Texas quarterback Arch Manning is still a name that carries huge draft buzz, but the way some evaluators are talking now, the 2027 NFL Draft picture looks a lot less certain than it did a few weeks ago.
Todd McShay made that shift impossible to ignore on Thursday when he released his top 10 quarterbacks for the 2027 class and left Manning off the list entirely. McShay is among the analysts who now wonder whether Manning should even enter next year’s draft at all.
That idea has been floating around on social media all season, especially with the growing appeal of returning to college for a fifth year. For quarterbacks moving into a stronger situation, that route has started to make more sense. But Manning has lived with pressure his whole life, and his family history only adds to the scrutiny.
His grandfather and namesake, Archie Manning, spent three years in college before turning pro. Manning’s uncles each spent four years in college. If Arch stays in school for a fifth season, he’d be the first quarterback in the family to need that long before being NFL-ready.
Strip away the name and the hype, though, and the production hasn’t yet screamed top-tier NFL prospect. Through five games this season, Manning has completed 63-percent of his passes for 1,122 yards and 10 touchdowns with five interceptions. His four-touchdown outing against Texas State is doing a lot of the work in shaping that line.
If he doesn’t catch fire over the final seven regular season games, and maybe the College Football Playoff too, the conversation around his NFL future is only going to get louder when decision time arrives.
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Arkansas Looks Loaded But This Early Test Will Say Everything
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The real question is how quickly that group comes together, because Calipari did not ease into the schedule. Arkansas will face a demanding non-conference stretch with Virginia, Michigan State, Arizona, Indiana and North Carolina all on the docket, a set of games designed to harden a young team before SEC play arrives. The talent is obvious, but this early test will say a lot about how ready the Razorbacks are for the grind ahead. [Read more 🡒]