Key Points
Bullet point summary by AI
- Five NFL quarterbacks will try to turn around negative perceptions in the 2026 season, mirroring Sam Darnold's Super Bowl turnaround.
- Each faces unique challenges from past failures to new team dynamics, with some playing for their future contracts.
- The outcomes this season could redefine careers and reshape franchise directions for multiple teams.
There was a time when the football world collectively viewed Sam Darnold as a bust. In fact, there were multiple times: The end of his Jets tenure was the obvious one, but even after he went to Carolina, he played well for a few weeks only to crashed again. Now, fast forward a few years, and that same bust is a Super Bowl champion.
I'm not saying the five quarterbacks below are going to be battling for a title this year, but like Darnold, they all have been viewed as disappointments at some point in their NFL careers. And, also like Darnold, the 2026 season will offer them a real chance to turn their careers around and prove the haters wrong.
Malik Willis, Miami Dolphins
Malik Willis feels the most analogous to Sam Darnold out of any quarterback on this list. Sure, he wasn't an early draft pick like Darnold was, but there was a point where he was viewed as a potential first-rounder before his stock fell. And like Darnold, Willis washed out with the team that drafted him. His time in Green Bay, where he had a chance to work as a backup under an offensive guru and fix some of his mistakes, even feels similar to Darnold's time in San Francisco. Now he's getting a chance to start with the Miami Dolphins, much like Darnold did with the Vikings in 2024, a stint that saved Darnold's career.
Willis looked significantly improved with the Packers over the last two seasons, and now gets a shot to show he can be a full-time starter with the Dolphins. He suffers from one big issue — Miami has the league's worst collection of pass-catchers after trading Jaylen Waddle — but if he can drag a roster that's built to win zero-ish games to something like six wins, I think that's a victory, one that might also put Willis in line to do exactly what Darnold did after his lone season in Minnesota: go somewhere else.
Think about it: We have a strong quarterback draft coming up, and Willis is entering his fifth NFL season. If he plays well but the Dolphins still struggle to win games, Miami could look at the deep 2027 quarterback class and opt to reset their clock. At that point, Willis could become a trade candidate next offseason, and a team in a better position to actually win football games could go after him. Pittsburgh, maybe?
Kyler Murray, Minnesota Vikings
We know the knocks on Kyler Murray. He's too small. He's too injury-prone. He plays Call of Duty too much. But despite all that, he has a real chance to be successful in 2026 with the Minnesota Vikings.
That's because Murray is about to play with his best collection of weapons ever. He doesn't have to overextend himself to win football games in Minnesota; he just has to show he's a step above J.J. McCarthy. That shouldn't be too hard. Murray played just five games last season, but they weren't a bad five games.
2025 Stats | Completion Percentage | Touchdown Rate | Interception Rate | Record |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Kyler Murray | 68.3 | 3.7 | 1.9 | 2-3 |
J.J. McCarthy | 57.6 | 4.5 | 4.9 | 6-4 |
The things McCarthy did better last year? Touchdowns and wins, two things that the talent around him deserves credit for. Murray was more accurate and turned the ball over less. He also won two games for a Cardinals team that went 1-11 when he didn't play. He's an upgrade in Minnesota, and the Vikings should be viewed as dark-horse Super Bowl contenders if he stays healthy all season.
Tua Tagovailoa, Atlanta Falcons
Tua Tagovailoa's career hangs in the balance this season. While it feels like a near certainty that Murray beats out McCarthy in Minnesota, there's still a chance Tagovailoa loses the Atlanta Falcons' starting job to Michael Penix Jr.
The left-handed quarterback led the NFL in completion percentage in 2024 and passing yards in 2023, but a lot of people credit that to playing with Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle more than they credit Tagovailoa's skill. Which, hey ... fair point! Another fair point is that Tagovailoa's completion percentage dropped sharply last season and his interception rate was a career-worst 3.9 percent.
But this is still a guy with some really good seasons under his belt, even if the general consensus on him from fans is negative. Tagovailoa has shown he can be a high-upside NFL quarterback, and he has a chance to show that again in 2026.
Daniel Jones, Indianapolis Colts
So, Daniel Jones has already begun to show he can turn his career around. If 2025 was the "Darnold in Minnesota" year, the Indianapolis Colts are hoping he returns healthy enough from his Achilles tear that 2026 is the "Darnold in Seattle" year.
Jones looked to be on his way to a playoff berth and a big-money extension before the injury. After it, he signed a deal with a lot of money on it, but only for two seasons. Jones is playing for his future.
But he's also playing for the present. The player we saw last year looked significantly better than Jones had ever looked, and while he wasn't an "elite" quarterback, he looked like someone capable of managing his way to a Super Bowl berth in an AFC that lacked clear favorites. He has to come back healthy in 2026 to do that again, but it's certainly in the range of outcomes for the Colts.
C.J. Stroud, Houston Texans
C.J. Stroud feels like he's in a different category than the rest of these guys, mainly because he's the only one still on his original team. But his reputation took a massive hit in this past postseason, making 2026 essentially a make-or-break year for the former Ohio State quarterback.
Stroud burst on to the scene as a rookie. He was the rare player who could take shots down the field whenever he wanted while also protecting the football. In that first season, he had the lowest interception rate in the NFL.
Since then, though, his numbers have dropped, and in the postseason last year he had five interceptions and five fumbles in only two games. Houston's generational defense was wasted because Stroud spent the game against New England throwing the football like he'd never actually thrown a football before.
In 2026, Stroud has to look closer to his rookie self than his current self if he wants the Texans to give him a massive extension and commit to him as their future. It's crazy to be saying that — a year ago, no one really questioned if Stroud was Houston's long-term answer at the position, and it still seems weird considering he has three playoff wins in three seasons. But it is what it is, and with Houston spending big money already to extend Will Anderson Jr., the team will need to think long and hard about the cost of extending Stroud. He has a chance, though, to prove he deserves it in 2026.
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