Without a strong starting quarterback, no team is going to sustain any sort of success in today's NFL. There isn't a secret formula to landing an elite quarterback, either. Teams simply have to do the proper homework in finding the correct player in the NFL Draft.
Some teams did this perfectly and are now primed to be successful for the next decade. Others have young quarterbacks whose arrow is pointing up, and others just continue to circle the drain and have no solution in sight, unfortunately.
There are a ton of different types of franchise passers in the league. The pure pocket passer still exists in this league, but we're now beginning to see more dual-threat passers who are honestly more playmakers at this point. Let's power-rank all 32 projected starting quarterbacks in the NFL for the 2026 season. We'll use 2025 performance to sort out these rankings, but it's also worth considering the total skillset of the quarterback as well. We'll try to find a good balance here in these power rankings.
NFL QB Rankings: Power-ranking the projected starting passers for the 2026 season
32. Deshaun Watson, Cleveland Browns
It's hard to be optimistic about the Cleveland Browns. While the defense is rather solid and perhaps even a playoff-caliber unit, the quarterback room might be the worst in the NFL. Deshaun Watson is likely primed to start for the Browns. He hasn't been efficient in years and has honestly been unplayable when he's been able to get on the field for Cleveland.
31. Jacoby Brissett, Arizona Cardinals
Jacoby Brissett's passing totals from 2025 were absolutely inflated due to the Arizona Cardinals getting beaten so badly. Brissett is a solid backup that most teams would love to have in the quarterback room, but he's really nothing more than that and is No. 31 in our power rankings.
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