Arch Manning surpassed in 2027 NFL Draft QB rankings by rising superstar
The Texas Longhorns quarterback is no longer the consensus No. 1 overall pick many thought he would be.
The 2025 college football season came with a bit of a shock to many: The consensus top team in the nation, the Texas Longhorns , stumbled out of the gate and couldn't recover in time to make the College Football Playoff .
In tune with that, Arch Manning had an inconsistent season that ended with more questions than answers about his football future. He was the Heisman Trophy favorite coming into the season, which was followed by an offseason in which many wondered if he should declare for the 2026 NFL Draft despite his up-and-down year.
Manning decided to play it safe and return to school for at least one more season. This upcoming year will be a crucial one for Manning's NFL future. A strong final season with the Longhorns could see him become the No. 1 overall pick in the 2027 NFL Draft .
Notre Dame quarterback CJ Carr considered strong contender to be No. 1 pick in 2027 NFL Draft
Right now, that isn't a given. In fact, there's another rising star quarterback in college football who has positioned himself ahead of Manning in the eyes of ESPN draft analyst Jordan Reid : Notre Dame's CJ Carr .
He now enters a pivotal season with heightened expectations. At 6-foot-2 and 215 pounds, Carr is an even-keeled distributor with enough arm strength to make things happen, and his feet and eyes are routinely tied together. He'll be the focal point of the Fighting Irish offense after they lost two first-round running backs. If he flourishes with that new responsibility, it's easy to see him being one of the first passers picked next April. "To be so young, I love how well he sees the field," an AFC assistant GM said. "I don't think he has the physical gifts of some others in this group, but I can easily see him jumping all of them because of his processing ability."
Reid technically has Carr in the same tier (Round 1) as Manning . Oklahoma State's Drew Mestemaker and Oregon's Dante Moore are also considered Round 1 guys. But Carr's 2026 season with the Fighting Irish has vaulted him to the top, at least for now.
Carr won the starting quarterback job before last season, but didn't make the impact he wanted through the first two games - both losses by Notre Dame. After that, it was smooth sailing for Carr and the Fighting Irish. Notre Dame won their final 10 games, and Carr threw for 2,741 yards, totaled 27 touchdowns and only threw six interceptions .
