The first game of the 2026 NFL season demonstrated the importance of a capable backup quarterback.
When Sam Darnold limped off the field with a right hip injury on Seattle’s first possession of the game, the defending Super Bowl champions turned to veteran Drew Lock, a former second round pick who’s started 28 games in his seven-season career.
Lock went on to complete 16 of 22 passes for 187 yards and one touchdown, and, most importantly, no turnovers in the Seahawks’ 13-10 win over the New England Patriots.
The backup quarterback quandary is the same for every NFL fanbase: if your starter is a star, you never want to see the No. 2 guy. Meanwhile for teams whose starting quarterback isn’t producing, the backup instantly becomes a fan favorite.
The most famous backup quarterback stories are well-known—Tom Brady subbing in for an injured Drew Bledsoe, Nick Foles leading the Eagles to a championship, Kurt Warner going from bagging groceries to piloting the Greatest Show on Turf. But the reality for most QB2s is a lot of holding the clipboard and bouncing around from team to team—think of names like Josh McCown, Brian Hoyer, Ryan Fitzpatrick and Teddy Bridgewater.
Every team takes a different approach to its depth chart at quarterback, with some opting for reliable journeymen, and others taking fliers on raw young talent.
These are the 10 Best Backup QBs in the NFL Ranked.
Justin Fields
Team: Kansas City Chiefs
Age: 27
2025 Stats: 128-204 62.7 CMP% 1,259 YDS 7 TD 1 INT 89.5 RTG
Fields flamed out as a franchise QB in Chicago and never earned a full-time starting role in Pittsburgh or New York. But as a backup, he’s easily one of the highest-upside QB2s in the league, when you consider his ceiling. Fields has all the raw physical tools to be an elite dual threat quarterback, and with a full offseason learning from Patrick Mahomes and Andy Reid, Fields is in the best team situation of his career. Reid will toss him the keys if Mahomes has any lingering issues working his way back from a torn ACL.
Tyrod Taylor
Team: Green Bay Packers
Age: 37
2025 Stats: 80-134 59.7 CMP% 779 YDS 5 TD 5 INT 72.9 RTG
Taylor won’t wow anyone with his physical traits at this late stage of his career, but he beat out the younger, cheaper Kyle McCord for Green Bay’s QB2 spot because of his experience and reliability. The 37-year-old has played in 100 NFL games, including 61 starts, during his time with the Ravens, Bills, Browns, Texans, Chargers, Jets and Giants. Tyrod is still spry enough to slip out of the pocket and take off for a first-down (5.3 yards per carry in four starts in ‘26), and unlike unseasoned backups around the league, Taylor is reportedly also already offering real mentorship value to Jordan Love in the Packers’ QB room.
Marcos Mariota
Team: Washington Commanders
Age: 32
2025 Stats: 139-227 61.2 CMP% 1,695 YDS 10 TD 7 INT 86.1 RTG
After fizzling out in Tennessee, Mariota bounced around as a part-time starter before landing in Washington, where he’s earned the respect of Commanders fans by filling in admirably for Jayden Daniels when called upon over the last two seasons. Like Daniels, Mariota’s mobility is an asset (297 rush yards in 2025), though it remains to be seen if the MCL sprain he suffered in the preseason will have him ready for Week 1. Mariota doesn’t offer the upside of Daniels, but when forced into action, he’s a dependable option who is comfortable in Washington’s offense.
Davis Mills
Team: Houston Texans
Age: 27
2025 Stats: 91-159 57.2 CMP% 915 YDS 5 TD 1 INT 81.6 RTG
Mills doesn’t have the flashiest name or blue-blood college program pedigree, but he has 29 career starts under his belt and performed admirably in CJ Stroud’s absence last season, going 3-0 as a starter in 2025. Sure, he led the league in interceptions in his lone season as a full-time starter, but that Texans team was a disaster, reeling from Deshaun Watson’s departure. He won’t ever be in rumors to land a starting gig elsewhere, but he’s a reliable game manager who has spent his entire five-year NFL career in Houston, where he knows the playbook like the back of his hand.
Jameis Winston
Team: New York Giants
Age: 32
2025 Stats: 46-76 60.5 CMP% 567 YDS 2 TD 2 INT 79.3 RTG
With how often starting QB Jaxson Dart seems to wind up in the blue medical tent, the Giants having a quality backup is essential. Winston doesn’t necessarily profile as the steady, game manager type, but having him second on the depth chart is reassuring in the sense that New York’s season won’t be dead in the water if Dart goes down. Winston was 0-2 as a starter last season after Dart suffered a concussion in Week 10, but the former No. 1 overall pick proved he can still sling it—he threw for 366 yards and 2 TDs against the Lions in Week 12.
Joe Flacco
Team: Cincinnati Bengals
Age: 41
2025 Stats: 251-416 60.3 CMP% 2,479 YDS 15 TD 10 INT 79.2 RTG
How do we know Flacco is one of the best backups in the league? The Bengals bailed on their own second-string quarterback in the middle of the 2025 season to trade for Flacco, and immediately inserted him into the starting lineup. If not for Aaron Rodgers, Flacco would be the oldest quarterback on an NFL roster this season. And yet, the Super Bowl XLVII MVP is still capable of putting up monster numbers: in Week 9 against Chicago, Flacco threw for 4 touchdowns and posted his first career 400-yard passing game.
Michael Penix
Team: Atlanta Falcons
Age: 26
2025 Stats: 166-276 60.1 CMP% 1,982 YDS 9 TD 3 INT 88.5 RTG
The Falcons were the last team in the NFL to name their Week 1 starter. Now that we know it’s Tua Tagovailoa, that means Atlanta will have one of the most intriguing backup QB situations in the NFL. Despite being benched for Kirk Cousins early in 2025, Penix Jr. is still considered a potential franchise quarterback. With only 12 career NFL starts under his belt, the big question for Penix isn’t his potential, it’s his health—he had two ACL surgeries on his right knee in college, and is now working his way back from ACL surgery to his other knee. But if he’s fully healthy, the upside for this Top-10 draft pick is undeniable.
Drew Lock
Team: Seattle Seahawks
Age: 29
2025 Stats: 2-3 66.7 CMP% 15 YDS 0 TD 0 INT 78.5 RTG
Lock might’ve washed out as a starter in Denver but he has a big arm and is capable of making any throw on the field. During his time in Denver and as a backup with the Giants, he developed a reputation for making bad decisions under pressure. None of that was on display against a top New England defense in the 2026 season opener. Lock stepped in for an injured Sam Darnold and led the Seahawks back from a 10-point deficit in their 13-10 win over the New England Patriots. It’s unclear how much time Darnold will miss but the Seahawks shouldn’t alter their playbook much with Lock under center.
Fernando Mendoza
Team: Las Vegas Raiders
Age: 22
2025 Stats: 273-379 72.0 CMP% 3,535 YDS 41 TD 6 INT 182.9 RTG (NCAA, Indiana)
Rookie quarterbacks are always a dice roll, and the Raiders are bringing along their No. 1 overall pick slowly by making him the backup to veteran Kirk Cousins. It seems like a matter of if not when Mendoza will see the field in 2026, so his time as a backup may be short-lived. But for now, he’s one of the most intriguing No. 2 options in the league, thanks to his arm strength, high IQ, running ability, toughness and prototypical size (6-foot-5). Most importantly, he’s a proven winner: he won the Heisman and led Indiana to the Natty last season.
Mac Jones
Team: San Francisco 49ers
Age: 28
2025 Stats: 201-289 69.6 CMP% 2,151 YDS 13 TD 6 INT 97.4 RTG
Jones went 5-3 in eight starts last season while starter Brock Purdy was sidelined. He finished top-10 in Total QBR in 2025, ahead of names like Baker Mayfield, Jalen Hurts, and Justin Herbert. Despite being 25-32 as a starter in his career, the former Patriots first-rounder has rehabilitated his value around the league to the point that it’s a lock San Francisco will be fielding calls about Jones at the trade deadline. The only question is what their asking price will be, since Jones gives the Niners one of the best insurance policies in the NFL.
