Bold, crazy, stupid, daring, wacky predictions about who the 32 NFL starting quarterbacks will be after free agency and the NFL Draft.
Free Agent, NFL Draft Week 1 Quarterback Predictions
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The NFL rolls on.
Who knows when the season will actually start, but the NFL Draft is going to happen in late April, and the free agency period has filled the empty sports void with several historic moves.
Where will all the top NFL Draft quarterbacks go? Who will be everyone’s Week 1 starter?
AFC East
Buffalo Week 1 Starter Will Be …
Josh Allen – And now he has Stefon Diggs to throw to. He has his No. 1 receiver.
Miami Week 1 Starter Will Be …
Justin Herbert – The Dolphins will try to move up to get Joe Burrow. They’ll think about Tua Tagovailoa, but won’t want to worry about the health issues.
New England Week 1 Starter Will Be …
Jarrett Stidham – However, Bill Belichick wants to change things up, packages a few of his third round draft picks to move up, and takes Jalen Hurts to come in and compete. Or he just goes and gets Andy Dalton.
New York Jets Week 1 Starter Will Be …
Sam Darnold – Growing into a nice starter, Year Three is when it’s all supposed to kick it in.
AFC North
Baltimore Week 1 Starter Will Be …
Lamar Jackson – Everyone wants their own version, and it doesn’t exist.
Cincinnati Week 1 Starter Will Be …
Joe Burrow – The Bengals will be offered deals they absolutely should take to move down and take one of the other top quarterbacks, but they’ll build the next decade around Burrow.
Cleveland Week 1 Starter Will Be …
Baker Mayfield – You can’t say you weren’t warned, Cleveland. He’s fine, but the original pre-2018 draft analysis stands – are you going to win a Super Bowl because you have Baker Mayfield?
Pittsburgh Week 1 Starter Will Be …
Ben Roethlisberger – The Steelers have to seriously look at coming up with a quarterback option in the draft. Mason Rudolph doesn’t appear to be the future.
AFC South
Houston Week 1 Starter Will Be …
Deshaun Watson – Bill O’Brien, you have a superstar talent who can carry you to a Super Bowl. You had better know what you’re doing getting rid of DeAndre Hopkins.
Indianapolis Week 1 Starter Will Be …
Philip Rivers – The Colts have plenty of parts in place to be special, and Rivers gets the O line to play behind he was missing with the Chargers. With the one-year, $25-million deal, they can still draft Jordan Love, Tua Tagovailoa, or any of the top quarterback options that might fall to the 13.
Jacksonville Week 1 Starter Will Be …
Jordan Love – Here’s the call. 1) No, Gardner Minshew isn’t it. 2) Nick Foles will stay around as the mentor for the young star (sound familiar?) and 3) Love falls past Miami and the Chargers to the 9. OR 4) Change around Love for Tua Tagovailoa.
Tennessee Week 1 Starter Will Be …
Ryan Tannehill – In an epic free agency singing period for quarterbacks … four years, $118 million. There’s a huge call happening here.
AFC West
Denver Week 1 Starter Will Be …
Drew Lock – All the tools are there to be a statistical superstar. He’s not going to be Patrick Mahomes, but he’s the QB to keep up in shootouts.
Kansas City Week 1 Starter Will Be …
Patrick Mahomes – He’s pretty good at football.
Los Angeles Chargers Week 1 Starter Will Be …
Tom Brady – He’d have the receivers to work with at Tampa Bay, but LA is LA. The Charger franchise is effectively rebooting, and it needs the signature star to generate a buzz.
Las Vegas Week 1 Starter Will Be …
Derek Carr – This is the shakiest of all the 32 calls. The Gruden/Mayock braintrust appears to be desperate for an upgrade, but Marcus Mariota isn’t it. If this whole scenario plays out like it might, the Raiders go with Tua Tagovailoa, Jordan Love or Justin Herbert – one of them will fall – at the 12.
NEXT: NFC Starting Quarterback Projections
NFC Starting Quarterback Projections
NFC East
Dallas Week 1 Starter Will Be …
Dak Prescott – The dance is over … for now. He’s good, but this is a buyer’s market for quarterbacks at the moment. At the very least, the Cowboys are settled in for one big run.
New York Giants Week 1 Starter Will Be …
Daniel Jones – Do the Giants get him a star receiver with the fourth pick? He looked promising out of the gate, but he needs the piece to help the cause.
Philadelphia Week 1 Starter Will Be …
Carson Wentz – Just … stay … healthy.
Washington Week 1 Starter Will Be …
Dwayne Haskins – He had better kick it all in fast. It was supposed to take him a year to get up to speed – he only played one year in college – and this year he has to take his game up a level.
NFC North
Chicago Week 1 Starter Will Be …
Mitchell Trubisky – BUT … Cam Newton will be on the sidelines waiting his turn.
Detroit Week 1 Starter Will Be …
Matthew Stafford – Who the hell signs Chase Daniel to a three-year, $13 million deal? It’s actually cheap for any sort of a quarterback, but there has to be another option at some point.
Green Bay Week 1 Starter Will Be …
Aaron Rodgers – Watch out for the Packers to take a value quarterback prospect early on to groom for the future. Sound familiar?
Minnesota Week 1 Starter Will Be …
Kirk Cousins – No Stefon Diggs to listen to, a $66 million extension … it’s a good week to be Kirk Cousins.
NFC South
Atlanta Week 1 Starter Will Be …
Matt Ryan – He’s still better than you think.
Carolina Week 1 Starter Will Be …
Teddy Bridgewater – Ehhhhhhhh, $60 for three years is a whole lot to be throwing at a just-a-guy starting quarterback,
New Orleans Week 1 Starter Will Be …
Drew Brees – Sign No. 9 to $50 million for two years, keep around Taysom Hill, and the Saints are set.
Tampa Bay Week 1 Starter Will Be …
Jameis Winston – If the Bucs can’t land TB12, they hope Mr. 30/30’s eye-sight really did improve after the LASIK surgery.
NFC West
Arizona Week 1 Starter Will Be …
Kyler Murray – And now he has DeAndre Hopkins. Let’s go.
Los Angeles Rams Week 1 Starter Will Be …
Jared Goff – RELAX, everyone. He’s fine. However, the interceptions have to slow and the big plays have to return.
San Francisco Week 1 Starter Will Be …
Jimmy Garoppolo – Remember, he only has 26 career starts, and one of them was the Super Bowl. He’s still growing into the gig.
Seattle Week 1 Starter Will Be …
Russell Wilson – If it’s possible to be an MVP candidate and underappreciated, Wilson is it.
PHOTO CREDITS: John David Mercer, Derick E. Hingle, Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
