10 NFL Quarterbacks About to GET BENCHED and LOSE Their Starting Jobs NEXT
This article was originally published on Total Pro Sports.
Getting a job as a starting quarterback in the NFL is hard work and apparently—keeping it is even harder!
We’ve seen a few high-profile benchings already this year, and by the looks of things, there may be a couple more before the season’s over. Whether it’s poor performance, injuries that won’t heal, or franchises that just want to see what the backup can do, these quarterbacks are on thin ice. In this article, some of the names mentioned are Geno Smith and Tua Tagovailoa.
Now, without further ado, let’s take a look at 10 Quarterbacks who will lose their starting jobs NEXT!
Which current NFL quarterbacks are losing their starting jobs soon?
Tyler Shough, QB, New Orleans Saints
Tyler Shough, easy come, easy go! He just got his shot when Spencer Rattler failed to get the job done. So far, it hasn’t looked super promising.
To put it plainly, his debut was rough. And he doesn’t really have a skillset that jumps off the screen at you.
After all, his first NFL start came in Week 9 against the Rams. Shough completed 15 of 24 passes for 176 yards, one touchdown, and one interception. The Saints lost 10 to 34. Not exactly the kind of debut that inspires confidence.
And then there’s the injury. During that game, Shough took a brutal hit that allegedly left him unable to close his jaw.
He’s playing through it in Week 10, which is admirable, but let’s be real—this is a 1 and 8 team with no playoff hopes and, though, Shough might get the rest of the season to prove himself, if he keeps struggling, don’t be surprised if New Orleans looks to give someone else a shot in the mean time!
And either way, they are going to be looking at the 2026 draft for their next franchise Quarterback. It feels like it is just a matter of time until Shough is watching from the sideline.
Justin Fields, QB, New York Jets
The New York Jets thought they had it all figured out. They cut Aaron Rodgers loose, signed Justin Fields to a two-year, $40 million deal, and handed him the keys to the offense.
And then the season started.
The Jets are 1 and 7. One win. Seven losses. Fields has started all seven games. While he hasn’t turned the ball over, with zero interceptions, that is really more of an indicator that he hasn’t done much of anything. I mean, he’s thrown just five touchdowns, which ranks him tied for 32nd in the league. He’s 29th in passing yards. The offense has been conservative to the point of being invisible.
And now, the Jets are in full teardown mode. They just traded Sauce Gardner and Quinnen Williams, their two best defensive players, to the Colts for two first-round picks. The front office is now stockpiling draft capital and preparing for a rebuild.
It would not be surprising at all to see this team get worse before it gets better!
As far as Fields is concerned, the prospects are looking bleak, too. With New York being 1-7 and spiraling, they might pull the plug on him before the 2025 NFL season’s over. They can see if they can find a spark elsewhere in the NFL at the quarterback position.
Joe Flacco, QB, Cincinnati Bengals
This one’s not a question of “if”—it’s a question of “when.”
Joe Flacco is starting for the Cincinnati Bengals because Joe Burrow is out with a Grade 3 turf toe injury. Burrow’s expected back in mid-December, around Week 16, when the Bengals play the Dolphins in Miami.
The moment Burrow is good to play, Flacco is back on the bench. That’s just how it works.
Cincinnati traded for Flacco from the Browns after backup Jake Browning struggled early in the season. The Bengals are 3 and 6, sitting at their worst start since 2020, when they were in full tank mode. This year, they had playoff expectations. But without Burrow, those hopes are fading fast.
Flacco’s been solid, but he’s also dealing with a shoulder injury that has him listed as “trending towards playing” each week. The Bengals signed Sean Clifford to the active roster just in case Flacco can’t go.
But the reality is this: Flacco is here to keep the seat warm. He’s a 40-year-old journeyman who’s not the long-term answer. When Burrow returns in Week 16, Flacco will lose his starting job. It’s not personal. It’s just the way it is.
Really, the only thing that could possibly save Flacco is if the Bengals’ season is so dead and buried that it just doesn’t even make sense to trot Burrow out there.
It seems like Flacco is still just grateful for the opportunity to play. However, the vet is going to have to face it; he is a sitting duck in Cincinnati.
Brock Purdy, QB, San Francisco 49ers
Technically, Brock Purdy is still the starter With good reason, too, after all, he has proved himself over the last couple of years, and he just signed a five-year, $265 million contract extension back in May.
And the coaching staff and his teammates have backed him publicly…
But here’s the thing—Mac Jones has been starting in his place for almost half of the season now, and he’s been really good and looking more like rookie Mac Jones than the battered version we saw during his last couple of seasons in New England.
Purdy suffered a turf toe injury in Week 1, tried to come back in Week 4, and reaggravated it.
All in, he has missed seven of the first nine games. Shanahan has said the injury “probably won’t fully go away all year.”
Meanwhile, Mac Jones is 5 and 2 as the starting quarterback, despite a myriad of injuries across this NFL roster.
Jones isn’t just game managing either. He’s averaging 261.7 passing yards per game, which ranks fourth in the NFL. He has thrown 10 touchdowns to just five interceptions.
What makes it even more impressive is that they have injuries all over the place. The 49ers are 6- 3 overall, and Jones has been a big part of that.
So, here’s the question: If Purdy’s turf toe isn’t going to heal, and Mac Jones keeps winning games, why would the 49ers disrupt the formula?
And even if it does heal, maybe it is time for a soft benching, so that San Fran can capitalize on all the momentum they’ve built behind Mac.
Michael Penix Jr., QB, Atlanta Falcons
The Falcons are 3 and 5, their worst start since 2020… and while Michael Penix isn’t the only reason, he is certainly at the center of their challenges on the offensive side of the ball.
He’s completed 61 percent of his passes for 1,409 yards, five touchdowns, and three interceptions. His QBR is 47.7, which ranks 22nd in the NFL.
And though he just posted a career-high three touchdown passes in a Week 9 loss to the Patriots, the Falcons still look lost and destined to keep on losing.
What complicates the matter further is that Kirk Cousins is still on the roster.
The vet is just sitting on the bench with a four-year, $180 million contract, and while common sense might suggest that he wants out still after he requested a trade this offseason, it is starting to look like he has a real chance at getting the starting gig back.
Because if the Falcons keep losing and Penix doesn’t start playing better, the pressure is going to mount.
Cousins is an NFL veteran who wants to prove he can still play and secure his future somewhere else as a starting quarterback, especially after he struggled standing in for Penix when he missed their showdown with the lowly Dolphins due to injury.
In any case, if Atlanta’s season continues to spiral, don’t be shocked if they give Cousins another shot.
Penix won the job last year, but he’s on thin ice, and Cousins is waiting.
Tua Tagovailoa, QB, Miami Dolphins
General manager Chris Grier was fired after a brutal 28- 6 home loss to the Ravens. Tyreek Hill is out for the season. The team can’t block, can’t play defense, and can’t win. So why is Tua Tagovailoa still playing?
Tua threw for 1,779 yards, 15 touchdowns, and 11 interceptions in nine games with a 67.9 per cent completion rate. The numbers aren’t terrible, but the bigger question is: With the season over and a regime change looming. what is the point?
It feels like the days of Tua Tagovailoa being this NFL franchise quarterback in South Beach are dead and gone.
Yes, the Dolphins still have a decision to make, but the writing is on the wall, and at this point, they may as well shut him down and see what else they’ve got.
Geno Smith, QB, Las Vegas Raiders
Geno Smith received a pay raise in April, when he signed a two-year, $75 million extension with the Raiders after being traded from the Seahawks and hopes were high with him reuniting with Pete Carroll, his old coach…
Everything seemed set up for success, but then, the season started.
The Raiders are 2 and 7. Their only wins came against the Titans and the Patriots in Week 1 before New England found its identity.
And Geno Smith? He’s thrown nine interceptions in his first five starts. Nine. That leads the entire league, and somehow it has looked even worse than the numbers would suggest.
Smith has a $40 million cap hit this season, so the financial pressure is real, and while reports say there’s no sense around that Raiders locker room that he’ll be benched, you have to wonder how long the Raiders can stomach those turnovers.
You can’t lead the league in interceptions on a two-and-seven team and expect to keep your job forever.
Dillon Gabriel, QB, Cleveland Browns
So far, Dillon Gabriel hasn’t done anything to show he can be the long-term answer. He is athletic and clearly wants to compete as a quarterback in the NFL, but he’s undersized and doesn’t have the arm talent that you’d want to help offset his limitations.
The Browns are still desperately searching for a franchise quarterback… but based on what we’ve seen so far, Gabriel isn’t it.
The offense just doesn’t look like a serious, NFL playoff unit with him leading it…
And here’s the thing: Shedeur Sanders is sitting on the bench. The Browns drafted Sanders in the fifth round, two rounds after Gabriel, and he’s been waiting for his shot. Sanders is a higher-profile player coming out of Colorado, and the Browns have nothing to lose by giving him a few starts before the season ends.
If for no other reason than to quiet the ridiculous theories that they are trying to sabotage him.
Gabriel’s had his chance and hasn’t shown anything, and with this season on life support, the Browns may as well evaluate Sanders before making decisions for 2026, so they can see what he’s got and put an end to the circus.
Cam Ward, QB, Tennessee Titans
Cam Ward is the number one overall pick in the 2025 NFL draft, and he’s having a rough rookie season as a quarterback.
The Titans are 1 and 8, tied for the worst record in the NFL and have the worst offense in football, averaging just 14.4 points per game.
This franchise is in complete freefall… There is a reason Brian Callahan got axed as the head coach midseason!
Unfortunately, things haven’t been much better for Cam Ward, as the rookie has been struggling in a major way.
He’s thrown for 1,760 yards, five touchdowns, and six interceptions. His QBR is 24.3, which ranks 32nd in the league.
In his NFL debut against the Broncos, Ward completed 12 of 28 passes for 112 yards and was sacked six times in a 20 to 12 loss. His best game came in Week 5 against the Cardinals, when he threw for 265 yards and led a game-winning drive to secure the win. But outside of that? It’s been rough.
Now, Ward is the number one overall pick, so he will not be out entirely anytime soon… First-rounders get long leashes. But at some point, you have to wonder if Tennessee shuts him down for the season to protect his confidence and development, and hope that a soft reset puts him in a better spot next year once the team fills out some of the other holes on the roster.
Jacoby Brissett, QB, Arizona Cardinals
Jacoby Brissett has done everything right. He stepped in when Kyler Murray went down with a foot injury, and he’s been excellent.
In three starts, Brissett is averaging 286 passing yards per game with seven touchdowns and just one interception. Compare that to Kyler Murray’s numbers before the injury… Brissett has been better in every way.
It goes beyond the stats, too. The entire team looks rejuvenated with a different guy under center.
But here’s the problem: Brissett isn’t the future. He’s a journeyman on a one-year deal, keeping the seat warm. And even though he’s outplaying Murray, the Cardinals are still 3 and 5, and their playoff dreams are looking more and more unrealistic with each loss.
Based on the recent comments from head coach Jonathan Gannon and the general vibe around the organization, it feels like the Kyler Murray era is over in the desert, but here’s where it gets interesting: the Cardinals have Kedon Slovis, an undrafted rookie from Arizona, sitting as the third-string quarterback.
By the end of the season, with the playoffs out of reach, Arizona might want to see what Slovis can do.
Brissett has done a great job, but he’s just a temporary solution. And by season’s end, the Cardinals are going to want to evaluate their young NFL quarterback.
