The 2023 NFL season is over, and the offseason is here. A major part of the offseason is free agency, which starts March 13 at 4 p.m. ET when the new league year begins.
There will be a lot of talent potentially up for grabs, with top players available at every position. First, though, who are the top free agent quarterbacks?
2024 Top Free Agent Quarterbacks
The following ranking is from Pro Football Network’s NFL Analyst Dallas Robinson.
1) Kirk Cousins
2) Baker Mayfield
3) Gardner Minshew
4) Jacoby Brissett
5) Joe Flacco
6) Jameis Winston
7) Ryan Tannehill
8) Mason Rudolph
9) Sam Darnold
10) Joshua Dobbs
Kirk Cousins and Baker Mayfield Headline This Year’s Quarterback Class in Free Agency
At 35 years old, Cousins is set to be an unrestricted free agent after six seasons with the Minnesota Vikings and 12 seasons in the NFL. A former fourth-round pick, Cousins will enter his 13th NFL season coming off of a torn Achilles that ended his 2023 campaign.
He played just eight games before his injury, passing for 2,331 yards, 18 touchdowns, and five interceptions. If he played all 17 games, Cousins was on pace for roughly 4,953 yards, 38 touchdowns, and 11 interceptions.
The Vikings were also 4-4 with him as the starter. It isn’t out of the equation that he could just re-sign with Minnesota. However, if he doesn’t, Cousins could be a plug-and-play type player for a team in need of a quarterback.
If Cousins’ age and injury concern you, Mayfield is your guy. The former first-overall pick in 2018 had a major bounce-back season in his first year with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Playing in all 17 games, Mayfield passed for 4,044 yards, 28 TDs, and 10 INTs. In addition to his stats, he led the Buccaneers to a 9-8 record and an NFC South title, also winning a playoff game. Mayfield also ended up as a finalist for AP NFL Comeback Player of the Year, finishing third behind Flacco and Damar Hamlin.
Similar to Cousins, Mayfield may re-sign with the Buccaneers. He’ll likely look for a deal similar to, if not slightly better than, what Geno Smith got from the Seattle Seahawks a couple of years ago (three years, $75 million).
Mayfield is also a potential tag candidate if the Buccaneers can’t get a deal done in time.
After the top two, there’s a bit of a drop-off. Nevertheless, Minshew shouldn’t leave anyone disappointed. He spent two years in Jacksonville, where he got most of his starting experience, and has spent the last three years as mostly a backup.
However, following an injury to season-starter Anthony Richardson, Minshew was thrust into the starting spot for the Indianapolis Colts. He played in all 17 games, starting 13 of them.
MORE: PFN’s Top 100 Free Agents 2024
In those games, Minshew passed for 3,305 yards, 15 touchdowns, and nine interceptions. The Colts were 7-6 under his lead and fell one game short of making the postseason.
Minshew will likely sign somewhere as a backup once again, but there’s a chance he could go somewhere to compete for a starting spot. According to Spotrac, Minshew’s market value is roughly two years for $10.7 million.
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