John Mateer Returning to Oklahoma, Adding Intrigue to 2027 QB Class
Oklahoma quarterback John Mateer is heading back to Norman for one more run. The Sooners announced that Mateer is pulling his name from the 2026 NFL Draft and returning for his final year of eligibility - a move that shakes up an already shallow quarterback class and adds another big name to what’s shaping up to be a loaded 2027 group.
Mateer had been projected anywhere from late Day 2 to early Day 3 if he had declared this year - not bad, but a far cry from where he stood earlier in the season. At one point, he was flirting with mid-first-round status, but a hand injury in late September changed the trajectory of his season and, ultimately, his draft stock.
The injury, which required surgery, came on Sept. 20.
Mateer missed just one game, showing toughness and grit by returning quickly. But the numbers tell the story of a quarterback who was clearly impacted.
Before the injury, he was sharp - completing 67.4% of his passes with six touchdowns, three interceptions, and a 149.5 passer rating. After the injury?
That completion rate dipped to 59.4%, and while he threw eight more touchdowns, his efficiency dropped with a 118.2 passer rating and more inconsistency.
It’s a setback, no doubt, but not the end of the road. Mateer has already shown he can bounce back.
After redshirting his freshman year at Washington State, he got his first real action in 2023 as a backup, then broke out in 2024 with a 3,139-yard, 29-touchdown season that put him firmly on the NFL radar. The move to Oklahoma was supposed to be the next leap - and while 2025 didn’t go exactly as planned, he still threw for 2,885 yards and 14 touchdowns in a season that was clearly hampered by injury.
Now, he gets another chance to reset, rehab, and reload.
Mateer’s decision isn’t happening in a vacuum. He’s part of a growing trend this year - a wave of quarterbacks opting to return to school instead of jumping into a draft class that’s thin at the top and murky in the middle. He joins Oregon’s Dante Moore, Texas’ Arch Manning, South Carolina’s LaNorris Sellers, and former Cincinnati quarterback Brendan Sorsby in choosing another year of college ball over a less-than-ideal draft landscape.
That leaves the 2026 quarterback class looking sparse. Cal’s Fernando Mendoza is the clear-cut No. 1 at this point, with Alabama’s Ty Simpson the only other passer currently projected in the first round - and even he sits around the 20th spot on most big boards.
Behind them, the depth chart gets murky fast. Garrett Nussmeier, Cade Klubnik, Carson Beck, Drew Allar, and Taylen Green are all viewed as Day 2 prospects.
Trinidad Chambliss is in that mix too - if he can get back on the field. Chambliss is currently suing the NCAA in an effort to overturn a decision that denied him a sixth year of eligibility.
For quarterback-needy NFL teams - and there are plenty, including the Pittsburgh Steelers - this is far from ideal. With the college all-star circuit about to kick off, scouting departments are scrambling to evaluate what’s left in a class that’s been thinned out by returns and uncertainty.
But for Mateer, this is a calculated move. He’s betting on himself - on a healthy season, a bounce-back campaign, and a shot to join what’s already shaping up to be a star-studded 2027 quarterback class. And if he can recapture the form he showed in 2024, there’s every reason to believe that bet could pay off in a big way.