The NFL quarterback market has more starters available than it has teams that need them. Kyler Murray and Tua Tagovailoa might be the next two to move.
Both names have been linked to trade chatter for months, and the volume keeps rising as teams sort out their rosters before training camp. ESPN and Bleacher Report have both included Murray and Tagovailoa on their summer trade block lists. Mac Jones, Geno Smith, and Anthony Richardson round out the same conversation.
That is five real quarterbacks who could be on different rosters by Labor Day. The league has not had this kind of position-shuffling at the most important spot in football in years.
The Arizona Question Is the Loudest
The Cardinals have been quietly fielding calls on Murray for months. Arizona has a new head coach. The offense is being rebuilt around the running game. Murray’s massive contract has not produced consistent winning football, and the front office is openly thinking about whether the next four years should look different.
Trading Murray is not easy. The contract still has multiple years and major dead-money implications. Most teams cannot absorb the cap hit without doing real damage to their own roster. Arizona would need a partner willing to take on the contract and probably send a quarterback back the other way.
The Steelers and Jets are both names that have been floated. Pittsburgh is set at backup with Aaron Rodgers’ situation still in flux. The Jets are not interested in the Sorsby drama and may have to think bigger to land a real quarterback this offseason.
Tua’s situation in Miami is more medical than performance. The concussion history has the front office moving cautiously. Mike McDaniel still likes Tagovailoa as his quarterback when healthy. The team is balancing the desire to win with the long-term liability of a quarterback with a documented head injury history.
A Tua trade would shake the AFC. The Cowboys have been floated. The Raiders and Bears are wild-card destinations. Each move would have ripple effects through the entire offseason quarterback market.
The Daniel Jones situation in San Francisco is the strangest of the bunch. John Lynch reportedly set an “astronomical” asking price for Jones in March, and the trade market never developed. Jones is now likely to be a backup or end up cut. The 49ers may have to settle for less than they thought.
Mac Jones is the cheapest piece on the board. The Jaguars need a quarterback. The Browns have a quarterback room in flux. Jones could end up almost anywhere as a fringe starter or expensive backup.
The Anthony Richardson situation in Indianapolis remains unresolved. The Colts have not found a deal. He has reported to workouts. Teams are still circling but waiting for the price to come down.
Training camp is when this market actually moves. Quarterback rooms are full right now. The minute a starter or a key backup goes down in August, the calls start. The team that gets the best deal will be the one that planned for the injury they did not yet have.
The NFL is built around the position. Five real quarterbacks are on the move, and the league is about to get reshuffled again. The teams that move first usually get the best player. The ones that wait get whatever is left.
A longtime sports reporter, Carlos Garcia has written about some of the biggest and most notable athletic events of the last 5 years. He has been credentialed to cover MLS, NBA and MLB games all over the United States. His work has been published on Fox Sports, Bleacher Report, AOL and the Washington Post.
