NFL QB questions: What's wrong with Mahomes, key contracts - ESPN

It has been an action-packed month since we last checked in on the NFL's top quarterbacks.

Since Week 8, Kyler Murray (77.3) and Josh Allen (75.4) lead the league in QBR and Tua Tagovailoa and Joe Burrow have a league-high 10 touchdown passes. Second-year signal-callers Anthony Richardson and Bryce Young won back the starting jobs. And four rookie first-round picks have made major strides.

Before the regular season comes to a close, our NFL Nation reporters answered another round of questions about 10 quarterbacks across the league. Has Young done enough to be Carolina's starter in 2025? How have the Chargers opened up the offense for Justin Herbert? Let's start with Kirk Cousins' recent disappointing stretch in Atlanta, which is battling Tampa Bay for the NFC South title. (Questions are listed alphabetically by team.)

Jump to a team:
ATL | CAR | CHI | CLE | IND
KC | LAC | NE | PIT | SEA

Cousins was spoiled earlier this season by matchups against NFC South rivals such as the Buccaneers and Panthers. In three games against those teams, he had nine touchdown passes and one interception. Against every other team? He has thrown eight touchdown passes and 12 picks.

The Falcons have played two good defenses in a row — the Broncos and Chargers — and an inspired one before that in the Saints, who got the new-coach bump with Darren Rizzi. The results were ghastly: six interceptions and no touchdown passes.

Before this recent stretch, Cousins had never gone back-to-back games without a touchdown pass in more than a decade as a starting quarterback. The Falcons have no intention of benching him for rookie Michael Penix Jr., as coach Raheem Morris said Cousins has carried the team to first place in their division. — Marc Raimondi,