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Of the 32 NFL franchises, 15 of them will start a different quarterback in Week 1 in comparison to last year's starters.
The league has seen a huge number of changes in the quarterback market, and more will follow if you consider the fact that some rookies will not start on September 12 but will probably take over at some point during the season. It's a natural thing, as this is a passing league and everybody is scrambling to find the next best thing.
But not every team has the patience to develop a quarterback or even give him a chance to shine as a bridge. The demand for franchise quarterbacks has grown extensively in recent years as the spread offense has become the norm in the NFL over the last decade. A single bad year can make a player lose his job, whatever his status within a franchise - Carson Wentz's 2020 nightmare season with the Philadelphia Eagles is a great example.
With that in mind, here are five quarterbacks who are playing for their NFL futures in 2021.
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5 NFL QBs under pressure to perform in 2021
#1 - Jalen Hurts, Philadelphia Eagles
Hurts kind of won the starting job in training camp by default as Joe Flacco and Nick Mullens don't have nearly enough quality to be NFL starters in 2021.
While Hurts has some intriguing qualities, in addition to the fact he'll have a full year to show what he's capable of with a new offense, the Eagles have two first-round picks next year and may get a third depending on how Carson Wentz's season plays out.
Philadelphia has enough ammunition to trade up to draft whoever is the top quarterback in the 2022 NFL Draft in case Hurts doesn't pan out. There's a lot of pressure on the second-year player, but he probably wasn't expecting to be the team's starter so soon either.
#2 - Sam Darnold, Carolina Panthers
Darnold's tenure with the New York Jets was uninspiring. Darnold was quite a talent coming out of college, but looked lost at times in the NFL.
However, the Panthers took a flier at him and his upside, and Joe Brady is the perfect offensive coordinator to maximize Darnold's athleticism and arm talent. The quarterback would be better off without Adam Gase anyway, but joining forces with Brady makes it even more interesting.
Simply put, Darnold has been a bad quarterback over the last two years. He's got a great chance to revive his NFL career in Carolina, but time is in short supply in Carolina.
#3 - Carson Wentz, Indianapolis Colts
In a similar situation to Darnold, Wentz is teaming up with his former offensive coordinator Frank Reich in hopes of reviving his NFL career following a dysmal 2020 season that saw him traded away from the Philadelphia Eagles.
While the Eagles' injuries played a part, most of the blame for an awful offense in 2020 was on Wentz's plate. He missed a lot of easy throws, couldn't make the right reads and his accuracy and mechanics were all over the place. With Reich, he's back with one of the masterminds of his early NFL career, but he needs to show the Colts that they were right to trade two high picks for him following such a disappointing season.
#4 - Teddy Bridgewater, Denver Broncos
Bridgewater gets one more chance to shine and prove he's starting quarterback material in the NFL. He beat Drew Lock for the Broncos' job and has a great supporting cast to lead Denver to the playoffs for the first time since their Super Bowl victory in 2015.
Bridgewater is not known for having huge upside, but he's proved a reliable option for a lot of NFL teams that need a quarterback who's not going to turn the ball over repeatedly. That's exactly what he needs to do in Denver, as Vic Fangio's defense will take care of most of the job.
#5 - Jimmy Garoppolo, San Francisco 49ers
Garoppolo is perhaps the one playing for his future more than any other quarterback on this list, but he's not at the top because it doesn't matter what he does in 2021, his future is far from his current team.
Trey Lance taking over is a question of 'when', not 'if'. Garoppolo is essentially going to have to demonstrate his quality for the rest of the league this year. He's a reliable option as a starter, but his health is a major concern.
