These seven teams are most likely to need a QB in the 2027 NFL Draft -- and the timing may be perfect
The Steelers and Browns are among the teams that should not fret if the bottom falls out this season
What the 2026 NFL Draft class lacked in quarterback talent, the 2027 crop of prospects promises to make up for. With Arch Manning, Dante Moore and a host of other exciting arms set to make the leap from college next spring, NFL teams in need of a franchise signal-caller should view next year's draft as the jackpot.
Only the Las Vegas Raiders took a potential plug-and-play starter in the 2026 NFL Draft, and even then, Fernando Mendoza might have to wait at least a few games behind Kirk Cousins. Next year, more than just a couple of teams could have starting jobs available for rookies.
Some of those squads may already have the answer to their problems on their roster. The Miami Dolphins, for instance, could be set for the foreseeable future with Malik Willis on board as a breakout candidate. Others are in for a long year on offense and will enter the draft in desperate search of a cornerstone around which to build their rosters in 2027 and beyond.
Here are seven teams that might be in the market for a quarterback in the 2027 draft, where they could pick in the draft order and which player on their roster has a chance to shake up those plans.
Arizona Cardinals
The situation: The gap between the Cardinals and the rest of football's best division is so wide that moving on from Kyler Murray made all the sense in the world. This is the right time for Arizona to embrace a rebuild.
The team reportedly informed Jacoby Brissett that he will handle starting duties, but he wants to be paid as such and continues to skip voluntary workouts in search of a new contract.
Given that Arizona may be the likeliest team to hunt for a new quarterback in the next draft and already has a potential next man up in 2026 draftee Carson Beck, it would behoove the franchise to avoid paying Brissett starter money beyond this fall.
The floor and ceiling: Brissett started 12 games last year and went 1-11, albeit with respectable stats. Given that he just oversaw such a miserable season and that the NFC West should be just as tough in 2026, both the floor and ceiling are tremendously low for Arizona. This team might be the safest bet to land the No. 1 pick.
The veteran who could change the plan: Neither Brissett nor Gardner Minshew has secured a long-term starting job at any previous stop. It is Brissett's role for now, though, and to his credit, he has been serviceable before. Believe it or not, he actually stands as the NFL's all-time career leader in interception percentage at a minuscule 1.4%. However, that will not be enough to convince Arizona he is anything more than a short-term bridge to whomever it selects early in the draft.
Cleveland Browns
The situation: The revolving door spins back around this year with the chance of another shake-up in the starting group. Deshaun Watson will get a shot at the job and only has to beat out a couple of second-year players who struggled to latch onto the role in their rookie seasons: Shedeur Sanders and Dillon Gabriel.
Taylen Green arrived via the draft as a sixth-round pick and is the only fresh face in the room -- one whose athleticism is tantalizing but likely not enough on its own to reasonably fight for a spot in the lineup unless things truly go haywire.
The floor and ceiling: The defense is ready to compete for a playoff berth, so all the Browns need from their offense is competence. If Watson revitalizes his career following a season lost to a torn Achilles, or if one of Sanders and Gabriel takes the next step, this will be a respectable team. That's a major "if," however.
Another year of mediocre quarterbacking likely leaves Cleveland at the bottom of the AFC North and searching for a franchise quarterback inside the top 10 yet again.
The veteran who could change the plan: Watson is not guaranteed to land the job, but he will get every chance to return to the top of the depth chart and make his contract look slightly less atrocious.
It has been six years, an Achilles tear and an off-field scandal since Watson last played a full campaign, and he was not exceedingly impressive in any of his three years as a half-season starter with the Browns. Maybe a year away from the field was what he needed to hit "reset" and launch a comeback effort.
In the unlikely event he rediscovers his old form, Cleveland could attempt to re-sign him next spring.
New York Jets
The group: Things came full circle for Geno Smith when he signed with the Jets this offseason. Back with the team that drafted him, the journeyman faces far less pressure than he did in 2013 and is effectively a stopgap until New York grabs its franchise quarterback next spring.
Behind him is a young trio of Brady Cook, Bailey Zappe and fourth-round pick Cade Klubnik. Upside is minimal despite the youth in the room, so a 2027 addition would have a path straight to the lineup -- although Smith will remain under contract, which would give the Jets the ability to ease that draft pick into action.
The floor and ceiling: Considering the Jets were one of four teams to win just three games last season, it would not take much for them to slip behind their counterparts, finish 2026 with the league's worst record and grab the No. 1 pick. Aaron Glenn is already on hot-seat watch, and a sour start to the year should be enough to prompt the franchise to fully embrace tank mode and a full refresh for 2027.
At the same time, Glenn's roster is much better this time around. A host of defensive newcomers raised his unit's floor. That is fantastic for his hopes of keeping his job, but it also threatens the Jets' search for prime draft position.
The veteran who could change the plan: At the Annual League Meeting in March, Glenn tabbed Smith as "the guy who's going to lead us to the promised land." If he replicates the magic he found in Seattle, it is easy to envision him delivering the Jets' best season in quite some time. It is far less realistic, however, that the franchise would latch onto a 35-year-old for more than a season or two, especially when he just led the league with 17 interceptions.
Pittsburgh Steelers
The situation: Aaron Rodgers finally decided to suit up for another year, thus ending the months-long waiting game for his choice on whether to re-sign with the Steelers or call it a career. Pittsburgh's moves this offseason indicated this would always be the case, as it did nothing to ensure the offense would be in great shape if Rodgers instead decided to retire.
Because they remained all in on Rodgers, the Steelers did not acquire anyone who could provide a seamless transition in 2027. Backing him up for a second straight campaign are veteran backup Mason Rudolph and second-year option Will Howard, the latter of which awaits his first real chance to prove himself. General manager Omar Khan also used a third-round pick on Drew Allar, and because of the Day 2 investment, the Steelers clearly want the Penn State product to be part of their future -- even though he is a project in whom some analysts have very little faith. The concerning reality is that with minimal upside in the room, there is no established succession plan for the fast-approaching post-Rodgers era.
The floor and ceiling: Rodgers led the Steelers to an AFC North title with two games to spare a year ago. The roster around him improved this offseason, so another trip to the playoffs should be the expectation now that he is back. The problem for Pittsburgh is that if this is his last year and it comes with a bunch of wins, the franchise likely will not be in position to draft one of the top quarterbacks in the 2027 class to replace him.
There is also the risk of regression for a team built around a 42-year-old quarterback. Rodgers ranked 23rd in QBR last season and is not close to the MVP version of himself that everyone remembers from his time in Green Bay. With another year comes the potential for further skill degradation and greater injury risk. If either of those things rears its ugly head, the bottom could fall out.
The veteran who could change the plan: The Steelers need a long-term option beyond Rodgers. Rudolph is next in line this year and will get a chance to establish himself as that successor if Rodgers misses any time. He has been serviceable in the past and looks destined to be a career backup, but say he seizes an opportunity and looks promising enough to convince the front office to give him a new contract. Might that be enough to leave the team content with the trio of Rudolph, Howard and Allar?
It is hard to envision the Steelers not taking advantage of a deep draft class, but they selected quarterbacks each of the last two years and may simply feel satisfied with developing what they already have.
Atlanta Falcons
The group: There is a true competition brewing between Michael Penix Jr. and Tua Tagovailoa. May the best southpaw win.
If Penix is healthy enough to play Week 1, it would make sense for the Falcons to give him one more chance to prove he was worth a first-round pick. If not, there is a world in which Tagovailoa plays so well early in the year that he never relinquishes the job.
Both have extensive injury histories, and neither has won at a high level lately, so it may simply be safer for the Falcons to draft another option next April regardless of what happens.
The floor and ceiling: Atlanta's floor is reasonably high because if one of Penix or Tagovailoa does not work out, the other is still a serviceable player. Quarterback play seems unlikely to fall off a cliff, and the offensive weapons are some of the best in the league.
Neither signal-caller is a franchise cornerstone, though, so the most reasonable outcome is for the Falcons to finish in the middle of the pack and pick somewhere in the teens come draft day.
The veteran who could change the plan: Ideally for Atlanta, Penix would outduel Tagovailoa and take the next step as a long-term starter. The Falcons invested more in him and possess up to three more years of team control, whereas Tagovailoa arrived on a one-year minimum deal.
Penix ascending to another level would lock him in as the future and reduce or eliminate the need for Atlanta to take a first-round quarterback for the second time in three years. Tagovailoa producing a bounce-back campaign, on the other hand, would allow him to hit the open market as a legitimate threat to leave in unrestricted free agency.
Minnesota Vikings
The group: While J.J. McCarthy has another chance to prove himself as the Vikings' franchise quarterback, he faces an uphill battle. Not only must he stay healthy -- something he has yet to do through two years as a pro -- but he also has to beat Kyler Murray in this offseason's position battle.
Murray arrived on a minimum contract and is a real bounce-back candidate now that he finds himself in a better situation than in Arizona.
The floor and ceiling: Even in a year when McCarthy sustained injury after injury, stretching the quarterback room as thin as possible, the Vikings still finished a game above .500.
If McCarthy stays healthy and improves, or if Murray proves to be the reclamation project Minnesota hopes for, this should be a playoff team. Otherwise, a handful of wins should still be attainable, which likely leaves the front office picking in the middle of the first round.
The veteran who could change the plan: Much like the Falcons, Minnesota finds itself choosing between an oft-injured and unproven youngster and a perennial middle-of-the-road veteran seeking one final chance as a starter. The more team-friendly outcome is for McCarthy to figure things out, but the more likely scenario is that Murray delivers a solid campaign and forces the Vikings to decide between re-signing him or finding a rookie replacement.
Miami Dolphins
The group: Malik Willis secured his payday in Miami and, as arguably the top quarterback available in free agency, secured a three-year deal. He should get a long leash as the Dolphins try to determine exactly what they have in the longtime backup, but if it becomes clear he is a bust, Quinn Ewers waits in the wings.
Even if Willis lives up to the hype he built as Green Bay's second option, Miami could still be on the hunt for another cornerstone in next year's draft. The franchise needs a building block for what is clearly a full rebuild.
The floor and ceiling: The fire sale of nearly every veteran aside from De'Von Achane sets the stage for the floor to fall out from underneath what was a seven-win team last year. Miami is one of the early favorites to have a top pick in the 2027 draft, which it could use to land either Arch Manning or Dante Moore, who project as elite talents in a loaded class.
But if Willis proves his eye-popping audition with the Packers wasn't a fluke, the Dolphins may win more games than expected, which would mean missing out on a premier signal-caller.
The veteran who could change the plan: Willis may simply be a late bloomer who finally begins to reach the potential that made him a Day 2 pick four years ago. He completed 30 of 35 passes with three touchdowns in his fourth professional season and looked like the best backup in the league during his two-year stint with the Packers.
If he sustains that development, Miami can use its draft capital to build around him rather than search for his replacement.
