Ranking the 14 QBs Atlanta Falcons Will Face in 2026 from Mahomes to Shedeur

The Atlanta Falcons will face the 13th-toughest schedule in the league this year based on Vegas win totals. Those matchups include some of the league's top talents at the quarterback position, including Patrick Mahomes and Lamar Jackson.

With the Falcons having questions at quarterback, they will likely be outmatched by a majority of their opponents at the position. However, how outmatched they are will vary. Below are the rankings of every quarterback the Falcons will face in the 2026 season, as well as where Michael Penix and/or Tua Tagovailoa fall on that list.

1. Patrick Mahomes, Chiefs, Week 10

Despite back-to-back down years by his standard and coming off an ACL injury, Mahomes still comes in at number one on the list. The two-time MVP and three-time Super Bowl winner is still the pinnacle of the quarterback position.

His ability to dissect a defense before the snap and carve defenses in the short passing game has been the biggest development of his career, but his off-schedule playmaking is still what makes opposing defensive coordinators lose sleep.

2. Lamar Jackson, Ravens, Week 5

Jackson is another quarterback who has evolved his game as his career has gone on and hasn’t lost a step. Everyone knows Jackson’s ability to extend plays with his legs and make defenders look absolutely silly. However, he has also become one of the league's elite passers. He is the NFL career leader in QB rating at 102.2.

His dual-threat ability makes him a nightmare for opposing defenses and is why he comes in at number two on the list. Just another multi-time MVP, Jeff Ulbrich, and the Falcons defense will have to face this year.

3. Joe Burrow, Bengals, Week 9

Burrow has been the guy since his days at LSU. Despite constantly dealing with injuries, he is still one of the premier quarterbacks in the league. The NFL career leader in completion percentage is yet another elite name the Falcons will have to face in 2026.

Burrow’s ball placement and overall arm talent, mixed with his ability to extend plays and improvise on the fly, make him one of the most dangerous quarterbacks in the league. Pair that with elite chemistry with one of the league's top receivers, and you have a very lethal offense. If Burrow can remain healthy through Week 9, the Falcons will certainly have their hands full on defense.

4. Jayden Daniels, Commanders, Week 15

Another quarterback coming off an injury, Daniels has been giving defensive coordinators fits since he won Rookie of the Year in 2024. Still young and improving, he is a hard person to game-plan for because, like Jackson, he can beat you through the air and on the ground.

In college, Daniels clocked a ball carrier speed of 21.8 mph and, at this point, is the fastest quarterback in the NFL. Pairing this with an accurate arm, 66.6% career completion percentage, is a dangerous combo. The Falcons will most likely have to spy Daniels the entire game and make him beat them through the air.

5. Jared Goff, Lions, Week 13

A 10-year veteran, Goff is the first true pocket passer on this list. He is a great downfield passer, and when you pair him with an elite rushing attack like the Lions have, he is arguably the best play-action quarterback in the league.

With elite weapons all around him and an inventive head coach, the Lions and Jared Goff are a difficult challenge for opposing defenses. Just when you creep up to stop the run, Goff rips a 10-yard dig over your head perfectly in stride to one of his wide receivers. Just because he is not a threat on the ground does not mean he isn’t one of the better quarterbacks in the league.

6. Jordan Love, Packers, Week 3

Love is certainly an above-average quarterback. He possesses good arm strength, accuracy, and athleticism, all traits that make up an elite quarterback. However, he has yet to make that jump to the next level.

He struggles with consistency and seeing the entire field all of the time. With that said, he flashes plenty of moments of excellence and has won nine games in all three seasons he has been a full-time starter. Love is a quarterback who can both win you a game and lose you a game, and so far, he has won more games than he has lost, so the Falcons defense definitely needs to be ready for this Week 3 matchup.

7. Caleb Williams, Bears, Week 6

Williams slots in at number seven on this list. However, by the end of the season, I could see him as high as number four. Coming off a season where he had nearly 4,000 passing yards and 27 touchdowns, Williams showed all the traits of a game-changing quarterback. Still early in his career, though, Williams struggles with accuracy and decision-making at times.

With that being said, he is hard to gameplan for simply due to his arm talent and creativity during off-schedule plays. He makes throws that not a lot of quarterbacks in the NFL can make, and because of that, the sky is the limit for Williams.

8. Baker Mayfield, Buccaneers, Weeks 8 and 16

Mayfield's competitiveness is rare to see even in the NFL. There aren’t many people who can say they want to win more than he does. However, this can be a detriment sometimes as he tries to do too much.

He has 69 turnovers over the past three seasons and has led the league in fumbles the past two years. Mayfield's ability to stretch the ball downfield as well as punish defenses who don’t respect his legs still makes him a dangerous quarterback in the NFL. He has also had Atlanta’s number while in Tampa, holding a 6-2 record against the Falcons with the Buccaneers.

9. Brock Purdy, 49ers, Week 7

After being Mr. Irrelevant in the 2022 NFL Draft, Purdy has shocked the world by becoming not only a starting quarterback, but a good one at that. After a breakout season in 2023, where he finished fourth in MVP voting, Purdy has slotted in as an extremely accurate quarterback who deeply understands Kyle Shanahan's system.

Purdy is another elite play-action quarterback who can shred your defense if he is in rhythm. However, he lacks the pure arm talent or athleticism of some of the other quarterbacks on this list, which is why he ranks a little lower. Still, Purdy is very capable of winning games and is a dangerous quarterback within the Shanahan system.

10. Bryce Young, Panthers, Weeks 2 and 18

Young has had a slow start to his career but is steadily improving and already has 12 career game-winning drives in his three years. He always seems to play his best when the game is on the line, and that is never more true than against the Falcons.

Young always seems to dissect the Falcons' defense, shredding any zone they throw at him and always finding the open receiver against man coverage. However, Young is turnover-prone, with 63 turnovers already in his young career, but if he makes another jump in year four, it will be bad news for the Falcons, who have to play him twice a year.

11. Aaron Rodgers, Steelers, Week 1

Week 1 will be the final time the Falcons have to play Aaron Rodgers, as he is retiring at the end of the season. This brings an end to a Hall of Fame career, but the question is: does he still have anything left in the tank?

Rodgers possesses some of the best arm talent in the league, but has fallen off his MVP level in recent years. Last season, he threw for 3,322 and 24 touchdowns, both career lows for a healthy season. However, his arm talent and experience alone always make him a threat, and the Falcons will find out in Week 1 whether he’s still got it or not.

12. Tyler Shough, Saints, Weeks 4 and 17

Shough exceeded expectations in his rookie season, eventually winning the starting job and finishing out the year strong with a 5-4 record. He showed the ability to make throws all over the field, as well as affect the game with his legs.

However, a lot of this production and success came against defenses ranking in the bottom half of the league against the pass. Still promising for a rookie drafted in the second round, but Shough is going to need to prove he can replicate his performances against better competition this year before moving any higher on the list.

13. J.J. McCarthy/Kyler Murray, Vikings, Week 12

If the quarterback position has not been decided yet, it makes it extremely hard not to put them at the bottom of the list. That is exactly the case for the Minnesota Vikings. They are holding an open competition for their starting quarterback spot between McCarthy and Murray.

Murray is expected to win the job after he fizzled out in Arizona, but neither of these quarterbacks is very convincing. Murray’s ability as a runner provides some threat to defenses, but he has been unable to develop fully as a passer, and that is why he is in a quarterback battle with the unproven McCarthy.

14. Deshaun Watson, Shedeur Sanders, Browns, Week 14

The Browns are also having a quarterback competition, with either Sheduer Sanders or Deshaun Watson expected to win the job. The Browns have had 42 different starting quarterbacks since 1999 and look like they might start multiple again this year.

This level of uncertainty and change is never good for the development of a quarterback, and with Sanders and the rest of the young quarterbacks being unproven, and Watson having done nothing productive in the past five years, it does not bode well for the Browns' quarterback situation and is why they come in as the worst opposing quarterback on the Falcons' schedule.

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Overall, the Falcons have to play three multi-time MVP’s as well as a mix of promising young quarterbacks and experienced veteran ones. It will not be easygoing for the Falcons' defense this year when it comes to opposing quarterbacks.

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