By Quarterback is the most criticized position in the NFL, which is why multiple franchises find new starters every offseason. Last year, the Tennessee Titans, New York Giants and New Orleans Saints drafted players they hope can be the face of their respective franchises in the near future, while the Indianapolis Colts took a swing on Daniel Jones to replace Anthony Richardson. We also saw the Seattle Seahawks sign Sam Darnold, who ultimately helped them win Super Bowl LX.
In 2026, there are expected to be five new starters at the quarterback position. Several of these players will have to earn the top spot on the depth chart, but they were brought in for a reason. The Minnesota Vikings, for example, expect to make the playoffs every season, and Kevin O’Connell is hoping his new quarterback can spark a turnaround. Then there are teams like the Las Vegas Raiders, who completely revamped their quarterback room as they begin a new era.
Which of these new signal-callers are set up for success in 2026? Below, we will rank the quarterback changes by expected impact, and give some projected final stats courtesy of the CBS Sports fantasy football team.
5. Malik Willis, Miami Dolphins
CBS Sports’ fantasy football projected statline for Malik Willis: 3,096 passing yards, 25 TDs, 17 INTs
I think an interesting question is: what are the expectations for Malik Willis this season? It’s not to get the Miami Dolphins to the Super Bowl, or the playoffs, or even to have a winning record. I also wonder what the chances are that Miami drafts a quarterback somewhere early in the first round next year. It appears to be a loaded class with players like Arch Manning, Dante Moore, CJ Carr and others.
The Dolphins are expected to be one of the worst teams in the NFL this season, as they have the second-longest Super Bowl odds at virtually every sportsbook. Willis has a star running back in De’Von Achane, but is throwing to Malik Washington, Jalen Tolbert, Tutu Atwell and Greg Dulcich. It doesn’t look like a great situation.
Some Willis fans probably believe he can power this offense by himself, but we only have a small sample size to work with when analyzing him. The former third-round pick out of Liberty started one game last season for the Green Bay Packers, which they lost to the Baltimore Ravens, 41-24. Still, Willis completed 18 of 21 passes for 288 yards and one touchdown, while also leading the team in rushing with 60 yards and two more touchdowns. According to CBS Sports Research, he became the first quarterback to ever complete 85% of his passes while averaging 13 yards per attempt, and rush for 60 yards in a game (min. 20 pass attempts). Willis also became the first quarterback since Michael Vick in 2002 to throw for 100 yards and a touchdown in a first half with zero incompletions, and rush for a touchdown.
Willis didn’t put up as massive numbers in his two starts with Green Bay back in 2024, but did win both games. Willis accounted for three touchdowns and zero turnovers in those starts. He proved he could run Matt LaFleur’s system, and it will be up to offensive coordinator Bobby Slowik to make life easier for him.
4. Geno Smith, New York Jets
CBS Sports’ fantasy projected statline: 2,934 passing yards, 24 TDs, 16 INTs
The New York Jets had arguably the worst quarterback situation last season. The starter they brought in, Justin Fields, went 2-7 while averaging 6.2 yards per attempt. The Week 6 loss to the Denver Broncos in London, where Fields threw for just 45 yards, set the sport of football back decades. Backup quarterback Tyrod Taylor won just one of his four starts, then rookie Brady Cook lost all four of his starts.
The Jets now turn to a familiar face in Geno Smith, who is coming off one of the worst seasons of his 13-year career. Not only did the 35-year-old go 2-13 as the Raiders’ starter, but he also led the league in sacks taken (55) and interceptions (17). It was a disaster, but I would argue that Smith is upgrading his situation, going from Sin City to New York.
The Jets definitely have a better offensive line than the Raiders did in 2025, with Olu Fashanu, Dylan Parham, Josh Myers, Joe Tippmann and Armand Membou. The Jets also have legit weaponry with Breece Hall, Garrett Wilson, Omar Cooper Jr. and Kenyon Sadiq. I certainly don’t view Smith as one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL, but I do view him as an obvious upgrade from what the Jets had last year. He had two 4,200-yard passing seasons in three years with the Seahawks. If Smith can just rely on his playmakers and take care of the football, the Jets will average more than 263 yards of total offense in 2026.
3. Tua Tagovailoa, Atlanta Falcons
CBS Sports’ fantasy projected statline: 3,460 passing yards, 24 TDs, 10 INTs
There is a quarterback battle going on in Atlanta, but Michael Penix Jr. is coming off a third ACL tear, while the Falcons quickly pursued and signed Tua Tagovailoa. The CBS Sports fantasy team believes Tagovailoa is going to see extensive action in 2026 compared to Penix.
When paired with Mike McDaniel, Tagovailoa looked like an efficient point guard for a high-powered passing attack. Most of the time. His 44 wins were the most by a Dolphins quarterback since Dan Marino retired, and he led the NFL in passer rating in 2022, passing yards in 2023 and completion percentage in 2024. Then, last season happened. Tagovailoa threw a career-high 15 interceptions and averaged 6.9 yards per attempt, which was his worst mark with McDaniel.
Tagovailoa went 4-14 vs. teams with a winning record under McDaniel, and has clearly regressed since that big 2023 season. That’s why it was a bit curious that the Falcons immediately pursued Tagovailoa as soon as the Dolphins swallowed an NFL-record $99 million dead cap hit just to cut him. With that said, all Kevin Stefanski wants is an effective point guard to run his offense, because it’s full of talented playmakers such as Bijan Robinson, Drake London and Kyle Pitts. Can Tagovailoa play that role? We’ll find out.
2. Kirk Cousins/Fernando Mendoza, Las Vegas Raiders
CBS Sports’ fantasy projected statline for Kirk Cousins: 674 passing yards, 5 TDs, 4 INTs
Fernando Mendoza’s fantasy projected statline: 2,630 passing yards, 19 TDs, 16 INTs
The Raiders had one of their worst seasons in franchise history last year, finishing 3-14 under Pete Carroll, ranking dead last in scoring offense (14.2 points per game) and total offense (245.2 yards per game). Carroll’s gamble to bring in Geno Smith did not work, as he threw more interceptions (17) than any quarterback in the NFL.
As we enter 2026, it’s fair to hypothesize that the Raiders upgraded their quarterback room in a major way. Vegas signed veteran Kirk Cousins in free agency and drafted former Indiana star and college football legend Fernando Mendoza with the No. 1 overall pick. The Raiders are expected to start Cousins to begin the season — and perhaps their best-case scenario is if Cousins starts the entire year. If Cousins plays out the year, you can assume that means the Raiders were competitive and their quarterback was playing well enough to keep Mendoza on the bench. However, some believe Mendoza should start right away. Doug Pederson made an interesting case.
Cousins is coming off an overall disappointing two seasons with the Falcons, in which he went 12-10 as the starter, but he did step in for Michael Penix Jr. last season and help Atlanta end the year on a four-game win streak. Cousins averaged 219 passing yards per game and threw seven touchdowns compared to two interceptions during that stretch. He’s about to turn 38-years-old, but Cousins showed he can still run an offense.
As for Mendoza, I’m not sure he was viewed as a generational, can’t-miss prospect. But he was just the fourth player in the Common Draft Era to be selected No. 1 overall after winning the Heisman Trophy and a National Championship, joining Joe Burrow, Jameis Winston and Cam Newton. Mendoza led Indiana to a perfect 16-0 record. Pretty remarkable.
Our fantasy football projections indicate that Cousins will not be playing many games before Mendoza takes over. I would also bet on Mendoza starting at some point this season. One major question I have about the Raiders is their wide receiving corps, which looks lackluster on paper. But I do have faith in new head coach Klint Kubiak.
The quarterback play will be better in Vegas this year, but I will point out that Smith wasn’t the only player to blame for the Raiders’ 3-14 campaign in 2025.
1. Kyler Murray, Minnesota Vikings
CBS Sports’ fantasy projected statline: 3,400 passing yards, 27 TDs, 21 INTs
The Vikings are another team hosting a quarterback battle, but it’s fair to say the expectation is that former Arizona Cardinals signal-caller Kyler Murray wins the job. CBS Sports’ projections agree with this assessment, as they have J.J. McCarthy throwing one touchdown and one interception in 2026.
Murray is the biggest boom-or-bust quarterback on this list, in my opinion. Which is why he comes in at No. 1 for the largest “expected impact.” Are we going to get the Kyler Murray that missed 30 out of a possible 68 games over the last five seasons? Or the two-time Pro Bowler that established himself as an electric playmaker? Murray is one of just four players in NFL history to throw for 20,000 yards and rush for 30 touchdowns in a player’s first seven seasons. I think he could be rejuvenated by this change of scenery.
The former No. 1 overall pick went 17-14 with DeAndre Hopkins in his career, and 21-34-1 without him. Murray now has another legitimate WR1 in Justin Jefferson, who became just the third player to ever begin a career with six straight seasons of 1,000 yards receiving. He looked like the best pass-catcher in the NFL when playing with Kirk Cousins, but recorded career lows in receiving yards (1,048) and receiving touchdowns (2) last season.
The Vikings not only have Jefferson, but a well-rounded cast of characters in Aaron Jones, Jordan Mason, Jordan Addison, T.J. Hockenson and Jauan Jennings. I think Jennings, in particular, was one of the most underrated signings of the entire offseason. Not only is he an elite run blocker, but he stepped up every time the San Francisco 49ers asked him to. Jennings ranked second on the team in receptions and receiving yards over the last two seasons, and was tied for the most receiving touchdowns in that timeframe as well. He was a trusted target of Brock Purdy, as the former seventh-round pick had more receptions (47) and receiving yards (546) on third down than any other 49er over the past two years, and also led the team in red-zone targets, fourth-quarter targets and third-down targets. If that’s a WR3, then he’s one of the best WR3s in the NFL.
Murray has to prove he can stay healthy and run Kevin O’Connell’s system, but this is a great situation given his weapons and the backing of a Brian Flores defense. The Vikings went 9-8 last year despite the underachieving offense. Imagine what the Vikings could be in 2026 if Murray brings new life to that side of the ball.
Originally published on www.cbssports.com — View original