Thirty one of the 32 Week 1 starters are the ones their teams planned on. The exception is Atlanta, where Tua Tagovailoa was ruled out Friday with an oblique injury and Cooper Rush starts at Pittsburgh. Seattle already played its opener Wednesday and lost Sam Darnold to a hip injury on the first series, with Drew Lock finishing the 13-10 win over New England. Here is every team’s quarterback for the opening week.
AFC
| Team | Starting QB | Note |
|---|---|---|
| AFC East | ||
| Buffalo Bills | Josh Allen | 2024 MVP; at Houston, 1 p.m. |
| Miami Dolphins | Malik Willis | Signed a 3 year, $67.5M deal; at Las Vegas |
| New England Patriots | Drake Maye | Played Wednesday, 3 INTs in the loss at Seattle; next plays Sept. 20 |
| New York Jets | Geno Smith | Back with the team that drafted him; at Tennessee |
| AFC North | ||
| Baltimore Ravens | Lamar Jackson | New coordinator Declan Doyle; at Indianapolis |
| Cincinnati Bengals | Joe Burrow | Hosts Tampa Bay |
| Cleveland Browns | Deshaun Watson | Named starter over rookie Shedeur Sanders by Todd Monken; at Jacksonville |
| Pittsburgh Steelers | Aaron Rodgers | Hosts Atlanta |
| AFC South | ||
| Houston Texans | C.J. Stroud | Hosts Buffalo |
| Indianapolis Colts | Daniel Jones | Back from a torn Achilles; hosts Baltimore |
| Jacksonville Jaguars | Trevor Lawrence | Hosts Cleveland as an 8.5 point favorite |
| Tennessee Titans | Cam Ward | Second season; hosts the Jets |
| AFC West | ||
| Denver Broncos | Bo Nix | At Kansas City, Monday night |
| Kansas City Chiefs | Patrick Mahomes | Back from ACL surgery; hosts Denver Monday |
| Las Vegas Raiders | Kirk Cousins | Starts ahead of No. 1 overall pick Fernando Mendoza; hosts Miami |
| Los Angeles Chargers | Justin Herbert | Hosts Arizona as a 9.5 point favorite |
NFC
| Team | Starting QB | Note |
|---|---|---|
| NFC East | ||
| Dallas Cowboys | Dak Prescott | At the Giants, Sunday night |
| New York Giants | Jaxson Dart | Hosts Dallas, Sunday night |
| Philadelphia Eagles | Jalen Hurts | New OC Sean Mannion; hosts Washington |
| Washington Commanders | Jayden Daniels | Missed 10 games in 2025; at Philadelphia |
| NFC North | ||
| Chicago Bears | Caleb Williams | At Carolina |
| Detroit Lions | Jared Goff | Hosts New Orleans |
| Green Bay Packers | Jordan Love | At Minnesota |
| Minnesota Vikings | Kyler Murray | Won the job over J.J. McCarthy; hosts Green Bay |
| NFC South | ||
| Atlanta Falcons | Cooper Rush | Tua Tagovailoa (oblique) and Michael Penix Jr. both out; at Pittsburgh |
| Carolina Panthers | Bryce Young | Hosts Chicago |
| New Orleans Saints | Tyler Shough | At Detroit |
| Tampa Bay Buccaneers | Baker Mayfield | Final year of his contract; at Cincinnati |
| NFC West | ||
| Arizona Cardinals | Jacoby Brissett | Took over after Kyler Murray left for Minnesota; at the Chargers |
| Los Angeles Rams | Matthew Stafford | Reigning MVP; lost to the 49ers in Melbourne Thursday |
| San Francisco 49ers | Brock Purdy | Won in Melbourne Thursday |
| Seattle Seahawks | Sam Darnold (Drew Lock finished Wednesday) | Darnold left with a hip injury on the first series; Seattle is idle until Sept. 20 |
Starters per Sports Illustrated’s weekly list (updated September 11) and team announcements. This page updates when a starter changes.
The Situations to Watch
Atlanta: Rush takes every first team rep with Tagovailoa and Penix both out. Las Vegas: Cousins is the Week 1 starter, but Mendoza is the No. 1 pick and the leash is the shortest in the league. Cleveland: Watson over Sanders was the most criticized quarterback decision of the summer. Seattle: Darnold’s hip is the one that could change the Week 2 list.
Related: Week 1 injury report, Week 1 odds, Week 1 announcers, NFL MVP odds.
The Bottom Line
Every team has its planned starter for Week 1 except Atlanta, where Cooper Rush starts for Tua Tagovailoa. The new names in new places are Kyler Murray (Vikings), Kirk Cousins (Raiders), Geno Smith (Jets), Malik Willis (Dolphins) and Jacoby Brissett (Cardinals).