Kelly: Plenty of quarterbacks vying for NFL starting jobs this offseason | Opinion
Is Atlanta really sold on Michael Penix Jr.?
How about Minnesota and J.J. McCarthy, or Cleveland and Shedeur Sanders?
How desperate will Pittsburgh, Indianapolis, Arizona, Miami, and the New York Jets be when it comes to upgrading the quarterback position?
The QB carousel starts spinning in two weeks at the NFL Combine, which is about free agency more so than the NFL Draft prospects who are in Indianapolis to be interviewed, measured and tested because the free agent negotiating period opens the week after the combine concludes.
That means for the next month a dozen veteran quarterbacks — and more importantly their agents — will be jockeying for slightly more than half a dozen teams/jobs.
Kyler Murray and Tua Tagovailoa are in similar spots after being benched in Arizona and Miami last season.
Their representation will be attempting to find them both new teams.
The difference is Murray has no guaranteed money left on his deal, but is owed $17 million in a roster bonus on the fifth day of the league year. So Arizona needs to move fast to find a dance partner on a trade.
As for the Dolphins, they will likely be placed in a holding pattern because of the $54 million salary Tagovailoa is guaranteed in 2026.
The money makes one (Murray) easier to move than the other (Tagovailoa), and will likely factor into most team’s offseason decisions when it comes to signal callers.
Geno Smith, who is guaranteed $18.5 million of his $26.5 million salary in 2026, had scrubbed everything Raiders off his social media account earlier this fall, which hints that his one-year tenure in Las Vegas is coming to an end.
Kirk Cousins, who has $10 million guaranteed this year and another $10 million due on March 15 in a roster bonus, will likely force his release from Atlanta, or allow the Falcons to broker a trade that ships him elsewhere.
Baker Mayfield, who is slated to make $28 million in 2026, is in the last year of his contract with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, so don’t be surprised if the 31-year-old strong arms a trade if an extension can’t be worked out.
Daniel Jones and his one healthy Achilles is slated to become a free agent, and so will future Hall of Famer Aaron Rodgers, and Malik Willis, who has shined in his brief playing opportunities with Green Bay the past two seasons.
Both Will Levis and Anthony Richardson are supposedly on the trading block, and there are whispers Derek Carr might be coming out of retirement and needs to find a new team because the Saints have seemingly moved on.
Deshaun Watson is finally healthy, and likely searching for a new team, one willing to carry his fully guaranteed $46 million salary, since his career fizzled in Cleveland.
And the San Francisco 49ers will likely shop Mac Jones, who played admirably as an injury fill-in, to a quarterback-thirsty team in a trade. Expect Jones and his camp to target a team running a similar offense as the 49ers.
The Dolphins just so happen to be one of those teams, and are seemingly in need of a quarterback upgrade.
After all those veteran quarterbacks find a home via trade, or free agency, the Dolphins might then be able to lure a taker for Tagovailoa, who arguably has one of the worst contracts in NFL history because of how poorly he played in 2025.
Who Miami replaces him with doesn’t matter so much now because the focus is on how to unload Tagovailoa and his troublesome contract.
More than likely, whatever team is left standing without a quarterback before, or after the 2026 NFL Draft, might develop interest. But more than likely the Dolphins will have to chip in to pay Tagovailoa’s salary. And Miami might have to throw in a draft pick to sweeten the deal.
The alternative is keeping Tagovailoa on the roster, and maybe allowing him to compete for the role he has had since 2020. Or releasing him, and stomaching the massive cap hit ($43 million lost in cap space as a regular cut, $11.1 million lost as a June 1 release), and the restrictions that come with it for a season or two.
Either way the Dolphins find themselves between a rock and a hard place at the most important position in sports.
