The roster cutdown deadline has come and gone, and the league is now down to 53-man rosters. From here, teams will sort through practice squads and make the occasional active-roster tweak if they change their minds.
Most clubs stick close to the usual shape at each position. You’ll often see teams carrying five or six wide receivers, or four inside linebackers. There isn’t a hard rule for every spot, but the general roster math usually tells a story.
Right now, four teams are telling a pretty clear one at quarterback: the Philadelphia Eagles, Atlanta Falcons, Minnesota Vikings, and Pittsburgh Steelers are each carrying four passers on their active rosters.
The four-team list looks like this:
- Eagles: Jalen Hurts, Tanner McKee, Andy Dalton, Cole Payton
- Falcons: Tua Tagovailoa, Michael Penix Jr., Cooper Rush, Jack Strand
- Steelers: Aaron Rodgers, Mason Rudolph, Will Howard, Drew Allar
- Vikings: Kyler…
And the common thread isn’t hard to spot. Each of those teams is dealing with a major long-term question under center.
For Philadelphia, Jalen Hurts is the headliner, but the source of concern is clear: he’s described here as a limited passer who has never reached 25 touchdown passes or 4,000 yards in a season. With AJ Brown gone, the concern is that his passing flaws could be on full display this year.
Atlanta’s situation looks even shakier. Tua Tagovailoa is coming off what’s described as a rough offseason, while Michael Penix Jr. is “barely healthy enough to play” and hasn’t stood out since entering the league in the 2024 NFL Draft.
Minnesota is being framed as a team that missed on JJ McCarthy and is now hoping Kyler Murray can steady things. The problem, according to the source, is that Murray was cut by the Arizona Cardinals this offseason for a reason.
Pittsburgh at least has a familiar veteran in Aaron Rodgers for one more year, but the rest of the room doesn’t exactly inspire confidence. Will Howard and Drew Allar are not viewed as sure long-term answers, and Mason Rudolph is labeled an average backup.
There is a little upside in the group if you want to squint at it. Murray, for example, does have a strong set of playmakers around him, maybe the best he’s had in his career.
But even that only pushes the uncertainty down the road. Beyond 2026, the future at quarterback is still wide open.
That’s the bigger lesson these four rosters are offering: having extra quarterbacks is not the same thing as having a solution. For these teams, the room is crowded, but the answer at the most important position in sports still isn’t clear.
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What comes next is the part worth watching, because the team has not yet announced the corresponding roster moves needed to make room on the 53-man roster. With two new linemen in the building and limited space to sort through, Minnesota has created a fresh numbers crunch, and the decisions it makes now will say plenty about how it wants to stabilize the offensive line heading into the season. [Read more 🡒]
Vikings Fans Already Have Plenty To Debate In Nolan Teasleys First Roster
The Vikings have their final 53-man roster for the 2026 season, and it gives fans an early look at how new general manager Nolan Teasley wants to shape the team after taking over in May. Cut day always brings its share of surprises, but this one carries extra weight because Teasley had the final say on every move, from the rookies who made it through to the players who landed on the reserve/injured list.
For Minnesota, the roster is more than a paperwork milestone. It is the first real glimpse of Teasleys priorities and the first chance for fans to argue over what he values most in building the team. Some of those choices will look sensible right away, others may take time to sort out, and a few will almost certainly fuel debate long after the roster was posted. [Read more 🡒]
Vikings 53-Man Roster Leaves One Immediate J.J. McCarthy Question
The Vikings trimmed down to their initial 53-man roster, and the quarterback room remains one of the most closely watched parts of the team heading into the regular season. Minnesota kept four passers on the roster mix, with Kyler Murray, J.J. McCarthy, Carson Wentz and Max Brosmer all still in the picture, while other moves around the roster included several cuts and a few players shifting to reserve lists.
For McCarthy, the immediate question is how the Vikings plan to sort out the quarterback situation from here, especially with so many bodies still attached to the position. Elsewhere, the roster math brought some tough decisions, including Tyler Batty landing on a season-ending injured designation and Jeshaun Jones unavailable for the first three games, all of which adds another layer to how Minnesota enters the season opener. [Read more 🡒]