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Next NFL QB Benched Odds: Jameis Winston Still Saints Starter?
Adam Thompson | 5 mins
We're nearly to the midway point of the 2022 NFL season, and just one QB so far has been sent to the pine. Well, maybe two.
Mitchell Trubisky got four starts for the Pittsburgh Steelers but never got that fifth. He was benched midway through Week 4's loss to the Jets and rookie Kenny Pickett took over.
On Monday, Colts coach Frank Reich dropped a mini-bombshell by stating Matt Ryan will miss Week 8 vs. the Commanders (sprainted shoulder), and second-year pro Sam Ehlinger, who has never thrown a pass in the NFL, will be Indy's starter for the rest of the season.
Every other starter has kept their job, though some of the favorites to be the next QB2 have done so in part due to injury.
Fairly or unfairly, quarterbacks get a lot of the praise in wins. They also take a bulk of the jeers in defeat. Inevitably, teams often make moves at QB faster than other positions, in part because of that perception.
Bookies.com oddsmaker Adam Thompson has created an NFL betting market that looks at which QB is most likely to next get benched in 2022.
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Next QB Benched In 2022 Odds
These NFL futures odds are for entertainment purposes only and have been created by our Bookies.com handicapper. They do not reflect actual odds that may be available on betting apps.
Baker Mayfield hasn’t played himself into any role for the Panthers. His 15.3 QBR is not only worst in the NFL, it’s worst by a wide, wide margin. Mayfield has missed the last two weeks (ankle); it likely didn't help his cause that third-stringer P.J. Walker guided Carolina to a shocking upset of Tom Brady's Buccaneers in Week 7, the team's first action without now-traded star RB Christian McCaffrey.
Sam Darnold is also off IR and available to play if needed, creating a logjam of mediocrity in Carolina. The Panthers have seen what Mayfield's got, however, and it was rarely great.
Everyone knows Jacoby Brissett was a filler for the Browns until Deshaun Watson’s 11-game suspension concludes. But the season is going quickly in the wrong direction for Cleveland, which has lost four straight.
The question is whether head coach Kevin Stefanski has faith in backup Joshua Dobbs to do better. Stefanski said prior to Week 7 that there would be no QB change, but if Stefanski's future in Cleveland is in the balance, perhaps that is enough for the coach to try something else for a few weeks.
Other Potential QBs On The Hot Seat
Saints starter Jameis Winston (back, ankle) hasn't played since Week 3 and ranked only ahead of Mayfield, Joe Flacco and Davis Mills on the QBR chart. Veteran Andy Dalton, however, is now 1-3 as a starter following last week's 42-34 loss to the Cardinals in which he tossed two pick-6 INTs. Winston may get his job back by default.
Davis Mills tossed for 302 yards, two TDs and one INT in Week 7, but the Texans still lost 37-20 to the Raiders. It was his best game since Week 1 and could keep the second-year pro in the lineup and ahead of Kyle Allen, who was solid for two seasons in Washington and could be itching for an opportunity.
Mac Jones (ankle) has missed the last three games. His two TDs and five INTs in the first three were disheartening for the second-year pro. But rookie Bailey Zappe has been fantastic in three games, leading the Patriots to 29 and 38 points in wins over the Lions and Browns, and he nearly pulled off an OT win at Green Bay the week prior.
Zappe’s QB rating of 111.4 is far better than the 76.2 of Jones, yet a healthy Mac will return to start Monday night against the Bears.
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Justin Fields is still considered the future in Chicago. Not much more can be said about how poorly it’s gone so far. He has two TDs over the last five games and is averaging just under 145 pass yards per game. Trevor Siemian, who went 0-4 for the Saints last year but had 11 TDs (and three INTs), is the other option if the Bears decide QB play is holding them back from a playoff push.
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