Top NFL quarterbacks still rarely hit the open market. There is no Tom Brady this year, and only a handful of viable starters among unrestricted free agents. The list below could change in the coming weeks as a few teams are still deciding on what they’ll do with their veteran quarterbacks (i.e. the Falcons with Kirk Cousins and the Saints with Derek Carr). It’s possible that the Rams make Matthew Stafford available via trade, as well.
But here are the 10 best quarterbacks who will be free agents when the new league year begins next month, with 10 more who will also hit the open market.
(Top-100 ranking in parentheses)
RELATED: Top 100 2025 NFL free agents: Tee Higgins, Sam Darnold lead the way
10. Trey Lance, Cowboys (NR)
Here’s the thing: After four years in the NFL, he’s still only 24 years old. He’s barely played — five career starts, five touchdowns, four interceptions, and most of that came as a rookie in 2021. But for inexpensive upside, he’s younger than some of this year’s draft prospects and has the experience of four years in NFL meeting rooms.
9. Joe Flacco, Colts (NR)
Flacco is 40 now, but he put up decent numbers in six starts in 2024: 12 touchdowns against seven interceptions, even if he went 2-4 as a starter. Just one year prior, he had 25 touchdowns with 15 interceptions over 13 games and a 6-5 record as a starter. If you’re a team with a rookie quarterback who might not be ready immediately, Flacco is a serviceable stopgap to pair with him.
8. Jameis Winston, Browns (NR)
Winston is 31, and he’s totaled 17 starts over the past five years since leaving Tampa. After throwing 33 touchdowns in 2019, he’s thrown 33 total in five years with the Saints and Browns. He went 2-5 last season after taking over for Deshaun Watson, and interceptions will continue to limit his success, but he’s seen as a good locker-room guy and a colorful backup with high volume in good plays and bad.
7. Mac Jones, Jaguars (NR)
Could NFL teams see Jones, 26, as a worthwhile reclamation project after Sam Darnold’s success in 2024? Jones went 2-5 on a bad Jaguars team that now has a new coach. His eight touchdowns against eight interceptions won’t wow anyone, but he’ll only command modest backup money and has more upside than most of the free-agent QB alternatives.
6. Cooper Rush, Cowboys (95)
The quarterback market lacks depth, but Rush, 31, played the most snaps in his NFL career in 2024, going 4-4 when Dak Prescott was sidelined with injury. Rush threw 12 touchdowns against five interceptions. Does the coaching change in Dallas make him look elsewhere? He could be paired somewhere with a rookie as an inexpensive veteran bridge QB, or he could stick around for what would be his third regime with the Cowboys.
5. Daniel Jones, Vikings (82)
Jones, 27, got a huge contract from the Giants and fell well short of it, was eventually benched and finished 2024 on the Vikings’ practice squad. Does a team see his rookie numbers (24 TDs) or even think they can get another 2022, when he helped the Giants to their lone playoff appearance in eight years? If Sam Darnold signs elsewhere, Jones would be a smart pairing with J.J. McCarthy in Minnesota.
4. Justin Fields, Steelers (52)
The Steelers coaching staff had Fields make smart, snappy decisions in their offense. As a result, his interception percentage dropped from 2.4% in 2023 to 0.6% in 2024. He had the highest completion percentage (65.8) and quarterback rating (93.3) of his career. It’s still sort of foggy whether Mike Tomlin made the right decision to bench Fields and turn things over to Russell Wilson, who fizzled out at the end of the year. If the 25-year-old Fields doesn’t return to Pittsburgh as QB1, another team will see the way the Steelers reset his fundamentals. He’s still a project, but the bones are good.
3. Aaron Rodgers, Jets (17)
New York hasn’t released Rodgers yet, so he’s technically under contract. But the Jets have announced that they’re moving on, so we’re making an exception to include him. Where does a 41-year-old with considerable off-field drama fit into the offseason quarterback hierarchy? Take away the circus, and his core numbers last season (28 TDs, 11 INTs) weren’t terrible. Think of teams without a proven quarterback under contract. Does he go to Nashville? Las Vegas? Pittsburgh?
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2. Russell Wilson, Steelers (15)
As late as early December, Wilson’s career looked revived, and he seemed headed toward a long-term deal in Pittsburgh. The Steelers were 10-3 and he was playing great. Then they lost their last five games and Wilson, 36, started to look his age. He can still play and lead, though. He’s not likely to carry a team to the playoffs, but he can get the job done with the right cast around him. A former Super Bowl champion, Wilson would also be excellent in a one-year, mentor role to a young QB.
1. Sam Darnold, Vikings (3)
A 27-year-old QB coming off a season in which he went 14-3, threw for 4,319 yards and 35 touchdowns with just 12 interceptions, should be in high demand for a blockbuster contract. But it might depend on how much his suitors are willing to overlook the struggles of his first six NFL seasons. He didn’t alleviate those concerns with his poor play in his final two games, either. It’s a good thing for Darnold that quarterbacks are so hard to find.
10 MORE NAMES TO WATCH: Jacoby Brissett, Patriots; Andy Dalton, Panthers; Josh Dobbs, 49ers; Jimmy Garoppolo, Rams; Taylor Heinicke, Chargers; Drew Lock, Giants; Marcus Mariota, Commanders; Kyle Trask, Buccaneers; Carson Wentz, Chiefs; Zach Wilson, Broncos
Greg Auman is an NFL Reporter for FOX Sports. He previously spent a decade covering the Buccaneers for the Tampa Bay Times and The Athletic. You can follow him on Twitter at @gregauman.
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