It’s far too early to be talking about the 2027 NFL Draft, which is exactly why it’s time to talk about the 2027 NFL Draft.
The picture, at least for now, starts with a pair of winless or nearly winless NFL teams that would be fighting over the top of the board if the draft were held today. The Los Angeles Chargers are somehow 0-6 and would own the No. 1 pick.
The Miami Dolphins, sitting at 0-5 and just coming off their bye week, would be right behind them at No. 2.
The two teams are scheduled to meet on Dec. 27 at Hard Rock Stadium in a game that could wind up looking a lot like a battle for the top selection.
With that in mind, here’s an early look at the players who could wind up hearing their names called first on April 29 at the National Mall in Washington, D.C.
The quarterback conversation is still wide open, but the name sitting at the front right now is Oklahoma State’s Drew Mestemaker. He was nowhere near the radar in August, yet he’s been one of the best quarterbacks in college football through six games.
The 6-foot-3, 215-pound sophomore entered the Colorado game Saturday with 1,940 passing yards, 16 touchdowns and six interceptions, and he has added two rushing scores. If that name caught you off guard, you’re not alone.
The quarterbacks everyone expected to dominate the conversation still have questions attached to them. Texas’ Arch Manning was nearly benched this week, and there’s even a chance he stays in school another season.
Notre Dame’s CJ Carr also may return to school. Another quarterback tied to the Dolphins discussion is Miami’s Darian Mensah, but he still has work to do before the season finishes, including a matchup with Notre Dame in a couple of weeks.
Mensah has led the undefeated Hurricanes to the No. 1 ranking after transferring from Duke.
If the draft board is looking for the best pure player, Ohio State receiver Jeremiah Smith is the obvious headliner. He has been unstoppable, piling up 52 catches for 984 yards and 12 touchdowns in seven games.
He has gone over 150 receiving yards in four games this season, and he’s also the favorite for the Heisman Trophy. At 6-4 and 220 pounds with a 4.32 40-yard dash, he checks every box you can imagine for a game-breaking wideout.
History, though, could work against him: only two receivers have ever gone No. 1 overall in the common-draft era, with Keyshawn Johnson the last to do it 30 years ago.
On the defensive side, Texas edge rusher Colin Simmons has been the most disruptive pass rusher in the country. He leads the nation with 10.5 sacks and 16 tackles for loss, and ESPN’s Bill Connelly called him his “Half-season Defensive Heisman” winner.
Simmons is 6-3 and 246 pounds, with the kind of first step that forces offensive coordinators to account for him on every snap. He also took a hit last week, suffering a high ankle sprain in the fourth quarter of Texas’ loss to Florida after posting eight tackles, four for loss and a sack before exiting.
Even with that setback, he remains the kind of edge talent teams will rush to grab.
The top defensive back in the class right now is Notre Dame corner Leonard Moore. His stat line doesn’t jump off the page, but that’s because offenses have largely stopped challenging him.
He still hadn’t recorded his first interception heading into the weekend, yet he already has seven picks and 22 pass breakups across his three-year career. In other words, quarterbacks know better than to test him much.
The best offensive lineman in the pool is Jordan Seaton, a 6-5, 307-pound tackle who anchors the LSU offensive line. He hasn’t allowed a sack in 2026, and mock drafts have him ranging from No. 3 to No.
- Seaton started his college career at Colorado, where he became the first true freshman in school history to start at offensive tackle and earned Big 12 Freshman of the Year honors.
He started nine games and made second-team All-Big 12 as a sophomore despite being injured and missing the final three games. He played at IMG Academy in Bradenton before college.
For all the uncertainty this far out, the latest mock drafts keep circling back to the same names near the top. Jeremiah Smith has gone first overall in projections from Michael Middlehurst-Schwartz of USA Today, Nick Baumgardner of The Athletic and Ian Cummings of Pro Football Network.
CBS Sports’ Josh Edwards has Oklahoma State’s Drew Mestemaker at No. 1, while Tankathon, Fansided.com, NFL Mocks, and NFL Spin Zone all have Mestemaker going second or third. Rob Rang of Fox Sports has Texas quarterback Arch Manning at fifth, Sporting News has Oregon quarterback Dante Moore at third, and Sports Illustrated’s Richie Bradshaw slots Miami’s Darian Mensah first overall, with Pro Football Network placing him third.
A lot will change between now and late April. That part is guaranteed. But for now, the early board already has a shape, and it starts with a quarterback from Oklahoma State, a superstar receiver from Ohio State, and a few teams with every reason to keep one eye on the standings.
In Other News...
Austin Jackson Just Gave Dolphins Fans A New Offensive Line Debate
Austin Jackson was back at right tackle in Week 7 and, for one afternoon at least, he gave the Dolphins something they have not always been able to count on: steady enough play on the edge. After a season of uneven stretches, Jackson held up well enough to keep Miami moving and help an offensive line unit that looked far more settled than it has at other points this year.
The bigger question now is whether this was just a solid one-game answer or a sign Miami can trust the tackle spot a little more going forward. The lines success showed up in the kind of balance the Dolphins have been searching for, with the offense able to lean on the ground game and keep the pressure off the passing attack. With Jackson showing he can handle the job against a young pass rusher, the debate around his role may be getting a lot more interesting. [Read more 🡒]
Dolphins Are Headed Toward A Franchise Defining Draft Debate
Miamis 0-5 start has already turned this season into a search for answers, and the biggest one may not arrive until the next draft cycle. Malik Willis has struggled to stabilize the quarterback position, leaving the Dolphins to wonder whether the future under center is already on the clock in 2027, when the franchise could be in position to land a premium pick and reset the roster around a new face.
The dilemma is familiar enough, but the timing makes it unusually tricky. The 2027 quarterback class is still taking shape, with some top names rising and others stumbling, and Miami could also be tempted by a blue-chip non-quarterback if it ends up near the top of the board. For a team already staring at a lost season, the real debate may be whether the safest move is to take a quarterback early or pivot to another elite talent and trust the rest to sort itself out later. [Read more 🡒]
Jets Loss To Miami Just Reignited A Brutal Coaching Debate
The Dolphins finally broke through with their first win of the season, taking a 28-25 road result in New York that only added to the tension around a Jets team already under the microscope. For Miami, it was the kind of victory that can shift a mood even if the season is still young, while for the Jets it reopened every familiar question about how the team is being run and whether enough is being done to turn close games into wins.
A lot of the frustration landed on Aaron Glenn, especially after his late-second-quarter decision not to use timeouts left the Jets without another first-half possession. Fans also had plenty to say about the defense and the broader game management, with the anger extending beyond the sideline and back toward owner Woody Johnson, whose tenure remains a lightning rod whenever the Jets stumble in a game they felt was there to be taken. [Read more 🡒]