10 Backup NFL Quarterbacks Who Could Definitely Start For Other Teams In 2026
This article was originally published on Total Pro Sports.
Sam Darnold, Daniel Jones, and Baker Mayfield have all served as recent prime examples that losing your starting job and getting demoted to backup quarterback elsewhere doesn’t mark the end of your NFL career.
Darnold and Baker changed teams how many times again before enjoying career revivals when we all least expected it? The next Darnold, Mayfield, and Jones stories are out there. Some high-quality backups could also write their own comeback story, provided they get the opportunity and land with the right team.
With that, let’s dive into 10 backup quarterbacks who are capable of starting for another team in 2026.
Which backup quarterbacks are ready to start for an NFL team in 2026?
Kirk Cousins
All signs point to the Atlanta Falcons cutting Kirk Cousins and sending him to free agency for the third time in his career. The two sides were never a fit, and the Falcons have put all their eggs into the basket of Michael Penix Jr.
They did not hire two-time Coach of the Year Kevin Stefanski to run a QB competition between Cousins and Penix. They want Stefanski to unlock Penix’s potential.
The saving grace for Cousins is that he showed the rest of the NFL that he’s still a capable starting quarterback last season. With Penix missing eight games, Cousins had to step up in relief and finish out the year.
He went 5-3, including a road win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and a big-time upset of the powerhouse Los Angeles Rams on Monday Night Football in Week 17.
So, the Falcons are obviously going to cut Cousins and move forward with Penix. The only question is if Cousins’ next team will sign him to be their undisputed QB1, or if he’ll have to enter competition.
A reunion with the Minnesota Vikings makes perfect sense because JJ McCarthy badly needs competition. Other QB-needy teams like the Miami Dolphins, New York Jets, and Cleveland Browns could have interest in the four-time Pro Bowler, too.
Heck, Cousins could even be the Pittsburgh Steelers’ No. 1 target if the great Aaron Rodgers retires or signs elsewhere. Bottom line: Cousins is still too good to be a backup. He hasn’t hit a decline deep enough, yet, to be stuck as a permanent backup.
Malik Willis
The 2026 NFL free agent quarterback market doesn’t have much to offer this year. But that bodes well for Willis, who’s surge to get starting QB money after a nice audition with the Green Bay Packers.
Fortunately for Willis, there are plenty of QB-needy teams heading into the offseason. And the 2026 NFL Draft is weak on quarterbacks, so there will be lots of interest in him.
Willis had to start three games in place of an injured Jordan Love over the 2024 and 2025 seasons. Willis had six touchdowns, no interceptions, and three rushing scores in the games he played.
Remember, he was considered one of the better QB prospects in a weak 2022 Draft. He was a third-round pick of the Tennessee Titans, but hardly got time to play behind Ryan Tannehill and Will Levis.
Now it’s time to see what Willis can do with an extended look as a starting quarterback.
The Miami Dolphins and Arizona Cardinals immediately stand out as logical landing spots for Willis. Maybe the Cleveland Browns, if they want competition for Shedeur Sanders? The Pittsburgh Steelers if Aaron Rodgers retires? The Indianapolis Colts could take a chance on Willis if they don’t retain Daniel Jones.
Bottom line: Willis has paid his dues as a backup quarterback. Now it’s time for someone to let him start.
Mac Jones
With Brock Purdy missing eight games, the San Francisco 49ers had to turn to Mac Jones for eight games. Incredibly, the former New England Patriots’ 2021 first-round pick played the best football of his career under the tutelage of Kyle Shanahan.
The 49ers were decimated by the injury bug all season long. If not for Jones’ heroics, they would have missed the playoffs for the second consecutive year. And who knows? Valuable jobs may have been lost.
Jones won five of eight starts with a 69.6 completion percentage, 13 touchdowns, six interceptions, and a career-best 97.4 passer rating. Some even called for the 49ers to start Jones the rest of the way, but the 49ers were never going to bench their $265 million man.
The 49ers have already stated that they plan to keep Jones for 2026. Too bad for him, because his confidence has been restored, and he’s clearly capable of playing like a Pro Bowler if he’s not held back by horrific coaching, which plagued him during his last two years with the New England Patriots.
Jameis Winston
If you think long and hard about it, Winston really hasn’t had a fair opportunity to reassert himself as a starting NFL quarterback since 2021.
After being ditched by the Bucs for Tom Brady, Winston signed with the New Orleans Saints in 2020. He was handpicked as their successor to Drew Brees in 2021 and got off to a dazzling start before unfortunately suffering a season-ending ACL tear in Week 8.
Winston tried playing through multiple injuries during the 2022 season. But head coach Dennis Allen benched Winston for Andy Dalton of all people. Who knows what could have been if they had just rolled with Winston after he got healthy?
Winston backed up Derek Carr for the 2023 season before hitting free agency in 2024. He made seven starts on a lousy Cleveland team that year, and two for the rebuilding New York Giants last season.
So, that’s 19 starts on three teams over the last five years. In other words, the guy hasn’t gotten a fair look since his last season with Tampa in 2019.
Winston could definitely be a short-term starting QB option elsewhere. You cannot argue that there are more than 27 better starting signal-callers than him. Someone out there has gotta sign “Famous Jamous” and give him a chance at a late career revival.
The New York Jets would be chaotic and fun at the same time. Just saying!
Marcus Mariota
So uh…maybe this Marcus Mariota guy isn’t totally done.
The No. 2 pick of the 2015 NFL Draft wound up having to start eight games for the Washington Commanders in 2025. Jayden Daniels’ highly anticipated sophomore season was derailed by various injuries, leading to the sinking of the Commanders’ 2025 playoff hopes.
Even though the Commanders were unwatchable for most of the season? Mariota was rock-solid in relief of Daniels. He threw for 1,695 yards, 10 touchdowns, and seven interceptions to go along with 297 rushing yards and one rushing score.
Notably, Mariota had 294 passing yards and two touchdowns in a close loss to the almost-AFC Champion Denver Broncos.
We’re not saying someone should sign Mariota long-term. But it’s obvious there is still some speed left in those legs. And his dual-threat style makes Mariota a quality “bridge” quarterback option for clubs seeking a short-term solution in 2026.
Like, don’t lie here and tell us that Justin Fields, Shedeur Sanders, Dillon Gabriel, JJ McCarthy, Geno Smith, and Tua Tagovailoa were better quarterbacks than Mariota last season in the NFL.
Aidan O’Connell
Despite showing immense potential in his rookie and sophomore seasons, AOC was demoted to QB3 duties on the league-worst Raiders in 2025. Geno Smith was the starter, with Kenny Pickett backing him up. When Smith suffered an injury, it was Pickett who got the playing time.
We still remember the time when O’Connell went 5-5 on a weak Raiders squad in 2023, including a stunning road win over the Kansas City Chiefs on Christmas Day. Or him throwing eight touchdowns against four picks in 2024 despite a lousy supporting cast.
So yeah, please don’t blame us for thinking that O’Connell could definitely kick it up a gear elsewhere. I mean, Josh McDaniels and Antonio Pierce as his head coaches? Not exactly helpful for any QB.
O’Connell is absolutely worthy of the opportunity to start somewhere. It’s obviously not going to happen in Sin City, with the Raiders a sure bet to take Fernando Mendoza with the No. 1 pick in 2026.
But the Raiders could fetch a mid or late-round pick for O’Connell. I know this sounds funny to some of you. But remember, just a few years ago… nobody had Darnold leading the Seattle Seahawks to a Super Bowl title.
Davis Mills
Mills showed flashes in his 2021 rookie season on a tanking Houston Texans squad. However, a rough sophomore campaign prompted GM Nick Caserio to use the No. 2 pick of 2023 on CJ Stroud. That, of course, meant keeping Mills on the sidelines.
But Mills saved the Texans’ 2025 season when an injury sidelined Stroud for three games. Some can even argue that Houston would have been better off riding Mills over a shaky Stroud in the postseason.
Mills won all three of his starts and threw just five touchdowns against one interception. He saved Houston’s season with victories over the powerhouse Bills and Jaguars and nearly defeated the top-seeded Broncos.
Nobody can blame Houston if it decides to keep Mills as an insurance option in case Stroud folds in what’s shaping up to be a make-or-break season. But if they were to shop him on the trade market? There’d surely be interest in a guy who deserves an extended look as a starting quarterback somewhere in the NFL.
Jimmy Garoppolo
Unfortunately, a string of injuries prevented Jimmy G from ever fulfilling his potential in the NFL. Crazy as it is to believe, because he’s been around a while now, Garoppolo has only played three seasons as a club’s primary starting QB.
It’s easy to forget that the guy was above-average during his days with the San Francisco 49ers, though. He was this-close to beating Patrick Mahomes in Super Bowl 54. And he got San Fran to two NFC Championship Games. That’s no joke.
After a failed one-year stop with the Las Vegas Raiders, Garoppolo happily took on a well-paid gig as Matthew Stafford’s backup. Now, we wonder what Jimmy G could do after spending two seasons with Sean McVay, arguably the best offensive-minded coach in the game right now.
Garoppolo could be a decent “bridge” QB option for one of the rebuilding clubs. A team like Miami, Cleveland, or the Jets can roll him out while searching for their long-term guy behind center.
Joe Flacco
Joe’s still got it.
It’s weird that a former Super Bowl MVP and championship-winning QB gets better with age. But hey, we don’t make the rules. Flacco won Comeback Player of the Year honors at the age of 38 in 2023, and just earned his first Pro Bowl nod at 40.
Flacco struggled on a lousy Cleveland team early in the season. But he sparked the Cincinnati Bengals’ offense after coming over via trade with Joe Burrow was injured. Replacing an injured Jake Browning, Flacco had 13 touchdowns against only four interceptions for a 91.0 passer rating as a Bengal.
The Bengals went 1-5 in Flacco’s starts, but that was because of the horrific defense. The man showed what he could do with a quality supporting cast: Still sling it with that rocket arm.
Some team out there has to give Flacco one more starting opportunity in 2026. Just look at how he performed in 2023 and 2025, for crying out loud.
Anthony Richardson
Daniel Jones was enjoying a career year for the Indianapolis Colts before suffering a season-ending Achilles tear during a road game against the Jacksonville Jaguars. Keeping Jones is a no-brainer for Indy. It has to be a contract extension or, at the very least, the franchise tag.
As for Richardson? Yeah, don’t give up on the No. 4 pick of 2023 yet. A few years ago, nobody saw Sam Darnold emerging as a Super Bowl-winning QB in Seattle…Or Baker Mayfield reaching superstar status in Tampa Bay.
As Darnold, Mayfield, and now Jones have proven, it just takes the right team and systematic fit for an underachieving QB to put it all together. You better believe Richardson could hit his full potential elsewhere.
The Colts will likely trade Richardson this offseason. He’s absolutely worth taking a chance on, especially for a well-coached team that’s built to win now like the Steelers. If Rodgers returns, could Pittsburgh also bring in A-Rich so that the four-time MVP can mentor him? Could Richardson be competition to JJ McCarthy in Minny? Hmm…
The only certainty is that Richardson’s time in Indianapolis is ending.
