NFL backup QBs will be everywhere in Week 3. How will their teams respond?

By Jayna Bardahl, Paul Dehner Jr., Alec Lewis, Zack Rosenblatt, Vic Tafur and Nicki Jhabvala

At least five backup quarterbacks could be forced into action this weekend as injuries have hampered starters across the NFL.

One certain battle of the backups will come in Minnesota, where the Cincinnati Bengals visit the Vikings on Sunday afternoon. In his first year as a starter, the Vikings’ J.J. McCarthy has already had a roller coaster of a season: winning NFC Offensive Player of the Week honors in Week 1, failing to reach the end zone in a 22-6 beatdown against Atlanta in Week 2 and now being sidelined by an ankle injury in Week 3. Oh, and he and his fiancée welcomed a baby boy, Rome Micah McCarthy, in that time frame, too.

McCarthy isn’t expected to be placed on injured reserve, meaning his injury is likely short term. Veteran Carson Wentz will step in for the Vikings this week — and face fellow backup Jake Browning. The Bengals’ Joe Burrow appears to have the longest recovery timeline among the injured starters. He needs surgery for a turf toe injury that he suffered during last week’s game against the Jacksonville Jaguars and is expected to miss three months.

If you weren’t familiar with turf toe —which involves the hyperextension of the big toe, an injury that can vary in severity —you should be by now. San Francisco 49ers’ starter Brock Purdy has been out with the same issue since the team’s season-opening win in Seattle. He sat out Week 2 and could be sidelined again against the Arizona Cardinals in Week 3. Backup Mac Jones was the next man up for San Francisco, and he bounced back from a slow start to toss three touchdowns in a 26-21 victory over the New Orleans Saints.

In New York, Jets quarterback Justin Fields exited his team’s Week 2 loss against the Buffalo Bills in the fourth quarter after taking a hard hit from defensive end Joey Bosa. Jets coach Aaron Glenn on Wednesday ruled Fields out for the team’s Week 3 game against the Buccaneers. Backup Tyrod Taylor, in his 15th NFL season, will play in Fields’ absence.

And finally, Washington Commanders starter and reigning Offensive Rookie of the Year Jayden Daniels is day to day with a knee injury he suffered in the team’s 27-18 loss to the Green Bay Packers on Thursday night. Coach Dan Quinn said Daniels had an MRI the day after the game, and his status for this weekend is also unclear, although he did not practice on Wednesday. Veteran backup Marcus Mariota would go for Washington if Daniels is unable to play.

All of the backup quarterbacks who could start this week are veterans in the league and familiar with the emotional whirlwind that comes with being second on the depth chart. Here is a look at how well-equipped each team with an injured starter is to handle the potential absence, and how the five backups might be expected to fare.

Cincinnati Bengals

Timeline: Burrow is expected to miss three months; he was placed on injured reserve Monday.

Upcoming schedule: at Vikings (Sept. 21), at Broncos (Sept. 29), vs. Lions (Oct. 5).

No team is well-equipped to handle the loss of Joe Burrow. His toe injury was catastrophic to the Bengals’ championship aspirations. While this might have ended any realistic title hopes, Jake Browning can still win games. He’s done so before. Back in 2023, he went 4-3 as a starter and completed 70 percent of his passes for Cincinnati. He’s one of the better backup quarterbacks in football and is surrounded by one of the league’s most dynamic supporting casts.

Look for a stronger lean into under-center and play-action integration to juice up a run game that’s struggled through two weeks. Make no mistake, this will still be about getting the ball to playmakers Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins. Browning needs to cut down on his interceptions, but the Bengals’ offense should still be one of the better units in the league as long as the pieces around Browning stay intact. Unlike Burrow, Browning isn’t good enough to make up for much more offensive attrition, but he can manage alongside the star skill players. — Paul Dehner Jr., Bengals beat writer

Minnesota Vikings

Timeline: McCarthy’s return date is unknown, but he is not expected to be out long term.

Upcoming schedule: vs. Bengals (Sept. 21), vs. Steelers in Dublin (Sept. 28), vs. Browns in London (Oct. 5).

The Vikings will start Carson Wentz this weekend in the aftermath of J.J. McCarthy’s high ankle sprain. Wentz is a journeyman. Since 2020, he’s played in Philadelphia, Indianapolis, Washington, Los Angeles (with the Rams) and Kansas City. The Vikings signed him in late August after parting with Sam Howell, and they had faith in Wentz because of his familiarity with the system from his time with the Rams and Sean McVay.

Wentz took the first-team reps last Thursday when McCarthy missed practice due to the birth of his child. Vikings coach Kevin O’Connell raved about the way Wentz performed. The Vikings are likely to lean into his arm strength and athleticism.

The most interesting question might be whether the Vikings implement some of the run-pass option concepts that Wentz utilized in the early parts of his career. He is long removed from his No. 2 pick status. However, in 2021, he did throw for 3,563 yards and 27 touchdowns with only seven interceptions for the Colts. If he’s going to have any semblance of success in the short term, the Vikings have to protect him better than they protected McCarthy through two weeks. — Alec Lewis, Vikings beat writer

New York Jets

Timeline: Fields’ timeline to return is unclear, although Glenn said, “It’s hard for me as the coach if we get to Friday and you haven’t had any reps.” He will miss at least one game.

Upcoming schedule: at Buccaneers (Sept. 21), at Dolphins (Sept. 29), vs. Cowboys (Oct. 5).

The offense at its core shouldn’t change much with Tyrod Taylor stepping in for Justin Fields — this is a running offense built around having a mobile quarterback. Taylor isn’t quite the same level of athlete as Fields, especially not at this stage of his career, but he can certainly still move around the pocket and scramble when needed.

The biggest difference is what the two quarterbacks are willing to do as passers. The coaching staff tried its best to limit the mistakes Fields could make through the air by having him focus on going through his progressions and taking what the defense was giving him. That is not Taylor’s style — he’s a gunslinger who will throw the ball downfield even if his receivers aren’t completely open. He does tend to hold onto the ball too long, and also has a history of getting hurt, but it will be interesting to see if the offense looks any different with a quarterback more willing to take shots down the field. — Zack Rosenblatt, Jets beat writer

San Francisco 49ers

Timeline: Purdy has already missed one game and could miss more; he practiced in a limited fashion on Wednesday.

Upcoming schedule: vs. Cardinals (Sept. 21), vs. Jaguars (Sept. 28), at Rams (Oct. 2).

We will see if Brock Purdy’s turf toe causes him to miss another game Sunday — Kyle Shanahan said on Wednesday that Purdy “has a chance” to play — but the 2-0 49ers are breathing a lot easier after seeing how well backup Mac Jones did in the win over the New Orleans Saints. Jones admittedly held the ball too long at times, but he was money on third downs (7 of 12 for 121 yards and three touchdowns) as the offense remained efficient even without Purdy, tight end George Kittle, receiver Brandon Aiyuk and fullback Kyle Juszczyk.

Jones completed three or more passes to five receivers, including former New England Patriots teammate Kendrick Bourne, whom the team signed last week, and Jones helped to learn the playbook after hours at the facility. “That connection is there, the trust, the understanding,” Bourne said. And other teammates surely agree, as both Christian McCaffrey and Nick Bosa praised Jones’ “swagger.” — Vic Tafur, 49ers beat writer

Washington Commanders

Timeline: Daniels’ return timeline is unknown; on Monday, Quinn called him “truly day to day.”

Upcoming schedule: vs. Raiders (Sept. 21), at Falcons (Sept. 28), at Chargers (Oct. 5).

The Commanders re-signed Marcus Mariota in the offseason primarily for these moments. They know he can be relied upon to step in and close out games after he did so twice last season. The first was in Week 7, when Daniels suffered a rib injury during the opening drive against the Carolina Panthers. Mariota led Washington on six scoring drives in a 40-7 win. Then, in the season finale, when Washington pulled Daniels because of “mild leg soreness,” Mariota threw the game-winning touchdown to Terry McLaurin to clinch the No. 6 playoff seed.

The transition to Mariota was fairly seamless in both games; he knows Kliff Kingsbury’s system well, and Kingsbury has shown he can adapt to his quarterback. But few quarterbacks can do what Daniels can when healthy, so turning to Mariota for an extended period would inherently bring changes in Washington.

Still, Mariota is possibly the best option in these situations. He’s more than just an insurance policy. Like Daniels, he was the second pick (2015) and a Heisman Trophy winner. He’s also played in multiple systems, and has the right temperament to be the No. 2 — largely because of his perspective. He’s been a starter, he’s been benched, he’s been a gadget QB, he’s been the backup and he’s dealt with many injuries in between. — Nicki Jhabvala, Commanders beat writer

(Photos of Carson Wentz and Jake Browning: Michael Reaves and Andy Lyons / Getty Images)

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