NFL teams will usually go as far as their quarterbacks take them, and there are a number of signal-callers who enter 2025 in new situations that should benefit them.
Here are five who could be poised for a breakout campaign:
Drake Maye | New England Patriots
The Patriots did not give Maye much help in his rookie season, and the result was a rather uninspiring campaign from the No. 3 overall pic
k. Maye sprinkled in a few solid games but finished with just 2,276 passing yards, 15 touchdowns and 10 interceptions in 13 games.
Entering 2025, Maye has a new No. 1 wide receiver in Stefon Diggs and — perhaps more importantly — a new offensive coordinator in Josh McDaniels. Maye has been openly excited about working with McDaniels, which is a good sign. Rookie running back TreVeyon Henderson has also been lighting it up in the preseason and should help Maye as a pass-catching option out of the backfield.
Caleb Williams | Chicago Bears
Williams had stretches of excellent play as a rookie, but Chicago’s offense went stagnant in the middle of the season. The former No. 1 overall pick threw for 3,541 yards, 20 touchdowns and just six interceptions. Williams was also sacked 68 times, which was more than any other QB in the league by a wide margin.
After ranking near the bottom of the NFL with just 18.2 points per game, the Bears went out and hired former Detroit Lions
offensive coordinator Ben Johnson as their new head coach. Johnson helped Jared Goff resurrect his career, so the sky is the limit for him with Williams. A receiving corps headlined by D.J. Moore, Rome Odunze and second-round pick Luther Burden III should help.
The Jets showed a lot of faith in Fields when they signed him to a two-year, $40M contract in free agency. Fields went 4-2 as a starter last year with the Pittsburgh Steelers before losing his job to Russell Wilson. The only quarterback breathing down his neck in New York will be Tyrod Taylor.
Fields is a true dual-threat QB who should benefit from playing in a new system. Former Detr
oit Lions passing game coordinator Tanner Engstrand is the new offensive coordinator of the Jets, and he comes from a system that emphasized short passes and getting the ball out quickly.
If Fields’ skill set is utilized properly, he could easily rush for more than 1,000 yards like he did with the Chicago Bears in 2022 while also making plays in a Garrett Wilson-led passing offense.
Nix was better than expected as a rookie last season, though Broncos head coach Sean Payton was not surprised. Nix finished with 3,775 passing yards, 29 touchdown passes and 12 interceptions in his first NFL season. He also rushed for 430 yards and an additional four scores.
Payton recently predicted that Nix will soon be vie
wed as one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL, so why not start that in 2025?
The Broncos used a second-round draft pick on RJ Harvey, who rushed for 2,993 yards over the last two seasons at UCF. That should add to an area of Denver’s offense that was lacking last season. The Broncos also signed TE Evan Engram, who should make an impact in the passing game.
Trevor Lawrence | Jacksonville Jaguars
It would be tough to call 2025 a make-or-break year for Lawrence after he signed a five-year, $275M extension last offseason, but he will need a big first campaign under new head coach Liam Coen in order to start living up to his contract.
Lawrence finished with just 2,045 yards, 11 touchdown passes and seven interceptions in an injury-riddled 2024 season. He has just 33 touchdown passes in his last 26 games.
Coen helped revive Baker Mayfield’s career with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and the Jaguars are hoping the coach will have similar success with Lawrence. Jacksonville could have one of the best wide receiver duos in football with Brian Thomas Jr., who made the Pro Bowl as a rookie last season, and No. 2 overall pick Travis Hunter.
