Eighty games into the 2026 NFL season, we've seen quarterbacks miss action due to injury. We've yet to see a flat-out benching.
So far, teams have stuck with their starting choices under center, refusing to deviate even amid struggles that, for some, have already cratered their seasons. The deeper things go, the darker they'll become.
Some coaches have already had to answer questions about whether they could make a quarterback change due to ineffective play. Other QBs will get more heat as the season wears on.
With zero rookie quarterbacks having entered the season as starters, some changes feel inevitable. The question is when teams will pull the trigger.
Ahead of the rest of the Week 6 slate, let's take a gander at where some struggling QBs stand and analyze how the rest of the season could play out.
Not even a third of the way into the season, Robert Saleh is being forced to parry questions about Ward's future. It's not looking good.
Ward's transition into Brian Daboll's scheme has gone about as poorly as one can imagine. The second-year quarterback has shown precious few signs of growth under the new offensive coordinator. He's jittery in the pocket, struggles with consistent accuracy, and is still too slow through his reads. The offensive line, projected as a strength, has done Ward zero favors. Left tackle Dan Moore Jr. has been particularly brutal. However, the QB hasn't been able to overcome that issue. He's crumbled under pressure. Last week against Houston, when pressured, Ward completed nine of 16 passes for 70 yards and an interception and was sacked four times.
The sample is large enough now that Ward's struggles warrant concern in Tennessee. Among QBs with at least 100 attempts, he ranks dead last in expected points added (EPA) per dropback (-0.27), and his 37.2 success rate is 26th of 27 qualifying QBs. His Win Probability Added, which measures how much a single play increases or decreases a team's chances of winning, is -90.2%, more than 10 points worse than the next-closest quarterback.
The issue Saleh has is twofold.
- Ward needs reps. He won't improve without seeing action. It's ugly, but the Titans need to live through the pain if they hope to revive his career.
- No one needs to watch Mitch Trubisky in 2026.
The Titans spent the offseason trying to build a roster around Ward. The receiver additions haven't helped. The offensive line and run game have made things worse. At some point, Ward has to raise all boats. So far, he's shown no signs he can do that week in and week out.
An example in favor of sitting Ward down is Bryce Young, who was benched early in Dave Canales' first season in Carolina, then, after Andy Dalton went down due to injury, got his job back and, despite a few hiccups, has improved immensely. Perhaps Ward could follow a similar path. But he'll probably have to do it without the benching.
Ward should get the rest of the season to show strides under Daboll. If he keeps playing this way, at the very least he'll have competition in 2027, and more likely he'll be the latest failure in Tennessee.
Cousins led the Raiders to a 3-0 start with stellar play before losing the past two games, including a 41-17 shellacking in New England. Cousins is tied for second in the NFL with 12 passing touchdowns in 2026, but has just three total pass TDs over the last two games after netting three in each of the first three games.
While the output wasn't ideal, I don't pin last week's loss on Cousins. True, his physical limitations led to some sacks and struggles under pressure, but we knew that of the 38-year-old. He can still get the ball out quickly and find the right target -- I, too, would force-feed Brock Bowers the ball. Cousins ranks top-10 in EPA per dropback, success rate, and completion percentage over expected, and is fifth in WPA among QBs with at least 100 attempts.
As we surmised before the season started, when Cousins inevitably gives way to No. 1 overall pick Fernando Mendoza, it's unlikely to be because his play has deteriorated. The veteran has shown enough from the end of last year through the beginning of 2026 that he can still function at a starter level. If there is a change, it's because the losses will have piled up, and first-year coach Klint Kubiak is ready to start the future under Mendoza.
How the next two weeks go should say a lot about the future. If Buffalo and the Rams blast the Raiders, giving Mendoza the start in Week 8 against the Jets remains the most likely option. After that, tough defenses in San Francisco, Seattle and Denver are on tap. If Vegas stays in the hunt, I think Kubiak will continue to ride Cousins. It would be a disservice to the rest of the roster to pivot to Mendoza until things get bleak or Cousins shows signs of breaking.
One side note: If I were a playoff team and my starting QB went down with injury in the next three or four weeks, the Raiders would be my first call to see if I could pry Cousins away for the rest of the season.
The Cardinals' four-game losing streak isn't all on Brissett. The QB has shown he can still manage an offense and get the ball to Trey McBride and Michael Wilson. That said, Brissett hasn't shown anything beyond replaceable characteristics this season. Being a middle-of-the-pack quarterback is a recipe for stacking losses without taking the bulk of the blame. Careers have been made from less.
One issue is that the Cardinals offense has been a blasé amalgam of dump-offs and few splash plays. Brissett has averaged an NFL-worst 5.6 yards per attempt through five weeks. The Cardinals offense has generated a league-low 14 explosive plays (runs of 10 yards, passes of 20-plus yards). Brissett has generated seven pass plays of 20-plus yards, the fewest among all players with at least 100 pass attempts.
Arizona's offense can't succeed living in a box.
The question I have to ask at this point is whether Brissett, who averaged nearly three 20-plus-yard plays per game in 14 tilts last year, is the best mesh in Mike LaFleur's offense?
Arizona figures to continue the tank for 2027, and with a tough slate ahead, will probably stick with Brissett until late November or early December.
Personally, I'd like to see LaFleur pull the trigger on Carson Beck sooner. I understand not wanting to throw the third-round rookie to the wolves for fear of breaking his confidence, but if you're planning on drafting a QB in the top 10, what real future would Beck have in Arizona anyway?
If the Cards' losing streak reaches six after games against the Rams and Broncos, I'd like to see how Beck fares in Dallas in Week 8. What's the worst that happens, another loss?
The Dolphins' losses have been about what we expected this season. Jeff Hafley's team is battling, scrapping, and isn't putting out limp-noodle efforts. However, they're so severely outgunned that their chances of stacking successful outings are minuscule.
Willis hasn't been good, ranking 24th in EPA per dropback (-0.2) and 21st in success rate with a -1.8% completion rate over expected. However, given the rest of the offense, I think he gets more of a pass than some names on this list. The Dolphins' best targets are rookies, they still have blocking issues, and the club lost its most explosive player for the season.
I'm somewhat surprised that the Dolphins haven't used Willis' legs more this season (27 attempts, 186 yards, two TDs through five weeks). Entering the season, we figured that was one advantage the QB had over others, but the usage has been intermittent.
More concerning has been the inefficiency as a passer. Willis thrived under Matt LaFleur in Green Bay by boasting an 85.7 completion rate, getting the ball out and letting receivers run, and making plays out of the pocket. We've seen precious little of any of that in Miami. His accuracy has waned (56.2%), and he's missed players on the move.
If you're into the long-term plan in Miami, things couldn't be going much better. The Dolphins are trying to compete, the young players are flashing, and the losses are piling up, increasing the draft value.
Given where they're at, I don't see the need to sit Willis. He's not a rookie who needs a breather to recalibrate. At the very least, Willis lets the staff evaluate the rest of the offense with a relatively clean eye. I don't think the Dolphins need to see what Kyle McCord has before heading into the offseason.
Miami paid Willis knowing he could be a stopgap. Literally nothing we've seen this year changes any of the math in South Beach.
Sweet mother of mercy. What a disgusting display from Herbert and the entire Chargers offense through the first five weeks of the season.
The $50-plus-million quarterback is playing like a penny.
Herbert ranks tied for 24th in the NFL with a -0.20 EPA per dropback, boasts a 37.9% success rate and -2.8% completion percentage over expected, has taken 17 sacks, is tied for the league lead with seven interceptions (top INT percentage at 4.9) and is second-worst among all QBs with a -78.5% WPA, ahead of only Cam Ward. Herbert has an NFL-worst 64.3 passer rating on passes at or beyond the line of scrimmage, with three TDs and seven INTs on such throws, per NGS.
Excuse his play away if you're so inclined. The blocking continues to be porous. The running game is consistently putting the Chargers behind the sticks. The pass catchers are injured or ineffective. The operation is a daggum mess. All true. It's also true that a $52 million quarterback should be able to function even amid all that nonsense without looking like a half-baked gumshoe with a broken magnifying glass.
Herbert hasn't played well. End-stop.
No, I don't expect Jim Harbaugh to bench his $50 million QB at any point -- though sitting him with an injury late in the season could be a smart move if things keep spiraling. The more likely move is firing offensive coordinator Mike McDaniel, possibly during the Week 7 bye if things go poorly in Kansas City on Sunday. Herbert isn't going anywhere, but OCs are replaceable, even one who came in with such high expectations.
Hurts' injury threw Philly for a loop. The QB was diagnosed with a superficial blood clot that will knock him out for at least one game. The timeline for his return is unclear, so we don't need to delve too deep into the situation. However, it's fair to point out that Hurts hasn't played well, with a -0.16 EPA/dropback entering Week 6 (21st in the NFL), a 37.8% success rate (25th), and a 57.8% completion rate (third-worst).
Like Justin Herbert, Hurts isn't going anywhere, at least in the short term. Philly radio, however, will be something to behold on Monday if Tanner McKee lights up a Panthers defense that ranks 29th and 26th in yards and points allowed, respectively.
