The Jets head into the final five weeks of this season with only one thing for certain: the consequences for the epic failure of the 2024 season are only beginning to unfold. We already know the Jets will have a new coach and a new general manager. And with starting quarterback Aaron Rodgers, who turned 41 on Tuesday, hedging more and more about his future it’s clear that even he thinks the Jets are likely to have a new starter in 2025.
So who could it be? Obviously, it’s way too early to know for sure, considering we don’t’ even know who would be signing or picking a new quarterback.
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But with free agency, the draft, and the current state of the Jets roster, there’s enough information out there to make an educated, but way-too-early, guess.
So here’s our list of Jets potential quarterbacks for 2025, from least likely to more likely.
8. Sam Darnold, Vikings
He’d be the best option for the Jets had he not started his career by failing as the Jets’ No. 3 overall pick in 2018. He’s far from perfect and still has a penchant for throwing bad interceptions. Still, he’s capable of getting the ball to his best players and would have the playmakers in Garrett Wilson and Breece Hall he never had in his first stint with the Jets. But that baggage – despite Darnold’s insistence that he never wanted to leave the Jets even after they traded him – is likely too much to overcome to see Darnold picking the Jets in free agency or the Jets going after him. Even at 10-2 with the Vikings, Darnold faces the stigma from his Jets time with some fans and pundits calling for his job after a bad interception (even with a career-high 23 touchdowns vs. 10 interceptions through 12 games.
7. Jordan Travis, Jets
This is obviously a long shot considering we don’t know anything more about Travis than we did in April, when the Jets drafted him in the fifth round – other than Travis has suffered some setbacks in his recovery from last year’s ugly broken ankle that ended his career at FSU. But we know Travis is likely to be on the roster at the start of training camp, which means he should get a chance to compete for the job, giving him the best opportunity of almost anyone on this list to win the job.
6. Aaron Rodgers, Jets
It seems like everyone, including Rodgers, knows that he won’t get a shot to run it back with this team in 2025. The 41-year-old simply carries too much baggage given his history and his heavy influence on how this failed roster was built, to see a new regime wanting to keep him around as they try to build this franchise into a winner. But Rodgers carries a relatively modest $23.5 million cap hit if the Jets do keep him in 2025 and is almost certainly the best option at quarterback – despite his diminished skills – if they Jets try to reload rather than rebuild in 2025, so it can’t be ruled out.
5. Cam Ward, Miami
He’s the consensus top quarterback in the 2025 NFL Draft, which could change between now and April. But it still seems unlikely that the Jets will be picking high enough to get him – it’s hard to imagine Ward staying on the board past No. 3 – or that a new regime will be willing to expend whatever honeymoon it has on the best prospect in what is viewed as a weak quarterback class. But if the Jets finish the season 2-15 (which isn’t out of the possibility) picking Ward could be a viable option.
4. Jameis Winston, Browns
Winston will be one of the best quarterbacks available in free agency this season, which is why he has to be on this list. If the Jets bring him in to compete for the starting job, there’s a good chance he’ll win it. He obviously has the personality to be a fan favorite, but he also has a penchant for throwing bad interceptions as we saw on Monday night. But given the limited realistic options in free agency, Winston as Jets quarterback can’t be ruled out.
3. Shedeur Sanders, Colorado
With the Jets likely to pick somewhere around No. 5, and Ward sitting as the consensus top available quarterback in the 2025 NFL Draft, that makes Sanders the most likely rookie to be the Jets’ starting quarterback next year. Still a lot of things would have to fall into place to make this happen, with so few quality quarterback options available in this draft there’s a very good chance that Sanders climbs the draft board in March and April into the top few picks. We’re not saying it’s a good idea: there’s a lot of question marks about how his skill translates to the next level and his father could add an unpredictable element to everything, but he’s the most likely draft pick to end up as the Jets’ starting quarterback in 2025.
2. Justin Fields, Steelers
Of all the free agents available, Fields could make a lot of sense for the Jets if they decide to remain competitive while picking a quarterback in the 2025 NFL Draft. The Jets could bring in Fields to compete for the starting quarterback job in training camp with Taylor and whoever they draft, and then trade away the guy who doesn’t win the job. Fields obviously has his drawbacks but he’s also an explosive playmaker who proved with Pittsburgh he’s capable of taking care of the ball and winning. It’s feasible that he wins the competition and is the Jets’ bridge quarterback.
1. Tyrod Taylor, Jets
Again, the list isn’t the most appealing but Taylor is under contract for 2025 and a proven quantity. That makes him, given everything we know, the most likely starting quarterback for the Jets in 2025. We don’t know what the new regime is thinking, because we don’t know who they are. But we do know that Taylor is likely to be on the roster if the Jets decide to blow things up completely in 2025, or if they try to reload with the talent they have and make another run at the playoffs, or anything in between. In any case, he’ll almost certainly get a chance to compete for the job and will have a good chance of winning it.
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Andy Vasquez may be reached at [email protected].
