Eli Manning's benching with the Giants, on the heels of Tyrod Taylor experiencing the same thing a few weeks ago with the Bills, has quarterback-needy NFL teams preparing for what could be one of the wildest offseasons in recent memory. A bevy of established starting quarterbacks will be available for trade, or via free agency, well before the draft rolls around, and competition for some of them will be heated.

There are no shortage of clubs in need of an upgrade at quarterback, with a rash of injuries at that position exposing a critical shortage. As teams have continued to evaluate the names atop this year's draft class (Sam Darnold, Josh Rosen, Josh Allen), the reviews remain mixed at best. Meanwhile, besides Manning and Taylor -- both of whom GMs expect to be shopped in the offseason at the combine -- there is a strong expectation the Chiefs will trade Alex Smith as well, while Washington is expected to tag Kirk Cousins (transition or franchise) again, which could prove to be a precursor to a possible trade, too, with interest very high in the QB.

The 49ers hope to extend Jimmy Garoppolo, who makes his first start for them Sunday, but some rival execs would be interested in exploring trade talks for the young QB in the offseason, sources said, should the 49ers end up making a run at Cousins (who played for head coach Kyle Shanahan in Washington). The 49ers could end up franchising Garoppolo as well. 

Drew Brees is a pending unrestricted free agent, as is Case Keenum (two potential playoff QBs). AJ McCarron could be as well pending an arbitration hearing on his status (whether he is deemed to be restricted or unrestricted), while former first-round picks Sam Bradford and Teddy Bridgewater are dealing with injury situations, making their markets perhaps more murky.

As for teams potentially looking outside their organization for new QBs for next season, more than a quarter of the league fits that description: Jets, Giants, Bills, Jags, Cardinals, Browns, Dolphins, Vikings and Saints. Having talked to people within some of those organizations, I expect the competition to land a veteran QB well before the draft will be high.

"This will be a crazy offseason," said a high-ranking official from one of those clubs. "We're not even sure if all three (top college quarterbacks) are coming out, or how good they really are. If you have a chance to get a proven, starting quarterback -- and some of these guys are still only around 30 -- that's going to be a more attractive option to a lot of teams. You'd rather get a known commodity earlier in the offseason in most cases, and there are going to be more options next year than normal."

As an agent for one of the above quarterbacks put it: "When you start to look at all of the quarterbacks who could realistically change teams, this is going to be the greatest quarterback free agent and trade market in NFL history. Certainly, in the salary cap era. And it's going to be the most interesting, too.