The NFL quarterback carousel, which has been spinning out of control for the past couple of months, is beginning to slow down. Just a bit, though, as the carousel still has plenty of momentum left.
In the past few weeks teams have taken the following actions to help pause the QB merry-go-round a tad.
- The Cowboys signed Dak Prescott to a 4-year deal.
- Carson Wentz was traded to the Colts.
- The Rams and Lions swapped QBs with Matthew Stafford going to LA and Jared Goff to Detroit.
- Cam Newton re-signed with the Patriots.
- Drew Brees formally retired and the Saints re-signed Jameis Winston.
- It would appear that Russell Wilson is no longer on the trade market (I’m not sure he ever really was), as the Seahawks supposedly turned down a big offer from the Bears.
- Speaking of the Bears, they signed Andy Dalton to be their tentative starter this season.
- The Washington Football Team signed Ryan Fitzpatrick to be their likely starting QB.
- Tyrod Taylor and Jacoby Brissett, 2 likely backup QBs with starting potential, signed with the Texans and the Dolphins.
The primary horse that is keeping the Carousel spinning, though, is Deshaun Watson. The trade rumors will continue until this issue is resolved. Watson is demanding a trade while Texans’ management remains resolute in their desire not to trade him. I think the Texans will blink first and trade him before the draft. If they wait until after the draft, his trade value goes down, the Texans have fewer options and if he holds out it just becomes a huge distraction.
There will be no shortage of teams interested in Watson should they decide to trade him. I think Carolina & Chicago would be the most aggressive with Miami, New England, New York Jets, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Washington & Denver also interested. It’s important to note that Watson has a no trade clause in his contract and he may not be interested in joining a few of those teams. He supposedly has said he prefers the Broncos or the 49ers.
Sam Darnold is another QB who could be on the move, but based on all the recent moves teams have made, who is still looking for a starting quarterback where Darnold would be an upgrade? The only 2 that jump out at me are Denver and Chicago.
2 other QBs on the market are Alex Smith and Mitch Trubisky, but I think teams are viewing them as backups at this point.
The other revolving part on the carousel is the NFL draft. Jacksonville will assuredly take QB Trevor Lawrence with the 1st overall pick. At #2, do the Jets draft a QB or do they keep Darnold and trade the pick? My gut says they draft a quarterback. Miami has the #3 pick and I think they will trade the pick for more draft capital unless they include the pick in a trade for Watson. Atlanta picks 4th and they may want to draft Matt Ryan’s eventual replacement. Or they may want to trade the pick to a quarterback hungry team so they can surround Ryan with more talent for the next few years.
In addition to Lawrence, there are 4 QBs (Justin Fields, Zach Wilson, Trey Lance & Mac Jones) who could get drafted in the top 10 picks and there will be several teams who could be looking to trade up. It’s possible the first 4 picks in the draft are all QBs. Carolina seems to be the most desperate team to trade up, but several other teams (49ers, Patriots, Broncos, Bears, Washington) may also want to trade up.
It will be an interesting time in the NFL between now and the draft on April 29, so hop on the carousel and enjoy the ride.
