QBs On the Move

Carson Wentz has been traded to the Colts, reuniting him with his former offensive coordinator Frank Reich.  Wentz was one of many big-name NFL quarterbacks who figured to be changing teams this offseason, and he's the third to officially move following that Jared Goff-Matthew Stafford swap between the Rams and Lions.  There will be more.

A Wentz-Colts pairing seemed both logical and inevitable.  But it also took both a name and a potential destination off the board.  There are still plenty of options for the remaining available quarterbacks, though.  But what combinations of QB and team make as much sense as Wentz and the Colts?

Everyone knows DeShaun Watson wants out of Houston, even though the Texans aren't gonna trade him to just anybody.  He's been linked to both the Jets and Dolphins, neither of which makes much sense.  The Jets have the No. 2 pick in the draft, which figures to be Ohio State QB Justin Fields (I'm not including the Jaguars among the teams with a QB "need" since they're obviously taking Trevor Lawrence No. 1).  Why would you give up that pick and trade for Watson, especially since the Texans will almost certainly want a first-round pick in any package?

Miami, meanwhile, seems committed to Tua Tagovailoa.  The Dolphins were almost a playoff team last season, and Tua didn't even become the starter until late October!  They're building something, why mess with it?  Especially when Watson wouldn't necessarily be an upgrade?

I've got the market for Watson narrowed down to two teams--New Orleans and New England.  The Saints need a veteran to replace Drew Brees.  But they have salary cap issues, so they might have to go with a cheaper option.  The Patriots' Cam Newton experiment failed miserably, and they'd be taking a similar risk by trading for Watson.  But I still think that's the most likely scenario here.  DeShaun Watson ends up in New England.

Nick Foles could be a fallback option for the Saints.  He doesn't figure to cost nearly as much, so he might fall within their budget.  Of course, that's assuming the Bears decide to stick with Mitchell Trubisky, which I think is the safer bet.  That means Foles will be changing teams yet again.  And don't bet against that team being the Saints.

Foles actually would've been a pretty good fit in Houston, too.  No one seems to have any idea what the Texans are planning on doing, though.  They'll need a quarterback regardless, however.  So, if they don't end up with Foles and they don't do a straight-up QB trade with Watson, let me throw two options out there.

The first is Cam Newton, who won't be returning to New England.  Cam will likely want to start and may not sign until later in the summer as he waits for the right opportunity.  That opportunity could come in Houston, where the expectations won't be very high, so it'll be a very low-stress situation and a chance for him to get his career back on track.

Or, how about Marcus Mariota?  Like I said, Houston's going to be a very low-stress situation, which means there won't be much pressure on whoever takes over.  Which could be perfect for Mariota.  He buckled under the burden of expectations in Tennessee, but has proven to be a serviceable backup with the Raiders.  It could be worth taking out another flier on Mariota as a starter.  And Houston might be the only team will to do that, which makes Mariota a very interesting fallback option.

Whether the Jets trade for Watson or draft Fields at No. 2, it looks like they're probably moving on from Sam Darnold either way.  The real question with Darnold is whether he ends up signing somewhere as a starter or a backup?  I don't think all hope is lost for him as a starter, but I also don't think a team will count on Darnold to be "the" guy, either. 

Which means a team like Washington could be an option.  Alex Smith has proven that he deserves to be the starter when healthy.  But "when healthy" is the key part of that sentence.  They need a capable backup/secondary starter.  Enter Sam Darnold.  It really does seem like a perfect fit.

So, to recap: I've got DeShaun Watson going to New England, Nick Foles to New Orleans, Sam Darnold to Washington and either Cam Newton or Marcus Mariota to Houston.  Everyone else seems set with their quarterback situation (that includes the Jaguars and Jets with their rookie starters).  Which means at least one of those five guys is gonna end up being a backup somewhere.  Which isn't necessarily a bad thing, since a quality veteran backup QB is one of the most valuable assets any NFL team can have.

There's one more player who'll be changing teams next season that's worth mentioning.  He isn't a quarterback.  But every quarterback in the league will be very interested to see where he ends up.  Because, if healthy, he's going to make somebody's life miserable.  I'm, of course, talking about J.J. Watt.

Watt already has plenty of suitors, which was expected.  I've got it narrowed down to two teams, though.  He's been linked to the Titans, where he'd be able to stay in the AFC South and play for a competitive team.  However, I think he ends up in Pittsburgh with his brothers.  The Steelers' defense was exposed badly in December, and they could certainly use his presence on the pass rush.  So, sorry Baker Mayfield, Lamar Jackson and Joe Burrow.  It looks like you'll have to deal with all three Watt brothers when you play the Steelers next season.