10 Best Quarterbacks Hitting the Market This Offseason Part 2

By BetOnline February 4, 2020

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BY ADAM GREENE

We hit our first three of our 10 available quarterbacks here and the guy at No. 1 should be no surprise if you watched any of the 2019 NFL regular season.

1. TEDDY BRIDGEWATER, UNRESTRICTED FREE AGENT

2019: 5-0 as a starter, 67.9 completion percentage, 1,384 yards, nine touchdowns, two interceptions

All Bridgewater did in 2019 by re-upping with the New Orleans Saints is prove beyond a shadow of a doubt that he’s an NFL starter and deserves to be handed a team’s keys. He was all but offered the job with the Miami Dolphins last season and smartly turned it down. He won’t be so limited in his options this year.

Bridgewater will have his pick of contenders if Brees, Brady or Rivers decide to call it quits. The Saints would love to have him back and would undoubtedly be his first choice, but he’d step right in and keep the Chargers or Patriots afloat as they vied to stay relevant.

Where he should end up: Tampa Bay Buccaneers

The Bucs need a solid quarterback who doesn’t like to throw it to the other team and a leader. Bridgewater is both those things. Bruce Arians has taken a cast-off and made him a Pro Bowler before in Carson Palmer with the Arizona Cardinals and there’s no reason to waste precious years with his current offensive roster breaking in a rookie.

2. JOE FLACCO, DENVER BRONCOS

2019: 2-6 as a starter, 65.3 completion percentage, 1,822 yards, six touchdowns, five interceptions

The Broncos were in a weird place this season, shopping pretty much their entire roster after the opening month. Adding to that problem was the offense called by Rich Scangarello, that Flacco openly criticized. This was not a marriage that would last long and Flacco was placed on injured reserve soon after.

At 35, Flacco has some decent years left, is a former Super Bowl MVP and still has the arm and brain to win games in the NFL with talent around him. He’d also come cheap as the Broncos are likely settled in on Drew Lock as their starter for 2020.

Where he should end up: Miami Dolphins

In my mock draft, I have the Dolphins taking Tua Tagovailoa with the fifth pick of the first round, but they can’t take any chances heading into year two of the Brian Flores era. There’s no guarantee Tagovailoa will be fully healthy when the season begins and they surely don’t want to toss him right into the fire. The Dolphins have the cap space to eat Flacco’s contract for a season ($20.25 million) and would probably pick up a decent pick in the process, something like a third or fourth for taking the deal off Denver’s hands.

3. MARCUS MARIOTA, UNRESTRICTED FREE AGENT

2019: 2-4 as a starter, 59.4 completion percentage, 1,203 yards, seven touchdowns, two interceptions

Mariota flamed out in Tennessee with a better quarterback behind him in Ryan Tannehill, but I’m not sure all of it is his fault. He had one year of legitimate NFL coaching with Matt LaFleur as his offensive coordinator in 2018. The rest have been lacking to say the least, or certainly not coaches that maximized his talents.

He’s just 26 years old and there’s no reason to toss your hands up on the former Heisman Trophy winner just yet.

Where he should end up: New England Patriots

If I’m putting my cash down on Tom Brady’s future, my bet is that he suits up in New England for another year. Still, the team needs some insurance and maybe a quarterback that can turn into a star in the right environment. If there’s a Jim Plunkett in this free agent group, Mariota’s it and I’d like to see what he would do in a Josh McDaniels offense. My guess is McDaniels would too.

Our second former Super Bowl MVP shows up in Part 3.