The first major quarterback battle of NFL training camp season has reportedly been decided with the Minnesota Vikings naming Kyler Murray the starter ahead of J.J. McCarthy, but more competitions are unfolding across the league.
The Cleveland Browns, Atlanta Falcons and Las Vegas Raiders have yet to announce a Week 1 starter – though markets have crowned clear favorites in each race. Let’s start with the tightest of the three.
Watson is favored vs. Sanders in Cleveland
Could the starting position in Cleveland be destined for another revolving door? Traders on Kalshi have their money on Deshaun Watson edging Shedeur Sanders out for those rights come Week 1, at least.
Coach Todd Monken muddied the waters when he handed Watson the keys to the No. 1 offense on Saturday before returning them to Sanders on Monday, and as The Athletic’s Zac Jackson wrote in a detailed account of the battle earlier this week, it’s not yet clear which (if either) quarterback is pulling away. The first-year head coach maintains he envisions that each will start one of the team’s first two preseason games: at the Chicago Bears this Saturday, then vs. the Buffalo Bills on Aug. 22.
Sanders started the final seven games of last season after taking over for Dillon Gabriel, who had been promoted over Joe Flacco before that. Gabriel went 1-5 in his six starts; Sanders went 3-4 in his seven.
More than $200,000 has been exchanged to make it the most popular of the QB battle markets. Who would start for the Minnesota Vikings was the second-most popular with just shy of $140,000 traded on a market that positioned Kyler Murray as an 81 percent favorite before The Athletic reported the team was moving forward with Murray over J.J. McCarthy.
Falcons expected to start Tagovailoa ahead of Penix
The Athletic’s Josh Kendall described the Falcons’ quarterback situation as “a mess” earlier this week, but that hasn’t stopped traders from buying Tua Tagovailoa as the lead man in Atlanta.
The Miami Dolphins benched Tagovailoa in the final three weeks of last season after he threw a career-high 15 interceptions in 14 starts. He has also been dealing with back tightness during camp. Still, with Michael Penix Jr. (left ACL) yet to be cleared for 11-on-11 work, the market believes this is Tagovailoa’s job to lose, at least to start the season.
A little more than $20,000 has been traded on this outcome so far.
When will Mendoza first start for Raiders?
Fernando Mendoza took the reigns of the No. 1 offense for the first time on Saturday when Kirk Cousins was held out of practice after getting in a scuffle with teammate Maxx Crosby on Friday, but those reps have otherwise belonged to the veteran Cousins.
The Raiders’ unofficial depth chart for Thursday’s preseason opener against the Arizona Cardinals lists Cousins as the QB1 and Mendoza as the QB2. Traders on Kalshi are banking on that holding, with Cousins holding a clear edge over the No. 1 draft pick in a market that has taken more than $25,000 in positions.