Arch Manning’s name has carried weight since the day he arrived at Texas, but the conversation around him has shifted from pure hype to something far more concrete: what kind of NFL prospect he really is.
That debate is heating up as Manning heads into the 2026 college football season, with some evaluators seeing a future first-rounder and others insisting the tape still has plenty of questions attached. One high-ranking NFL front-office staffer put it plainly to CBS Sports: “He’s still got a ways to go,” one high-ranking NFL front-office staffer told CBS Sports.
“I think he’s an eventual first-round guy, but I don’t think the tape from last year says first round yet,” that front office staffer told CBS Sports in June. “I view Arch right now as a developmental (NFL) starter that still has a long way to go in terms of touch and processing and seeing the field, but you expect that he’s going to get it because he has all the physical tools and the wiring and the pedigree from his family and all that.”
Manning’s profile still jumps off the page. At 6-foot-4 and 222 pounds, he has the size NFL teams want, plus the arm strength and mobility that make him dangerous when plays break down. That blend is a big reason he’s become one of the most intriguing names in the 2027 NFL Draft conversation.
Still, the praise comes with real reservations. Personnel and scouting staffers saw improvement in 2025, but they also want more consistency from him.
“The good’s really good,” an NFL college scouting director told CBS Sports. “I think he had severe issues last year with accuracy, ball placement, and just anticipation all over the field, but if you just go talent for talent, like he’s 1A, 1B with the best guys in the country coming out.
It’s just really about the nuances of the position. Sometimes he looks like he’s skipping rocks.
If you watch the Ohio State game (last year), he looked terrible and looked scared and timid, but then towards the end of the year, he started playing better.”
The path to this point has been familiar in one sense and different in another. Manning entered college with huge expectations because of his football bloodlines as the grandson of Archie and the nephew of Peyton and Eli. At Texas, he spent his first couple of seasons backing up Quinn Ewers before finally taking over in 2025.
That first year as the starter came with bumps. He struggled in an early-season loss to Ohio State, but he answered by helping Texas finish with a Citrus Bowl win over Illinois. By the end of the season, he had put together a sophomore campaign that included 33 passing touchdowns and nearly 3,700 total yards.
Now he’s being talked about as one of the Heisman Trophy favorites entering 2026, and sportsbooks have already made him the player to beat. He backed that up in Week 1 against Texas State, throwing four touchdowns in a win that started slowly before turning into a showcase.
For NFL evaluators, that kind of leap matters. A strong Heisman push would go a long way toward quieting concerns about his readiness to be a franchise quarterback. If Manning wins the trophy and carries Texas deep into the playoffs, it would strengthen the case that he’s ready to become the kind of NFL centerpiece teams are searching for in the 2027 draft.
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Texas Must Answer One Costly Question In Ohio State Rematch
Last years meeting with Ohio State left Texas with a clear offensive sore spot, one that still hangs over the rematch. The Longhorns moved the ball at times, but when the field tightened and the windows got smaller, they could not turn those chances into points, and that was the difference in a game they could never quite seize control of.
Texas enters this matchup with more answers on offense than it had a year ago, from the arrival of receiver Cam Coleman to Arch Mannings improved comfort in the pocket and quicker decision-making. Still, the same question remains at the center of it all: can the Longhorns finish drives when the defense clamps down near the goal line, or will another promising night in the middle of the field stall when it matters most? [Read more 🡒]
Arch Manning Gives Texas An Edge Money Usually Complicates
Arch Mannings place on the Texas roster comes with a level of financial attention most college quarterbacks never have to deal with, but the buzz around his current season agreement is notable for what it is not. His reported $2.5 million contract sits below what some other top quarterbacks are believed to be earning, even as he carries multiple NIL endorsement deals and the spotlight that comes with playing at Texas.
For a program getting ready to face No. 1 Ohio State, that kind of arrangement can matter in subtle ways, from how the locker room views value to how the sports shifting revenue picture affects the bigger picture around the team. Texas has plenty to sort out on the field, but Mannings deal adds another layer to a matchup already loaded with stakes. [Read more 🡒]
Texas Defense Faces Its First Real Test Against Jeremiah Smith
Steve Sarkisian knows exactly what waits for Texas when Ohio State comes back onto the schedule again, and this one feels different from the last two meetings. The Longhorns are dealing with a new look on defense under coordinator Will Muschamp, and the task at hand is as demanding as it gets: trying to slow down Jeremiah Smith, a receiver Sarkisian described as one of the best players in college football.
For Texas, the challenge starts before the snap and does not get any easier after it. Sarkisian stressed the need to know where Smith is lined up on every play, because his size, strength and ability to change the game force defenses to account for him on every rep. With Ohio State and Texas meeting for the third straight season, this has already become a familiar crossover, but Smith gives the Longhorns a fresh problem to solve. [Read more 🡒]