Who Should I Start? Gardner Minshew II or Tyler Shough

Thursday, March 13, 6:52 PM

Free agent quarterback Gardner Minshew reached a two-year agreement with the Kansas City Chiefs. ESPN's Adam Schefter reported the news. The amount of the deal has yet to be disclosed. Just one season after the Las Vegas Raiders inked Minshew to a two-year $25 million contract, he'll join his fifth squad after being selected by Jacksonville in the sixth round of the 2019 NFL Draft. With the release of former Chief Carson Wentz, the 28-year-old will slot in as the backup to new teammate Patrick Mahomes. The Washington State product never panned out consistently as a starter. Still, he's one of the better second-string options in the league and provides a skillset similar to Mahomes with his mobility. Kansas City has yet to make a groundbreaking acquisition in 2025, but they've picked up some essential depth pieces nonetheless.

Saturday, May 10, 1:01 PM

Now that quarterback Derek Carr (shoulder) has announced his retirement, NFL Network's Ian Rapoport writes that it sets the stage for rookie second-round quarterback Tyler Shough to be the team's eventual starter in 2025. Shough's stock for his rookie campaign was already rising with Carr's availability in question for 2025 due to a shoulder injury, but now Carr is out of the picture completely. The 25-year-old Shough will be competing primarily with Spencer Rattler, who completed just 57% of his passes while throwing four touchdowns and five interceptions in his rookie season in 2024. Even if the Saints give Shough a little more time to develop and name Rattler the starter for Week 1, it seems likely that Shough will be starting games in the Big Easy sooner than later in 2025. Shough is old for a rookie and has plenty of experience, making him the current favorite over Rattler for QB1 duties.