Every great team needs a great quarterback. The man throwing the ball between 30 and 40 times a game is responsible for the offense of his team on the field, and he is also responsible for his teammates behind the scenes as the ideal QB is also the ideal locker room leader. Every franchise is in the search for the quarterback who will be a transcendent player on the team for the next decade.
These Need To Win Now franchises currently have a high-caliber quarterback who is capable of winning a championship, but for whatever reason, have been unable to seal the deal or those championships have come few and far between. Combined with their ages, disappointment in their teams (or front office's disappointment in them) makes it imperative that they win big now before the team is without their services in the near future.
Be sure to check out this week's other "Franchise Quarterback" articles for in-depth analysis of additional QB categories.
Arizona Cardinals
The current starter at QB: Carson Palmer
In his first season in Arizona in 2013, Palmer threw for 4,274 yards, 24 touchdowns and 22 interceptions. That was also the only season when Palmer played the entire season. Palmer struggled with injuries throughout 2014, which limited him to six games. In his six starts, Palmer did throw for 1,626 yards with 11 touchdowns and three interceptions, for a 95.6 passer rating — the second best of his career. While it may only be six games worth of statistics, it is a sign that Palmer is still an above-average quarterback when healthy.
In his 10-year career, Palmer has only failed to reach the 3,000 yard mark four times: in his rookie season, twice because of a season cut short by injury and in a season where he was traded from the Bengals to the Raiders midseason.
Palmer's recent injury history is a concern for the Cardinals, as he tore his ACL in the middle of last season, after missing a stretch of games earlier on last year. Add that to the way backup Drew Stanton played last year, and the Cardinals may not need Palmer much longer. If Stanton plays like he did last year in training camp, Palmer may become expendable in the Cardinals hunt to remain relevant in the NFC West.
Dallas Cowboys
The current starter at QB: Tony Romo
Tony Romo is always mocked for his inability to win championships, yet he consistently performs at the level of the other elite quarterbacks in the NFL. He has eclipsed the 3,000-yard mark in each of the seven seasons that he started every game where he was eligible to play. He nearly broke 5,000 yards just three seasons ago. In 2014, he had a TD-INT ratio of 34-9 and led the Cowboys to an NFC East title and the playoffs, both for the first time since 2009.
Part of the reason that Romo had such success passing the football is that he was playing behind the best offensive line in football. Couple that with the breakout performance (and increased workload) of DeMarco Murray on the ground last year, and a lot of pressure was taken off Romo to be the sole focus of the Cowboys' offense.
With Murray getting scooped up by the Eagles this offseason, it is up to Romo and his long-time targets Jason Witten and Dez Bryant to prove to the league that losing its workhorse does not correspond with losing the edge it had last year and win the NFC East for the second straight season.
Denver Broncos
The current starter at QB: Peyton Manning
Another signal-caller whose greatness is masked by his inability to win in the playoffs, Peyton Manning is probably under the most pressure to win now. Despite being the best regular season quarterback in NFL history, Manning has only three Super Bowl appearances and one Super Bowl ring to show for 16 seasons played in the league. Given Manning's incredible resilience — he's only missed one season's worth of games in his 17-year career — it should be no surprise if he suits up for each of the Broncos' 16 games this year. He's never thrown less than 3,700 yards in a season and has only fallen short of the 4,000-yard mark twice. He's set the records for passing yards in a single season (5,477), passing touchdowns in a season (55), tied the record for most touchdown passes in a single game (7) and has won five MVP awards in his illustrious career.
There's no doubt Peyton will go down as one of the best to ever play the game and will undoubtedly be making the trip to Canton in the next decade. At the same time, however, many consider 2015 to be Peyton's last stand in the NFL. He's 39 years old and started to show his age at the end of last season. With the Broncos poised to get more yardage on the ground next year, it may very well be Peyton's last chance to win a title, even if it means putting him in a reduced role next year.
Kansas City Chiefs
The current starter at QB: Alex Smith
Alex Smith just may be the most underrated quarterback in the NFL. He's not going to give you the biggest numbers of all the game's passers. He probably won't ever be the quarterback to eclipse the 4,000-yard mark; he hasn't done so in his 10 years in the league thus far, and he's 31 going into this season.
The one thing that Alex Smith does give, however, is consistency. The teams that Smith has been on have always been competitive. He even led a Chiefs squad that was worst in the league two years ago to two straight winning seasons and a playoff appearance in 2013. Smith's success has to be, in part, attributed to the running backs he's played with; he's always had Frank Gore or Jamaal Charles to hand the ball off to in his 10-year career. Smith's consistency will help the Chiefs try and make a run at the AFC West title this season, and the addition of Jeremy Maclin and Chris Conley to the team, which already features Travis Kelce, should give the team a decent shot.
New Orleans Saints
The current starter at QB: Drew Brees
Drew Brees has eclipsed the 5,000-yard mark four times in his career and has reached the 4,000-yard mark another five times. After arriving in New Orleans back in 2006, Brees' career took off in a big way. All of those nine seasons where he eclipsed the 4,000-yard mark happened as a part of the Saints. He led the Saints to a Super Bowl victory in the 2009 season, being named the big game's MVP. He's always been a franchise cornerstone for New Orleans, even when the team hasn't been great.
2014 presented Brees with a challenge as he tried to lead a team with a putrid defense into the playoffs. Even playing in the weak NFC South didn't give the Saints any breaks, as they finished 7-9 and out of the playoffs. With the Saints losing two of their best receivers in Kenny Stills and Jimmy Graham, the team is poised to look to the ground for much more of their offense next year.
Brees is another quarterback on the wrong side of 30, as he'll be 36 for the duration of the season. Quarterbacks on the north side of 30 have a history of declining play, and without many targets to look to next season, Brees' numbers will likely take a sharp dip.
San Diego Chargers
The current starter at QB: Philip Rivers
This one really pains me to say as a fan of the Chargers, but the Chargers may be in the most dire situation to win now. Rivers has played at an elite level since entering the league in 2004, but has never been able to win when he makes the playoffs. The teams around him have never been built to win championships, and Rivers is turning 34 near the end of the season.
Further working against the Chargers is the team's inability to agree with Rivers on a contract extension. Even though Rivers has remained solid during his 11-year career and has one year remaining on his contract, he has found himself on the outside looking in on the Chargers' future plans due to the disagreement on both sides. Many thought that the Chargers would trade him to the Browns or Titans before the draft, but they decided to keep him for another season. Rivers also remains adamant that he does not support the team moving to Los Angeles, but with a stadium deal not coming through, it very well may be the team's future. If so, Rivers may be looking for a change of scenery sooner rather than later.
San Francisco 49ers
The current starter at QB: Colin Kaepernick
Colin Kaepernick looked like a surefire thing a few years back. The 49ers traded away Alex Smith in the middle of 2012, confident that Kaepernick was ready to lead the team to a championship. It looked like he was too, leading the team to Super Bowl XLVII and putting up a solid game despite losing narrowly. 2013 looked much of the same way for the 49ers, as they put up another dominant season, finishing 12-4 and making the NFC Championship game. They were one tipped pass away from making their second straight Super Bowl too.
Then it all came apart in 2014. While looking like the team that made it two straight NFC Championship games early on in the year, the 49ers struggled mightily in the second half, finishing 8-8 on the season, which led to the firing of head coach Jim Harbaugh and the 49ers' front office increasing disappointment with Kaepernick. With Jim Tomsula leading the team now, it is up to Kaepernick to use his weapons, which include Anquan Boldin, Torrey Smith and Vernon Davis, and prove that he can still lead a team to success before the 49ers move on.
