QB-needy teams have 3 options entering offseason

The Deshaun Watson nightmare became a night terror on Friday when the team announced that the quarterback had undergone a second surgery to address his ruptured Achilles’ tendon. The Browns already were in search of a new starting quarterback but the eight months until Cleveland’s 2025 opener just got a lot shorter.

Cleveland could be OK, though, thanks to its season-ending six-game losing streak. The Browns enter the draft with the No. 2-overall selection, great news considering the real estate Watson will occupy on their 2025 salary cap and the widespread belief that only two quarterbacks will warrant a first-round grade. As a result, the Browns next year could be in position to follow in the footsteps of the playoff-bound Broncos. Tennessee, also expected to draft a quarterback, has the No. 1 overall selection. The other quarterback-needy teams, however, are facing much longer fields.

All-star game depth is a great indicator of the draft strength at any given position, especially quarterback. Before the historic run last year, when six of the first 12 selections were quarterbacks, both the Senior Bowl and the East-West Shrine Bowl carried seven players at the position. Each game brought an extra QB for one of its squads to take advantage of the bounty. This year, both games are expected to carry only six players at the position, and Thursday night’s Orange Bowl between Notre Dame and Penn State likely cemented that.

Five NFL teams – in current draft order, Tennessee, Cleveland, the New York Giants, Las Vegas and the New York Jets – are desperate to change their recent fortunes and add bona fide QBs. Plus, several other teams should be seeking additional help at the position, such as New Orleans, Seattle, Pittsburgh and the Los Angeles Rams.

If as expected Sanders and Ward are the only names called on April 24 in Green Bay, most of those teams will face a steep predicament.

• Do they reach in the draft hoping to find this year’s Bo Nix?
• Do they overpay in free agency for a veteran, hoping for another Baker Mayfield-like reboot, and sign someone like Zach Wilson?
• Or, do they look to make a trade with a team like Minnesota or Atlanta with coveted QB depth?  

After Sanders and Ward, the next names off the board are likely Alabama’s Jalen Milroe, Texas’ Quinn Ewers and Mississippi’s Jaxson Dart. Ewers, who plays Friday night against Ohio State in the Cotton Bowl, allegedly has a lucrative NIL offer awaiting him when the Longhorns’ season ends. Another interesting question is whether Penn State’s Drew Allar should declare himself draft-eligible this year to take advantage of the dearth of top-level talent, or return for his senior year in hopes of elevating his game.

The latter option seems in Allar’s best interest but there’s also an argument to be made to declare early. But how would any of these players stack up to a J.J. McCarthy, Sam Darnold or Kirk Cousins?

On Thursday, Atlanta general manager Terry Fontenot said the Falcons are “very comfortable” with Cousins returning, despite his high contract numbers. Likely, Fontenot was signaling that Atlanta expects a valuable offer for Cousins in a trade. For the Vikings, Darnold made NFL history with his career resurgence but has it been strong enough for the Vikings to entrust him with the keys to the franchise after their playoff run?

A month ago, Pittsburgh’s Russell Wilson and Cleveland’s Jameis Winston looked like they could be bridge QBs for teams seeking veteran placeholders, but their stars have since faded.

After they struggled to a 4-13 finish, the Raiders showed the door to first-year head coach Antonio Pierce and first-year GM Tom Telesco. The Titans dismissed GM Ran Carthon after only two years on the job, demonstrating the impatience ownership groups have with leaders who fail to address the most important position in sports.

For quarterback-needy teams, the message is as clear as the visor on Jayden Daniels’ helmet: Wherever you turn, you better be right.

For more information on the draft or hiring cycle, visit the NFL Draft page and the Coach/GM Carousel page at ProFootballPost.com.