‘Certainly gives you some excitement.’ Could Quinn Ewers start at QB in 2026?
The Miami Dolphins have an obvious need at quarterback.
As much as Malik Willis would make sense, the Dolphins’ cap constraints make the highly touted free agent’s arrival in Miami a bit uncertain. That would leave two familiar faces in contention to start at quarterback — Tua Tagovailoa and Quinn Ewers — barring any other free agent signings and draft picks.
Of the two, it was Ewers who drew the most glowing praise from Dolphins general manager Jon-Eric Sullivan.
“What I knew of Quinn coming out was the intangibles: gritty, tough, very good leader, teammates respond to him,” Sullivan said Tuesday, revealing that even scouted Ewers in 2024 during his previous job as vice president of player personnel for the Green Bay Packers. “Watching him last year in the last few weeks of him playing in Miami, I thought the ball was coming out of his hands better than what I saw at Texas.”
Added Sullivan: “The ball was coming out gross – clean, tight spiral, had a little more juice on it. I like what he did. He’s a little bit like Tua in the sense that he’s accurate, very good short-to-intermediate thrower. Quinn would be the first to tell you there were a couple of decisions he wishes he had back, but I thought he did a nice job in a limited window that he had. Certainly gives you some excitement moving forward about what he could potentially be.”
Tagovailoa, of course, had a lackluster 2025. By Week 15, it was clear there was something wrong. Even worse: he finished the season with 15 interceptions, the second-highest mark in the league, to go along with 2,660 yards and 20 touchdowns. He has since been the topic of much trade and cut speculation.
In the end, then-Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel selected to bench Tagovailoa in favor of the 2025 seventh-round pick, who would start the final three games of the season. The former Texas standout would complete 66% of his passes for 622 yards and a trio of both touchdowns and picks. Ewers would even help lead the Dolphins to a 20-17 victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Arguably the best part? Ewers had an obvious swagger that enthralled his teammates.
“On and off the field, he had a lot of confidence going through the ups and downs of the game,” fullback Alec Ingold said in late December. “Seeing him up and down the sideline being consistent with it, not too high, not too low, so I thought that was pretty cool.”
“Quinn is a dawg,” edge rusher Bradley Chubb said in mid-December. “We’ve been going against him all year on scout team. I made a joke; he pisses the linebackers off doing the no-look stuff and running around and stuff. I feel like he’s going to step in, do what he needs to do. He had a great career in college, and it’s just about transferring it over to the league now.”
Of course, the starting quarterback job won’t be easy to secure. As Sullivan has consistently noted, his job will be to infuse competition in that room, something the general manager doubled down on when he revealed at least one piece of his plan.
“We’re going to draft one, we could draft two,” Sullivan said, later adding that “what I want to do is build a foundation. That’s my responsibility. Something that’s sustainable over time. We’re not looking for quick fixes here. We are looking to build something that will last over time.”
As long as Tagovailoa is gone, something that remains a real possibility considering Sullivan’s messaging on Tuesday, Ewers should have the inside track for the job. He showed promise in 2025. He has his teammates’ belief. And he should have a firmer grasp of the offense.
Now, it will be about whether Ewers can display the improvement that initially wowed offensive coordinator Bobby Slowik.
“The fun thing about Quinn when we were with him last year is just how much he was able to grow,” Slowik said in early February. “I think everybody just saw that in the last few games he played at the end of the year. He grew every game. You could see him get better and take steps every game. He’s got to continue to do that in the offseason program, and I’m excited to get him back. He’s fun to work with and see what happens and see where it goes.”
