The Jacksonville Jaguars weren't thrilled about their depth at quarterback, so they traded for Quinn Ewers just before the regular season. To make room for Ewers, though, they released Nick Mullens, the primary backup behind Trevor Lawrence in 2025, but the team's brass managed to bring him back on the practice squad.
While Ewers got acclimated to the Jacksonville scheme, Mullens was promoted to the active roster the first two games of the season. However, Ewers appears to be ready, as he served as the backup in the Week 3 win over the New England Patriots and even saw the field on mop-up duty.
With Ewers firmly entrenched as QB2 behind Lawrence, teams in need of a signal-caller could give Mullens a look. The best part is that they wouldn't have to give up any kind of assets for him, as all they would have to do is sign him off the Jags' practice squad, contrary to what a recent scoop suggested.
Don't expect the Jaguars to trade Quinn Ewers (or Nick Mullens for that matter)
Dan Graziano and Jeremy Fowler of ESPN recently talked about everything they're hearing ahead of Week 4. One of the topics they discussed was whether J.J. McCarthy would be the only quarterback who would be dealt before the 2026 trade deadline.
For context, the New York Giants traded for McCarthy after starting quarterback Jaxson Dart suffered a season-ending injury. Anyway, Graziano wonders if teams could inquire about Ewers or Mullens, while Fowler argues that Jacksonville is high on Ewers, so Mullens could be expendable.
The issue with their premise is that teams wouldn't need to trade for Mullens since he's on the Jaguars' practice squad. As long as they give him a spot on their 53-man roster, signing him wouldn't be a problem.
That said, just because clubs don't have to give up assets to acquire Mullens doesn't mean that they will.
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The Jaguars won't miss a beat if another team signs Nick Mullens
There's a reason that the Jaguars traded for Quinn Ewers. Dating back to the offseason programs, all their non-Trevor Lawrence quarterbacks struggled (even if some of them had a few strong showings). Things didn't get better in training camp or the preseason, which is why Jacksonville pulled the trigger on Ewers.
Simply, the Jags won't trade the former Texas Longhorn after acquiring him less than two months ago. They love Nick Mullens, but there's a reason he's on the practice squad and not the active roster. Clubs in need of quarterback help know that, so unless they run out of options, they'll make a push for him.
This doesn't mean it won't happen but rather that the odds are low. After all, the supply of competent signal-callers in the NFL outweighs the demand, so watching a team poach Mullens shouldn't be ruled out.
Just don't count on it happening anytime soon.
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