The Kansas City Chiefs have one of the best starting quarterbacks in the league in Patrick Mahomes. That's the good news here. The bad news is that their backup quarterback situation is likely going to be an underwhelming one in 2026.
With Gardner Minshew officially off the board after signing a deal with the Cardinals, the Chiefs will be in the market for a new backup quarterback for the fifth straight year. Ever since Chad Henne retired following the Super Bowl win over Philly in 2023, the Chiefs have had Blaine Gabbert, Carson Wentz, and Minshew sitting behind Mahomes.
Unfortunately for the Chiefs, their options to replace Minshew aren't great at all. The biggest names available on the backup free-agent quarterback market as of this writing are Joe Flacco, Jimmy Garoppolo, Trey Lance, Kenny Pickett, Geno Smith, Tyrod Taylor, Carson Wentz, and Zach Wilson and none of them would probably excite anyone at all.
Chiefs don't have solid backup QB options for 2026
The best out of that sad group of names would likely be Garoppolo and Smith, both former Raiders starters who flamed out and didn't make it past Year 1 in Vegas. Garoppolo has spent the past two years with the Rams backing up Matthew Stafford while Smith was traded to Las Vegas last offseason and struggled behind a bad Raiders o-line.
Flacco would also be a decent option but he's wanting to compete for a starting job wherever he goes. Reportedly, if he does accept a job as a backup, it'd likely be with the Bengals, as that's where he spent the back half of the 2025 season. Kirk Cousins is another big name but he's also in the 'unlikely to be a backup' category.
So, where do the Chiefs go from here? They can't re-sign Minshew or bring in a high-profile backup like Marcus Mariota, so what should they do? They could reunite with Wentz, who played for the Vikings last year but missed a chunk of the season due to injury but that right there is a reason to avoid him. An injury-prone backup isn't the smartest investment.
If the Chiefs have to pick someone from this bunch, Garoppolo or Smith are probably the best options. Garoppolo once helped the 49ers reach a Super Bowl (against the Chiefs, funny enough) and he's shown he's capable of filling in for a few games when called upon. Smith also was dealt a bad hand in Vegas last year, as the Raiders had an atrocious offensive line. It would've been hard for anyone to succeed in that situation.
Brett Veach will have his work cut out for him in finding Mahomes' backup this year and it's as important as ever given Mahomes is coming off an ACL injury. Here's to hoping it works out the best way possible.