-round pick Jeff Driskel took
over for an injured Dalton late last season — throwing six touchdowns and two
interceptions in five starts. There might be some promise regarding Driskel,
but in no way is he a starter-caliber quarterback. Yeah, things are not swell
under center in Cincinnati.
8. TAMPA BAY
BUCCANEERS
How bad is the Jameis Winston situation in Tampa Bay? This
offense performed much better under bearded-wonder Ryan
Fitzpatrick last season. Given Fitz’s own struggles throughout his career, this
is pretty darn alarming. Heck, Winston was
benched multiple times in favor of Fitzpatrick in 2018. All
said the former No. 1 overall pick committed 20 turnovers in nine starts.
Despite this, Tampa Bay will pay Winston $20.92 million
against the cap this season after previously picking up the option on his
rookie deal. First-year head coach Bruce Arians wants to build around Winston — not like he
has much of a choice. And now with Fitzpatrick set to hit free agency, that
safety valve might not be available to Arians in 2019.
9. DENVER BRONCOS
General manager John Elway has been a complete and utter disaster in
handling Denver’s quarterback situation. The latest example was the acquisition of a washed-up Joe Flacco from Baltimore. Here’s a
quarterback that’s tossed 64 touchdowns compared to 46 interceptions in his
past 51 starts en route to leading the Ravens to a 24-27 mark.
This comes after the failed Case Keenum experiment from last
season. While Keenum remains on the roster, there’s a good chance he’ll be traded or released in the
coming weeks. All the while, Denver selects No. 10 overall in April. The team
is said to be locked in on Missouri product Drew Lock with that
selection. At the very least, he fits the bill of that prototypical dropback
quarterback — one of the reasons Elway is not interested in reigning Heisman winner Kyler Murray. How
fun.
10. OAKLAND
RAIDERS
On the surface, Derek Carr’s name belongs nowhere on this
list. He’s a three-time Pro Bowler and has had an historical early-career run
from a statistical perspective. That’s all fine. Unfortunately, Carr took a major
step back last season under the tutelage of Jon Gruden. The two sparred. Gruden’s offense was something out of the
1960s. It led to major issues in the passing game.
At this point, we don’t even know if Gruden is locked in to
Carr long term. He could fall in love with a quarterback prospect heading into
the 2019 NFL Draft — one in which the Raiders have three first-round picks.
Behind him on the depth chart, A.J. McCarron and Nathan Peterman probably
shouldn’t be in the league right now. Heck, Peterman might very well be the worst quarterback to start a game in
the modern history of the game. That’s not hyperbole.
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