# Tyler Sullivan: An unsigned CBS Sports piece predicts the winners of the four ongoing quarterback battles — Kyler Murray in Minnesota, Tua Tagovailoa in Atlanta, Deshaun Watson in Cleveland and Kirk Cousins in Las Vegas — and names several veterans (Brissett, Geno Smith, Malik Willis) as their teams' Week 1 starters, with rookie Fernando Mendoza opening as Cousins' backup.

**Claimed:** Aug 3, 2026
**Pundit:** Tyler Sullivan — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/pundits/tyler-sullivan
**Outlet:** CBS Sports — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/outlets/cbs-sports
**How it reached us:** published in writing
**Original:** https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/nfl-training-camp-quarterback-battles-2026-season/

9 checkable claims — 9 depth chart calls — each graded on its own rather than as one all-or-nothing bet.

It names 16 players and teams, each linked to their own record.

3 of 9 have settled so far, averaging 66.7 out of 100, against 0 for a naive guess at the same calls.

Of the 6 unsettled calls enough other pundits have weighed in on, this one lands above the room on 1 and below it on 5.

> Prediction : Kyler Murray wins the Week 1 job.

*(their words, quoted for attribution)*

## The claims

- **Kirk Cousins to be 1st on the depth chart**
  - Kind: Depth Chart Calls · About: Kirk Cousins, Las Vegas Raiders
  - Verdict: scored 100 out of 100, against 0 for a naive guess
- **Kyler Murray to be 1st on the depth chart**
  - Kind: Depth Chart Calls · About: Kyler Murray, Minnesota Vikings
  - Verdict: scored 100 out of 100, against 0 for a naive guess
- **Tua Tagovailoa to be 1st on the depth chart**
  - Kind: Depth Chart Calls · About: Tua Tagovailoa, Atlanta Falcons
  - Verdict: scored 0 out of 100, against 0 for a naive guess
- **Malik Willis to be 1st on the depth chart**
  - Kind: Depth Chart Calls · About: Malik Willis, Miami Dolphins
  - Verdict: not settled yet
- **Deshaun Watson to be 1st on the depth chart**
  - Kind: Depth Chart Calls · About: Deshaun Watson, Cleveland Browns
  - Verdict: not settled yet
- **J.J. McCarthy to be 2nd on the depth chart**
  - Kind: Depth Chart Calls · About: J.J. McCarthy, Minnesota Vikings
  - Verdict: not settled yet
- **Geno Smith to be 1st on the depth chart**
  - Kind: Depth Chart Calls · About: Geno Smith, New York Jets
  - Verdict: not settled yet
- **Jacoby Brissett to be 1st on the depth chart**
  - Kind: Depth Chart Calls · About: Jacoby Brissett, Arizona Cardinals
  - Verdict: not settled yet
- **Fernando Mendoza to be 2nd on the depth chart**
  - Kind: Depth Chart Calls · About: Fernando Mendoza, Las Vegas Raiders
  - Verdict: not settled yet

## Who this take is about

- Kirk Cousins — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/nfl/players/kirk-cousins
- Las Vegas Raiders — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/nfl/teams/raiders
- Kyler Murray — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/nfl/players/kyler-murray
- Minnesota Vikings — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/nfl/teams/vikings
- Tua Tagovailoa — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/nfl/players/tua-tagovailoa
- Atlanta Falcons — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/nfl/teams/falcons
- Malik Willis — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/nfl/players/malik-willis
- Miami Dolphins — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/nfl/teams/dolphins
- Deshaun Watson — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/nfl/players/deshaun-watson
- Cleveland Browns — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/nfl/teams/browns
- J.J. McCarthy — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/nfl/players/j-j-mccarthy
- Geno Smith — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/nfl/players/geno-smith
- New York Jets — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/nfl/teams/jets
- Jacoby Brissett — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/nfl/players/jacoby-brissett
- Arizona Cardinals — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/nfl/teams/cardinals
- Fernando Mendoza — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/nfl/players/fernando-mendoza

## What others said about the same people

- Rich Hribar on Malik Willis: Hribar previews the Week 1 Dolphins-Raiders game, calling Malik Willis a strong floor-based QB2 for fantasy, noting Kirk Cousins is the Raiders' starter and not a Week 1 streamer in 1QB leagues, and listing expected defensive starters for both teams. — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/opinions/0ff48079-418b-4d5a-9eb2-6e66b0e6f6e1 (scored 100)
- Warren Sharp on Kirk Cousins: Sharp argues Raiders rookie No. 1 overall pick Fernando Mendoza is not ready to play, predicting he won't start Week 1 or Week 2 and that Kirk Cousins will be the Week 1 starter, with Mendoza sitting behind him for a long stretch. — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/opinions/f6c6fdb0-ba07-4779-bdb0-bed9dfc089c6 (scored 100)
- Greg Auman on Malik Willis: Auman states Malik Willis will be Miami's Week 1 starting quarterback and the player the Dolphins build their season around, despite having only six career starts. — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/opinions/4954ba44-5b36-43a2-9dcf-26538ad31e26 (scored 100)
- Carter Bahns on Kirk Cousins: The newsletter says Shedeur Sanders' preseason Week 2 start may have won him the Browns' starting quarterback job over Deshaun Watson, and that Kirk Cousins will lead the Raiders' offense in Week 1. It also asserts Florida is the best college basketball team heading into 2026-27. — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/opinions/551a6c15-18a9-488d-a1c2-52e7643735cd (scored 100)
- John Breech on Kirk Cousins: In a preseason Week 1 winners-and-losers piece, CBS Sports says Bengals receiver Dohnte Meyers is now likely to make the roster, suggests fantasy drafters consider 49ers rookie De'Zhaun Stribling, expects Kirk Cousins rather than rookie Fernando Mendoza to start Week 1 for the Raiders, and suggests Anthony Richardson has moved ahead of Riley Leonard for the Colts' backup quarterback job. — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/opinions/d028cdb8-972f-4e80-af43-d5f967fdd8f4 (scored 100)
- Carter Bahns on Kirk Cousins: Unsigned piece states Kirk Cousins, who started the Raiders' preseason opener, will also be the Week 1 starting quarterback, while suggesting rookie No. 1 overall pick Fernando Mendoza could eventually take the job if Las Vegas falls out of contention. — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/opinions/7d1f095c-4039-4192-b023-126b2cc23e59 (scored 100)

## More depth chart calls

The same kind of call, about other players and teams.

- Randy Gurzi on Jadarian Price: Gurzi suggests the Seahawks could sign three free agents — safety Donovan Wilson, guard Kevin Zeitler, and running back Kareem Hunt — if weaknesses show up after Week 1. He also notes Trevon Diggs starting on the practice squad and describes Seattle's projected backfield roles. — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/opinions/350eed1b-4675-4a2d-aaf5-812e20678283 (scored 100)
- Jeff Kerr on Jalyx Hunt: From an Eagles training camp practice, Kerr projects Willie Lampkin as a possible 53-man roster player, Jalyx Hunt as the likely Week 1 starting edge rusher over Nolan Smith, Byron Young as the No. 4 defensive tackle, Jake Elliott as the uncontested kicker, and Darius Cooper pressuring Hollywood Brown for the WR4 role. — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/opinions/f314062a-7912-4727-8ff1-9edc813f10e1 (scored 0)
- Emmett Matasovsky on Christian Izien: Matasovsky says Dobbs is currently leading the backup quarterback race and suggests Christian Izien may be pressed into a starting safety role in Week 1 while Brian Branch and Kerby Joseph rehab. — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/opinions/9715ee92-1646-4ee4-8911-e3e4cbae9027 (scored 0)
- Jared Dubin on Daniel Faalele: Dubin grades the Faalele trade, predicting Faalele has a decent chance to be Jacksonville's Week 1 starting right guard in competition with Wyatt Milum, and that Evan Neal's odds of making the Giants' 53-man roster improved while Jon Runyan and Francis Mauigoa hold the Giants' starting guard jobs. — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/opinions/aae46267-fc6d-44c1-a96c-7355b3db857b (scored 0)
- Mike Moraitis on Ozzy Trapilo: Moraitis writes that although Braxton Jones has looked like the favorite, Ozzy Trapilo is likely to take over as the Bears' starting left tackle once he's healthy enough to play. — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/opinions/cdfe5f0f-6783-4730-b9bb-d942e28b037a (scored 0)
- Noah Compton on C.J. Allen: After watching the Colts' eleventh training camp practice, Compton says rookie linebacker CJ Allen is still expected to start the regular-season opener, identifies Alec Pierce as the team's top receiver and Cam Taylor-Britt as the first cornerback behind the starting trio, and declares the kicking job Blake Grupe's to lose. — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/opinions/98a8bd92-bcd8-4b5a-aad7-96ecd936662b (scored 0)

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Accuracy is 0-100 against what actually happened. The naive guess is what a strategy requiring no knowledge would have scored on the same call — the difference is the skill, and it is what the MissedTakes Score averages.

Full method: https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/methodology

We summarize what a pundit said and quote a short span for attribution; we never republish their article. If this is wrong, tell us:
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