Agent Leigh Steinberg Warns NFL Teams Over Backup Quarterback Depth
Legendary sports agent Leigh Steinberg says NFL teams carrying only two quarterbacks are risking their seasons, pointing to a wave of early injuries and the New York Giants' sudden scramble behind Jameis Winston.
Legendary sports agent Leigh Steinberg is warning NFL teams that a thin quarterback room can derail a season, arguing that clubs carrying only two passers are gambling with their Super Bowl hopes. His caution arrives as five starting quarterbacks have already been injured going into Week 3, a pace that has left several franchises reworking their depth charts earlier than expected.
The most glaring example is the New York Giants. Star quarterback Jaxson Dart is out for the regular season, leaving backup Jameis Winston as the only healthy option on the active roster. Steinberg said the Giants' decision to open the year with just Dart and Winston left them exposed, because a single additional injury would have forced the team to find a quarterback from outside the building on short notice.
«It's a real problem, which is why I always think that teams that don't keep three quarterbacks are making a mistake, because the likelihood is that the starting quarterback will be hurt at some point,» Steinberg said in an interview.
That scenario nearly played out in real time. When Dart went down, Winston was the last line of defense. Had Winston also been injured, the Giants would have had no other quarterback on the active roster, a situation that could have forced emergency measures mid-game or mid-week. Instead, the Giants are now searching for a quality option behind Winston in case the former Florida State star is sidelined while filling in for Dart.
Steinberg acknowledged the salary cap makes it harder for teams to invest heavily in backup quarterbacks, especially as starter salaries continue to balloon. But he argued that the cost of not having multiple viable options is far greater, because the position is uniquely vulnerable to injury. «You have bigger, stronger defensive players on the line who can inflict all sorts of harm on the quarterback,» he said. «The position starts with that player, so all the action coalesces around him, and there's just more opportunity to get hit and hurt.»
The league has taken steps to protect quarterbacks, most notably in 2018 when the NFL restricted defenders from landing on passers with their full body weight. Steinberg said those rules have not eliminated the risk, because the nature of the position leaves quarterbacks exposed on nearly every dropback. He also noted that while an injury to a franchise quarterback is devastating for a team's season, it can be equally damaging for the league as a whole.
Quarterbacks have become the NFL's highest-profile celebrities, comparable to movie stars in American culture, and Steinberg suggested that a wave of injuries to those marquee names could cause viewership to decline. He said the league has tried to protect quarterbacks with more vigor, but fans often do not notice the added measures because injuries keep happening.
«I want you to remember that every time they put in more protective rules and procedures. There's a hue and cry from football purists that they're taking the toughness out of the game,» Steinberg said. «I'm all for the most vigorous protections while retaining the competitive aspect of the game.»
Steinberg, inducted into the California Sports Hall of Fame in 2017, has represented some of the most recognizable names in football and baseball. His client list includes Steve Young, Troy Aikman, Warren Moon, Bruce Smith, Thurman Thomas, Ben Roethlisberger, Matt Leinart, Mark Brunell, Ricky Williams, Howie Long, Eric Karros and Dusty Baker, among others.
For teams around the league, the message is straightforward: the third quarterback is not a luxury. With starters falling at an early-season clip, the clubs that planned for the worst may be the ones still standing when the games matter most.
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