The NFL preseason gets underway on Thursday night when the Chicago Bears and Houston Texans lock horns for the Hall of Fame Game in Canton, Ohio.
That means the regular season is only a month away and over the next few weeks there will be plenty of positional battles to be won, as teams look to lock in their starters for the new season.
The quarterback position is one of the most demanding in the whole of sports and there are several spots up for grabs this preseason. Here’s a look at five teams where the job is still there to be won.
Pittsburgh Steelers: Russell Wilson, Justin Fields
A calf injury to Russell Wilson may have opened the door for Justin Fields in Pittsburgh as the two new faces battle it out for the job of the Steelers’ starting QB.
Wilson is looking to bounce back after his failed trade from the Seattle Seahawks to the Denver Broncos and while he still showed plenty of mobility and improvisational ability last season, the 35-year-old is not the explosive runner that former Chicago Bears man Fields is.
While Wilson remains the favorite to land the job, it’s worth keeping an eye on his injury status, as Fields is more than primed to take advantage of increased training camp and preseason reps.
Denver Broncos: Bo Nix, Jarrett Stidham, Zach Wilson
Eyebrows were raised when the Broncos selected Bo Nix 12th overall in this year’s NFL Draft and head coach Sean Payton’s desire to land the former Oregon standout is probably a big clue as to who will land the starting job in Denver this year.
Stidham ended last season as the team’s starter after Russell Wilson was benched, so he has the advantage of knowing the offense which could point to him starting the season under center until Nix gets up to speed. Wilson, fresh from a testing time at the Jets, appears to be on the outside looking in.
Minnesota Vikings: San Darnold, J.J. McCarthy
Another case here of a rookie that the team will be pinning their future hopes on, up against a veteran who is likely to start the year as the number one choice.
Darnold is another former Jets draft pick, but had a year behind Brock Purdy in San Francisco last year, meaning he will have taken advantage of Kyle Shanahan’s expertise. McCarthy was taken with the number 10 overall pick in the draft, so expect him to get the call once he is ready.
New England Patriots: Jacoby Brissett, Drake Maye
While the first two selections in this year’s draft - Caleb Williams at the Bears and the Commanders’ Jayden Daniels - are expected to start on day one, that is unlikely to be the case for the third overall pick.
Drake Maye is more of a rawer talent than the aforementioned duo, but the Patriots have an extremely reliable veteran QB to aid his development, with Jacoby Brissett an excellent medium-term option for the Pats and one that should be able to guide Maye through his early NFL career.
Las Vegas Raiders: Aidan O’Connell, Gardner Minshew
Many expected the Raiders to take a quarterback in the draft, but after a record-breaking run at the position in the first round, the Silver and Black decided to stick with what they have.
O’Connell was a fourth-round pick in 2023 and started 10 games last season, where he was a steady presence behind center, which was a significant improvement on the failed Jimmy Garrapolo and Josh McDaniels experiment. Antonio Pierce won the head coach on a permanent basis this offseason and therefore got a first-hand look at O’Connell, which puts him in a strong position to win the job this preseason.
Minshew has won games everywhere he’s been though and, at worst, is a very high-end back-up, so don’t be surprised if he sees plenty of playing time in 2024.
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