Steelers’ Aaron Rodgers Headlines 7 NFL QBs to Watch in Week 1

The biggest names to keep an eye on with the NFL regular season kicking off this week? Start with the quarterbacks, those who play the league’s most valuable (and best-compensated) position.  

Here are seven passers to watch in Week 1, ranked in ascending order — from grizzled veterans debuting with new teams, young pros looking to find their footing and a No. 1 overall pick beginning his career.

Steelers coach Mike Tomlin (right) is counting on Aaron Rodgers to get Pittsburgh past the first round of the playoffs for the first time since 2017. (Photo by Grant Halverson/Getty Images)

Rodgers making his Steelers debut on the road against the Jets — the franchise that unceremoniously released him this offseason after a massively disappointing two-year tenure — offers one of Week 1’s most intriguing matchups. 

Beyond the juicy storylines, the game will mark our first look at the Rodgers experiment in Pittsburgh. Many league observers questioned the Steelers’ pursuit of the four-time league MVP, who’s 41, well past his physical prime and played inconsistently at best with the Jets. He brings potential distractions, too. But Mike Tomlin and the Steelers view Rodgers as the kind of quarterback who can elevate their older, win-now roster.

We won’t have a verdict on who is right after one game, but Rodgers’ debut could be telling about how Pittsburgh’s season will unfold. 

Russell Wilson is fully embracing New York, but he has at least a couple of concerns as the regular season commences: a daunting Giants schedule and a first-round QB waiting in the wings. (Photo by Kathryn Riley/Getty Images)

On his third team in three seasons, Wilson faces pressure to start 2025 on a high note in a tough division matchup against the Commanders. The Giants, in fact, have the NFL’s most difficult schedule. Wilson has a lot to prove — he’s years removed from the consistent, high-level quarterback he was with the Seahawks — with Jaxson Dart breathing down his neck.

Coach Brian Daboll and the Giants would like this season to be a redshirt year for the first-round rookie, but he turned heads in the preseason and is listed as QB2 on New York’s unofficial depth chart ahead of Week 1 — in front of veteran Jameis Winston, who was the top backup throughout the preseason. If Wilson struggles early, Dart could be on the field sooner rather than later. 

READ MORE: When Should the Giants Start Jaxson Dart? ‘This is Going to be a Pretty Good QB’

After running for his life for much of his rookie season, Caleb Williams hopes that Ben Johnson and an improved supporting cast will help him become the quarterback the Bears expected when they drafted him No. 1 overall last year. (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images)

After Williams’ up-and-down rookie season, the NFL world is curious to see how his partnership with new head coach Ben Johnson will play out in Chicago. 

As the Lions’ star offensive coordinator, Johnson helped Jared Goff rejuvenate his career. Can he help Williams turn into the long-term, franchise quarterback that the Bears have sought for decades? The duo faces its first test Monday against a division rival in the Vikings. 

J.J. McCarthy will make his long-awaited NFL debut in Week 1 after missing last year due to a knee injury. (Photo by Kara Durrette/Getty Images)

After becoming the first quarterback selected in the first round in the modern era to miss his entire rookie season due to injury, McCarthy faces plenty of intrigue entering 2025. 

Can he live up to the hype as a former No. 10 overall pick? How much rust, if any, will he show? Can he elevate a talented Vikings team that won 14 games last season with Sam Darnold at quarterback? 

McCarthy has one of the NFL’s most quarterback-friendly head coaches in Kevin O’Connell, but the offensive supporting cast many league observers have raved about took hits throughout the summer. All-Pro receiver Justin Jefferson missed much of training camp with a hamstring injury. Jordan Addison will serve a three-game suspension at the start of the season, and fellow receiver Jalen Nailor has been sidelined since mid-August with an injury. The team traded for Carolina WR Adam Thielen, bringing the longtime Viking back to Minnesota, but it could take time to develop a rapport with McCarthy. 

RELATED: ‘Calm,’ ‘Hungry,’ ‘Infectious’ … ‘Psycho’?: The Many Sides of Vikings QB J.J. McCarthy

Cam Ward will be under heavy pressure, literally, when the Titans play the Broncos in Denver. (Photo by Johnnie Izquierdo/Getty Images)

Ward, the No. 1 overall pick, makes his NFL debut against the Broncos. And while the Titans left training camp and preseason pleased with the former Miami star’s progress, the live bullets of Week 1 will offer his biggest challenge yet. 

Tennessee will be playing at altitude against Denver, which led the NFL in sacks and quarterback pressures last season. A 2024 playoff team, the Broncos were also fourth in blitz rate under defensive coordinator Vance Joseph. This is as tough as it gets for a rookie quarterback making his first start. 

RELATED: What Titans QB Cam Ward Showed in Preseason: ‘Command Has Been Outstanding’

After rejuvenating his career with Kevin O’Connell in Minnesota, Sam Darnold now has to prove his worth with the Seahawks. (Photo by Soobum Im/Getty Images)

Now out of Minnesota, Darnold must show that his resurgent 2024 wasn’t a fluke. The Seahawks don’t have a quarterback-whispering head coach or an elite offensive-supporting cast like last season’s Vikings. 

Darnold’s Seahawks tenure begins Sunday against the division-rival 49ers. 

RELATED: Cracking the Code: The Secret for QB Sam Darnold and Seahawks’ Success

A first-round pick in 2021, Justin Fields is now with his third team, after stints with the Bears and Steelers. (Photo by Rich Graessle/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

The Jets could represent Fields’ last chance to prove that he can be a long-term starting quarterback in the NFL. Opening against the Steelers, the former first-round pick will face the team that tried to re-sign him in free agency — he was 4-2 as Pittsburgh’s starting quarterback before being relegated to a backup role in favor of Wilson.

Fields has some former Ohio State teammates around him to help ease his transition with the Jets, most notably No. 1 receiver Garrett Wilson. 

Ben Arthur is an NFL reporter for FOX Sports. He previously worked for The Tennessean/USA TODAY Network, where he was the Titans beat writer for a year and a half. He covered the Seattle Seahawks for SeattlePI.com for three seasons (2018-20) prior to moving to Tennessee. You can follow Ben on Twitter at @benyarthur.

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