The Ringer NFL Show - Building the Board: A Look Ahead to the 2027 QB Draft Class

Episode Date: July 7, 2026

Todd McShay and Stephen Muench from The McShay Show bring their “Building the Board” series over to The Ringer NFL Show, where they analyze and rank the biggest college football QB prospects set to be available for the 2027 draft. They then shine a light on the NFL teams that will most likely need a QB by next spring and highlight others who may just want to take advantage of a very talent-heavy class to build roster depth. (00:00) Building the Board: A look ahead to the 2027 QB draft class (05:11) Todd’s and Steve’s 2027 QB class top-five lists (14:28) LaNorris Sellers (16:52) Sam Leavitt (25:21) CJ Carr (28:29) Arch Manning (36:38) Darian Mensah (37:56) Brendan Sorsby (42:03) NFL teams that should focus on the 2027 QB draft class The Ringer is committed to responsible gaming. Please visit www.rg-help.com to learn more about the resources and helplines available. Host: Todd McShay Guest: Stephen Muench Producer: Chris Sutton Video Editor: Stefano Sanchez Production Supervision: Conor Nevins and Arjuna Ramgopowell Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Welcome to the Ringer NFL show. Sheal is still on vacation, so we're getting this opportunity. My good friend and co-host, Steve Mention and I from The McShea show, kind of just taking over for the day and hope you guys enjoy it. We're going to get to this 2027 quarterback class that's being touted as potentially the greatest quarterback class in the history of the NFL draft. We'll take you through our top five, maybe some other quarterbacks that could rise, and also spend some time talking about the abundance of teams that could.

wind up in the quarterback market in the 2027 class. Actually, the list is a lot longer than we anticipated when we sat down and started prepping for this show. We're excited to share our show with you here on the Ringer NFL show and buckle up. It's going to be a fun hour. Mentsch, you ready for this? I hope so. I better be right.

Ringer NFL show. This is exciting. I'm Todd McShae. This is Steve Mench. Steve and I, for those of you may be watching for the first time because we're in a different platform, if you will. Steve and I have known each other since we're like 18 years old. We're in the same recruiting class to University of Richmond.

He was an offensive lineman. I was a quarterback. We wound up working together just a year or two after we graduated and we've been working together for almost 25 years. So we're sick of each other. We can complete each other's sentences. True. But we still love working with one another, I think, depending on the day.

I'm fired up for this, man. Me too. It's a good way to stop down because we're in the thick of things on the McShea show, right? We're in the thick of things this summer. It's the first time we're doing it this way. It's called Building the Board, the 2027 quarterback class, and we're doing it this way because we may be entering into a path to the draft, if you will, that sees the best quarterback class in the history of the NFL draft, right? And so we wanted to celebrate that as we're, we're tracking towards something pretty special with all these big names that we're about to get to by really diving in and pitting head to head.

And the first part of the series, we did Arch versus Dante. That's Arch Manning from Texas and Dante more from Oregon. Because it kind of, the perception is they're the top two guys. Who's going to be the first one off the board? And we've given grades on both of those players. And we'll get to all that in a minute. Then the second part of the series was these two special athletes, right? We got Lenora Sellers from South Carolina.

Brennan Sorsby's taken on a life of his own Cincinnati transfer to Texas Tech after beginning his career at Indiana. The gambling issues, the gambling addiction, trying to petition the NCAA, winning the battle, losing the battle, so to speak, with the Big 12 suing him. We've covered that ad nauseum. But on the field, there are two similar prospects in that they're still raw, still developing his passers, but they are supremely talented. Then you get the blue blood guys, right? Notre Dame, Ohio State, faces of college football, C.J. Carr, Julian Sane. Guys that were both red shirt sophomores, first year starters last year,

looking to make that big jump in their second year as starters. And most recently, we've got two quarterbacks that sparked a debate, at least one of them did, in Sam Levitt from Arizona State to LSU. and the other we did Darien Mensa from to Miami. The similarities being, there are two really talented quarterbacks that are moving from one college program

to another bigger opportunity, Leavitt at LSU with Lane Kiffin and Mensa and Miami, and we've already seen the last couple times that Miami's brought in a quarterback for this one year transition to the NFL and the development that's happened with Cam Ward going from like a late round guy

incarnate word to maybe a fourth, fifth round guy at Washington State to the first overall pick just a couple years back, right? And then Carson Beck, Reclamation Project from Georgia, the injury and everything that happened. And he now is in Arizona as a day two draft pick and hopes that maybe he can become the starter. But we'll get to Arizona. Have they settled on their quarterback yet? Or could they be in the mix in 2027? So that's the backdrop. He's Steve Munch. I'm Todd McShay. I want to get right into it, man. Let's go. We're now four parts in eight quarterbacks evaluated. I believe they are going to be among the top eight quarterbacks that we wind up giving grades to.

I feel pretty confident that we've already evaluated the top five guys. But what's interesting is, I'm certain, based off of our first four parts of the series, that your top five quarterback rankings, different than mine. So you give the fine folks. tuning in today and we appreciate everyone who is. Your top five quarterbacks as we sit today, I'll counter with mine and let's take it where it goes. You say different, I say better. Let's go.

Dante Moore, Oregon, I think is the clear cut number one quarterback prospect in this class. After that, we're going to go Lenora Sellers from South Carolina, who I've loved from the first time I laid eyes on them. Number three, C.J. Carr from Notre Dame, that might surprise some people. Number four, Arch Maining out of Texas. maybe a little controversial that he's this low,

has a chance to be the first quarterback taking, but right now I have him as number four, and number five, you just talked about him, Darian Mensa, from Tulane to Duke and now Miami, he's the fifth quarterback in my rankings right now. We do have some similarities.

We do. More similarities than arguments, I think. Eh. The top two guys were identical. we're identical on. Dante is number one on my list. And we'll get to grades in a minute. But I think it's important to preface this for people who are driving in their car,

mowing their lawn, sitting in their living room wherever you're absorbing this show. The grades of all these top five guys for me, and I think I speak for you, match, are very close. And that creates part of the excitement going into the year. but Dante is the top quarterback for me on my board, as is for you. Sellers, believe it or not, because I did not expect it before I went to watch the tape, actually is my number two quarterback prospect. Here's where things get interesting.

Yep. And I'm planting this flag, and I was coming into our last show that came out yesterday, and you can find it on Netflix, you can find it on Spotify, you can find it on Apple, anywhere else you get your podcast, but I strongly urge you go find it. Because I felt like I was screaming at Kuiper and he was yelling at me again about Brady Quinn or Kloston. I got that pissed off. Of course you pick those two. That's very convenient for you to pick those two.

My third quarterback is Sam Levitt from LSU. And we'll get into the reasons why in a bit. I see talent there that's unique. I see special ability. I don't think there's a big difference between he and sellers in terms of the physical traits and what it can become. And my goodness, he couldn't have found a better home. True.

Lane Kiffin and what Lane has done starting with USC in his days there, developing quarterbacks, offensive mind, and especially the last two quarterbacks that came through Ole Miss before he decided to leave Ole Miss, in a well-documented situation of a boarding during the college football playoff. But look what he did in short periods of time. Not so much with Jackson Dart, but Jackson Dart's final year, the advancement. And then last year with Trinidad Chamblis, 246 or whatever the number was ranked,

NIL, transfer portal quarterback. Not overall prospects of every position, quarterback on some ranking. He was 246. Lane identified him, brought him in. He wasn't even going to be the starter. Luck is when opportunity meets preparation. Chambliss was prepared. Lane was preparing him for it, took over as a starter,

and he flat out brilliant and got better as the season went on. And even in that Georgia game, just saw special things. So you take Levitt with his traits that are better than Jackson darts. Just get to your rankings. You're already making the argument here. Who are the rest of your guys? And better than Chambliss. I've got a high expectation for what we're going to see in Baton Rouge as fall.

So that's number three on my board. Classic McShay move. I didn't interrupt you. Then I've got it number, I've got two tied at number four. And that's with CJ Carr and Arch Manning with identical grades. Very different players. C.J. Carr kills you from the pocket.

I think he's going to take the next step. I love his mind and the way he processes. I expect a huge year from Carr at Notre Dame. And Arch, and this is where it's important and we'll get into it, Arch, it will not surprise me one bit if Arch Manning is the number one overall quarterback and the number one overall pick in the 2027 draft when we're in Washington, D.C., celebrating what could be the greatest draft in the history of the NFL draft. And it won't surprise me a bit if, like his uncles,

arch surprises people and winds up going back to the SEC, for one more year of college football, and he's not even available or he's eligible, but he's not available to draft until 2028. That's a huge gap between those two things. Number one overall picking 2027, or we're still not there yet, one more year of experience,

and that's the Manning way, right? And I'm going to throw this one in there. Darien Mensa is number six on my board, and I was higher on him as a prospect after watching his tape than I even thought I was going into it. And Mensa to me, outside of Dante Moore, and in some ways even more so than Dante Moore, is the quarterback that I trust in a third and seven.

Here's the read. You have to put the ball perfectly to your receiver. I just think he's a brilliant passer. And he's a little bit more mobile than I expect. So there's my top. five asterix six. Yeah, another classic cliche movie.

Just wants to throw another name in and let you know that he loves the guy. Let's, for the folks who haven't, who haven't, you know, been following along in all this, let's dive in quickly, briskly,

to what makes Dante one, what makes sellers too? I'll let you start. Dante one is, it's, is the brain. I keep going back to this. He's not,

his neurons fire quicker than everyone else's. He's on a graduate, level looking to get his doctorate in terms of playing the position. Understands how to read defenses, knows where the ball has to go, gets it out on time. I mean, now the, we talked about this on our show, but later on the year, guys are starting to pick up on tendencies. Texas Tech started to pick up on some tendencies.

Indiana picked up some tendencies and he's got to learn that maybe the right read isn't always the right decision because teams are going to start taking things away from them and he's going to take the next step in terms of development. Based on what he's done so far, I have no concerns about it. And then you layer that with it or you add that on top of the accuracy and the touch, his ability to make layered throws, ability to throw, to deliver the ball where guys can get yards after catch. He's not the most mobile guy, but he's mobile enough.

But the superpowers are his ability to decipher defenses and his ability to deliver the ball accurately. Yeah, Dante, think CJ Stroud is a rookie in Houston. That's kind of the path and trajectory I see with Dante now this year. Dante, you got to remember, started five games as a freshman at UCLA back in 2023. He sat behind Dylan Gabriel in 2024 at Oregon with Will Stein as the offensive coordinator who has become a quarterback whisper in a short period of time, right? So much so that Kentucky threw a bag at him and brought him in to be their head coach.

Okay? Yep. And I'm interested to see now with a new coordinator and Drew Marringer who's been in the program, the system. It's not going to be this totally different system, but it's a different play caller, and there could be some natural bumps in the road. But I'm interested to see Dante, who's now in that second year as a full-time starter in this system with two and a half years of starting experience, four full years in college football, this is the year where you see a Mendoza Leap from Cal to Indiana.

This is the year you see a Jaden Daniels leap from Arizona State first year LSU to that last year at LSU. This is where you see the borough, Ohio State, to first year at LSU, last year at LSU. And I can go on and on, Cam Ward, etc. Bo Nix. I'm expecting to see the most refined, polished, best version of Dante Moore this year. And if we see that, he should be the first overall pick.

He's that talented. And he could just step in the league and have a CJ car. I keep doing this. CJ Stroud like rookie season with Houston. And hopefully more consistency beyond what we've seen from Stroud since then. So that's where I'm at with Dante. And I agree with you on the traits and the areas he needs to improve. Sellers is your guy.

and I'm just going to preface it with this and I'll let you dive in because I like you from day one you you've called him Superman you just you have not wavered a bit and so when I took the time this summer and went back and watch last year which was not a great year and the fit with Mike Shulah's offensive coordinator not a great fit and the product on the field with some injury in and out this all the stuff it was erratic but it was still special yeah his his combination of quickness speed, arm strength, competitiveness, toughness, and flashes, more than flashes. But some real solid examples of being able to lead receivers, drive it down the field, tight windows, all that stuff are phenomenal. Now, he's got to learn to take some heat off the fastball. He misses high over the middle, which is a recipe for disaster. I think there's some touch and natural, like, trajectory stuff and feel that he's missing currently. But now he comes, now steps in Kendall Bryles, who his offenses average over 50 points a game, right?

And it's a system that's going to put his eyes, Lenore Sellers, in the right place, quick reads, you know, and I'm excited to see that fit because I think it's an offense that that will, get some structure to Lenora Sellers game while also affording him the ability to still be Superman, as you like to say. Yeah, I mean, the Superman happened after the Missouri game two years ago where I think he just put that team on his back and said,

we're not losing this game. He refused to lose that game. He was outstanding at the end of the game. I think that's one of the reasons I like him so much is I think if the game is on the line and you need someone to make a play, I think he can do it. The flip side of that has been

is that he's had to carry that team ever since then. And it leads to him maybe pushing and trying to make something happen that's not there. You see those kind of the things. It's a little bit of a nitpicking because we both recognize some of the touch issues.

But I do think, and tell me if I'm wrong, I feel like he's a little more advanced as a pocket passer than maybe you do at this point. And that's why I'm so high. No, I think that's fair. But what's interesting is the third player on, on my Here we go.

Sam Levitt. And I actually think in some regards, in terms of layering and making throws on the move, chaos around him. Sam Levitt is not dissimilar to. In fact, I think that they're very similar. And that neither Levitt nor Sellers is the tallest guy. They're both. I think Sellers is listed at 6.3, I guess, next to him. Yeah.

He's not 6.3. Sam Leavitt is 6.1.5. I think that's pretty much closer. So you don't believe the actual measurement. You just want to go... I mean, in fairness, you did see sellers at the Manning Academy and you... I stood next to him. I'm six...

I guess that's fair. In college, I was 6.07. So just the 1 eighth of an age below 6.1. No, not sneakers on. You think Joe Cullen was letting me put sneakers on as he put my... McShay, get up here. Put your head back, your chin up. Let's go.

Joe Colin on the all-time great. Our defensive line coach at University of Richmond at the time went on to be defensive coordinator and has been in the league for a long time now and is widely considered one of the best defensive line coaches in the end of maybe he's with the chiefs now. Anyway, he's with the lions, the Jaguars, etc. But I digress. Leavitt is just as quick as he is fast. Leavitt is so damn explosive.

It's breathtaking sometimes. Levitt has a loose live arm that you just can't coach. No question. And so, yeah, I see the things you're nitpicking, but I also see sellers. I see the mist slant thrown behind. I see the in-cutting route over a little bit high and behind his receipt. But there's this level of degree of difficulty to his game. and some of the things he can do that I think are exceptional.

And it's not dissimilar from some of the Mahomes stuff. And now I see this opportunity like Mahomes had, yes, sitting behind Alex Smith and working with Andy Reid. Like, it's not that Mahomes entered the league, like not accurate, having no touch and all that stuff. His footwork was a mess because no one kind of forced him to work on schedule on time. And Lane, as I touched on in the beginning, I can't think of a better place for this specific thing. Play within the schedule of my offense, but my offense is going to give you plenty of rope to go not hang yourself, but go be brilliant.

You know? And so I look at Levin and I get pissed off. Now I'm going back to our show from yesterday. I get pissed off because he said, why am I seeing this? And my good friend Steve Munch, we've seen a lot of the same thing. I love you. But why aren't you looking at this situation and saying, I said this. I think Sam Levitt is capable of being a top five pick in the 2027 draft.

And if he goes back for another year, then even more likely so. I think this, I think what's about to happen in Baton Rouge is going to become the story of college football in 2026. And I get it. He's coming off the Liz Frank injury. He just had the, the, the, equipment removed. He wasn't really a full go until just a couple weeks ago. Ran a 21 mile an hour, you know, he was tested to LSU and the GPS. And since then, like, he's getting more, he's going to be ready for camp.

Look at what happened with Trinidad. And I'm seeing a guy who's more talented than Jackson Dart and Trinidad Chambliss. Fair. Going with Lane for at least one year at LSU. I think, I think you're missing the boat on this, man. I think you are. Fair. Super talented quarterback playing for a super talented quarterback developer

and a super talented playmaker. I get it. I'll say it again. I see the world that you envision. I can't give it enough way to overlook some of the issues on tape. And I think his mechanics and his accuracy are all over the place at times. And you don't want to point out one tape, But listen, Mississippi State did not have a good defense.

Second worst defense in the SEC this year. And that tape, he completed 45% of his passes. It was early in the year before he got hurt. He didn't look good. It just didn't look good. And it wasn't, it got better, but not to the point where like, oh, I feel really good about him as a pocket passer. Off script, he's going to make off platform throws.

He is up there with the best in this class. And there are some damn good ones in this class. So I get it. I understand all those things. The accuracy from within the pocket is, a bridge too far for me to put him in my top five. I mean, going back to the Mississippi State thing, that was, we have Arch,

you have Arch behind him. Mississippi State was the get right game for Arch Manning. 346 yards and three touchdowns against that defense. I get it. There's different supporting cast. I understand that. If you're looking at a common opponent between these two guys that are pretty close together,

it's not even close how well Arch played against that team and how well Sam Levitt played against that team. How do you think Arch would have done against Texas Tech? How Arch would have done against Texas Tech? Against that defense, yeah. I don't know. I think that's a damn good defense. I mean, that would have been.

And I thought Sam Levin had a damn good game against that defense. I don't know, man. I'll go back and look at it. I will tell you this. That's not a common opponent. Like, we're now playing a game of, oh, what if and this could have and all that. Well, Texas Tech's defense was up there with Ohio State.

You know, like, I understand. I don't want to get in the nitpicking. I just, I hope you're seeing the talent and the potential, and I hope you're understanding the situation he's walking into it. My biggest thing with Levit is, if I see this player who has these tools that are different than just about everybody else in the class, maybe Sons Lenora Sellers, and now you're telling me he's going to a coach in a situation,

that is as adept at addressing those stay on schedule, the timing of an offense, get your eyes right with your feet and work within these confines, but also utilize that creativity. And I'm staring down this path of brilliant ability and needing this certain thing that is being now handed to him. And it's my job. It's my responsibility as an evaluator to absorb all that. information and report back, this thing could be wildly, wildly successful.

This could be the Fernando Mendoza, Indiana. Oh, this is the perfect marriage with Signetti and Mike Shanahan with Mendoza's traits. Yeah, it could be. So call me over-aggressive. Yes, and that's exactly what I'm calling you, is over-aggressive. I think that you're putting too much weight into it. It could happen. It could happen.

Here's what I know right now. If that happens at the end of the year, do you think you know me well? If everything goes your way, we're going to be an up settling on a very similar grave or Sam Leavitt because we see the same. I know that. So we'll get there.

And if that happens, great. It hasn't happened yet. I haven't seen enough to think it will happen. I mean, I just, I don't. Well, you act like your Lenora Sellers as Drew Brees or Tom Brady. No, I don't. Yeah, like there's some really nice throws. And there's, there's some throws where you're like, oh, it's in the tank.

And hopefully. But like, I'm watching him airmail stuff over the middle with his feet are a mess. And it's the same thing I'm seeing. Not the same identical. But there's warning signs with some of the seller's stuff. Of course, there's with every quarterback. Yep. There's always a flaw with everyone.

And I get that. I think, I mean, I don't even. think it's close. All right, moving on. CJ Carr is another guy that I think is going to go from like, oh, he's a red shirt sophomore, first year starter, Notre Dame, running the ball. They've got two phenomenal backs, both first round draft picks. Jeremiah Love is like out of this world talent-wise and what he did last year,

production-wise. And the best backup, one of the best backups in the history of college football is a first-round draft pick number 32 overall, Judarian Price to the Seattle Seahawks. So the emphasis wasn't on C.J. Carr in the passing game. You saw that reflected in some of the statistics. They're not mind-blowing statistics for a guy

who we're talking about potentially as a first rounder this year. And I'm not going to shy away from it. I spent time around C.J. Carr down at the Manning Passing Academy and just watching the way he understood the coverages, the nuances, the way he throws the ball, the repetitive motion, way he's added bulk to his frame. I just, I think,

I believe he's about to take another massive step. And I think Notre Dame's going to have to and we'll gladly start to open things up and rely on him. And they got two five-star recruits coming in. They got Faison still there, Great House. There's another big, big physical receiver who's injured a lot last year,

but super talented, super productive and had flashes when he was healthy. And now two guys come in, who are five stars, former five stars, Ohio State are transferred to Notre Dame. So they're preparing themselves for what Carr needs to be

and what I expect him to be. And I know you like CJ Carr a lot. He's not the biggest. He's not the fastest. He's not, but my gosh, is he an assassin? Especially like you said on our show,

layered throws outside the numbers, all like there's some areas to improve. But this guy has got the traits, the accuracy, and as the grandson of Lloyd Carr will be well documented, he's just been around ball his whole life. And I could see it firsthand. And I was blown away by how different he was and the way he carries himself and his understanding of the game

and the way he could teach the game compared to every other quarterback, who they were all awesome, all great guys. But he was different, man. Carr was different. thrown into the fire right away. I mean, you open up with Miami and Texas A&M and your first two starts. Awesome.

I would have felt a little bit better if he had played better against Pittsburgh and I think his grade would have been a little bit better. Pittsburgh late in the season, he didn't have a great game. I would have liked to have seen him perform better than that game because their schedule was soft. I mean, that's why they weren't in the playoff.

Let's call it what it is. That said, I'm very excited about where he is in the process. I'm very excited about his tools, not elite, but very good. and I do think he is outstanding and making those touch-timing throws. And now he's going to have an opportunity to play where he's going to be the offense.

It's going to run through him now. And I think he's ready for that. And I agree with you. I see him taking the next step. Archmanning's going to be a big discussion, right? These two people who claim to know what to claim, claim they know what they're doing and evaluating in a position that's arguably the most difficult to evaluate

has had probably more documented high-profile failures than any other position. But still, these guys have been doing it for two and a half decades. They claim to know what they're doing. They've got their own show. How in the hell do they have Arch Manning is tied for fourth or fourth or fifth best grade or fourth best grade in this class. And I want to reiterate what I said off the top. Like, this thing could go a few ways.

One of the ways could be he's the first overall pick. He's that talent. He's 6'4, he's 230 pounds. And my two biggest takeaways watching him were this, and I'm going to sum it up. And it's why I think he could be the first overall pick. And it's also why I think he could be back in Austin, Texas in 2027, and we could be talking about him in the 28 draft class. The first takeaway was even I, after watching every throw during the, the season being caught up in like

how does this fit Texas and where's the improvement and all those things. Even I when you sit down in the summer fresh off the beach mind's relaxed, resetting, was watching him be like, holy shit. He is so fast

and he is such a dynamic weapon as a runner. That acceleration he has when he takes. And he was awesome in that game and he took it over. And the confidence level he was playing with several, not all games in the second half of the season, and especially in that bowl game.

And the way he was like picking up the pups and the litter, if you will, and like, let's go carrying his offense. There were moments where you're like, that's arch. Right? Yep. Still hard to unsee, though, the Ohio State game and some subsequent games. okay and so well you love the progress you love the traits you love the body type you love the

pedigree what's interesting is i don't think the quote unquote pedigree of being a a manning and with your uncles being like really good pocket but like elite pocket passers certainly Peyton Eli like their understanding of the game i don't that's not what i would consider yet a strength of his and I'm sure he'll get closer, if not there. But I think his eyes weren't where they should be a lot. I think he was swimming in it.

I think part of it was media and surroundings driven. I think it's too much no matter where you grew up with who your grandfather is, who your uncles are, who your dad and mom. I think any human being on the face of the planet, it was just around 20 years old

who's in and this boiling pot, if you will, melting pot of Austin, Texas, and the emphasis and then college football where he's not even a full-time starter yet. Right. And he's the number one overall pick. He's the Heisman favorite. These are odds. These aren't just like hype.

These are like, like we're talking about legitimate fan duel. These are odds. And that Texas is, this is the year they win the national championship, right? I think it was a lot for him. Then he met Matt and Patricia and a bunch of first rounders in the defense. Arvel Reese, Caleb Downs, Sonny Stiles. And it was a shock to the system. And the noise got loud.

So if the first takeaway, real quickly, if the first takeaway was, my gosh, he is so much more dynamic than I even kind of like processed last year. My second takeaway was, if I'm being honest, he's further away as a passer currently, then maybe I recognize or wanted to admit because I saw such progress from the beginning of the year to the end of the year. But even in the end of the year, when he was playing really well, his ball placement, his consistency, his confidence in throws were not there. So I need to see as an evaluator and everyone in the NFL needs to see that we're taking

a significant next step as a pastor this year. I agree. I couldn't agree more with everything you just said. I just want to maybe put a point on the noise outside and maybe the impact of all of that. And I can't even imagine trying to deal with it. I think if you don't handle it well, it's probably because of two reasons. One, you kind of, you know, what people would say is wilt under the pressure or you can't handle the spotlight. But I think, and I think this is the case with Arch, I think the other situation is you're trying to. hard. I think it was a lot of, I want to live up to this. And I honestly don't think,

and people can call me, whatever, they're going to tell me I'm sucking up to whatever. I don't care. I also don't think it was about living up to what his family expectations were or what expectations were outside the building. I really feel like he wanted to live up to what his teammates expected of him. He wanted to give that to everyone around him that he cares deeply about. Right. He wanted to be that guy for them. Not the family was important. It wasn't about the legacy. It was about his team. And I really believe that, which I think is encouraging going forward. Yeah, so that's where we are in Arch.

And you're going to look at these rankings and say, oh, they don't believe, you know, they're anti. Listen, man, I'm buds with Cooper, his dad. I just spent time with he and Archie and Eli and Peyton. Like, I believe in them as a family in terms of what they're doing. how they're supporting, I believe in Arch. I also was walking around and witnessing all, like, everyone, some people love Chambliss and some, I love Julianne saying, but like Arch walks out of that building onto a field or is walking

from one field to the next field. It's like, with the Beatles, man. Yeah. And so there's a lot to, there's a lot to handle. But you know what? Iron sharpens iron. and this is only going to make him better because he proved that

even in the face of it when everyone was like quitting Arch he was like he's stuck in there he grinded that is that that's parenting that's family that's growing up in it that's having the tools and some people will say well of course he's like a nepo baby he gets everything

he's get the best he's got Texas get all the money in the world and he's no I mean like like as a dad, like the foundation pieces. Yeah. So I'm excited to see what happens now in year two with Sark. Oh, by the way, Cam Coleman comes in. Cannot be understated how good that kid is.

Yes. He is a dude. It was him and Ryan Williams and Jeremiah Smith were like 1A, 1B, 1C in that unbelievable recruiting class. And Cam Coleman has shown brilliance. But Cam Coleman's been dealing with some quarterbacks that just don't belong at the table. Let's be honest.

and so now Arch has got and he's got another one in in Wingo right? Yeah. In Wingo who is super talented also in that recruiting class but a lot of drops. A lot of inconsistency. So they need a one so they can get Wingo

some of the screens, the quick slant, some of that stuff to let them get the ball and take it after. So that's going to be fun to watch this offense. Agree. And I think before we transition into like where these guys could go the NFL teams that are looking and the list is really intriguing. I'm excited to get there.

I do want to mention MENSA and I mentioned it briefly off the top. That cat can flat out dissect you. He's an absolute assassin and I think because he played at Duke and they're not in many national games

and the ACC took a clear back seat and has for a little while to the SEC and the Big Ten, or you can say Big Ten SEC. I'm not here for that fight today. I think people underestimate who he is, but Miami had their choice probably with the money they were throwing around. We heard Ty Simpson offered maybe up to $6 million to go to Miami. Miami doesn't get guys that aren't ready to come in and do it as we saw with Cam Ward and Carson Beck. This guy is in Miami for a reason. and Duke was, as you said on our show yesterday,

Duke sued the situation, if you will, to try to get Mintsa back because of what we saw on tape. I think he's got a chance to be a really good starter. We and I both have late first round grades on him right now, and I think he's going to be, just like Beck and Ward before him, I think he's going to ascend this year. I agree. Don't hate me. Quick question before you move on.

Yeah. Brendan Soresby, Cincinnati, slash Texas Tech quarterback. not in the top five. Is he in your top five if we are strictly going off of skill set and tape? And if he was playing this fall. And if he's playing this fall, let's do that.

We'll add that to the list. The mix. I don't know who I'm bumping out. I know. But the answer is probably yes. I think I'd have him tied. You would feel comfortable with him having a first round grade. Is that a better way of saying it?

I would have him in a 90, and I would probably, like, maybe with Mensa. Okay. So maybe it wouldn't be top five now that I've done. But you got to remember, we had to do Sorsby first because of all the situation going on. And I see a first round. Like, he's a first round talent if, I don't want to say he's in the neighborhood talent-wise of sellers and Levitt for me. Mm-hmm.

And Arch. I'm not saying he's, and Arch. They're in that. Those four are in that neighborhood of a mobility level, an armed talent level that separates them skill-wise from even Dante Moore and CJ Carr and Mensa, okay? Yes. Of those four, he is the least refined. He is the most raw. But he is thick.

He is strong. He is big. He's a powerful runner. He's a fast runner. he is a very instinctive runner. He creates, he extends, and there's more Mahomes in his game, if I'm being honest, than any of these other cats.

But there's also some, like, Lamar here. There's some Josh Allen there. But I'm just saying, like, the arm angles, the magician type, how the hell did he do that? Yeah. Tape, but he's also the least refined as a pastor. He's got the most growth that needs to happen. And the really, truly unfortunate part that he got himself into.

I'm not making any apologies. And I've said this. I'm thrilled that he finally stopped the fight. And I'm hopeful between now and January, it's about ownership, maturing, taking a deep look into himself, making sure he has the right things in place with the gambling addiction, and letting the league know, most secondly to... actually doing the work on himself that I do own what I did. I am imperfect.

I'm still capable of being a leader of men. I'm still capable of being trustworthy and hear the reasons why. But first and foremost, I am sorry. I made the action. It was my actions that put me in this situation. And I'm ready to be a man at the grown man's table. And I wasn't a few months ago when I, when my lawyers were fighting every different way

to get out of the problems I created. So he created these problems and now he's got to deal with it and he's going to wind up losing millions of dollars on that first contract. And most importantly, honestly, from a development standpoint, he's missing out on a four-month run

of development playing games. And we've seen from the Bow Nix to the Jaden Daniels to most of the top quarterbacks and look at Fernando in that third year. He needed more game experience. He's not going to get it. And that's as scary to me as anything else.

Yeah, he's preparing. He's working with a quarterback coach. He's getting right. He's getting right off the field and on the field. We'll see him at the senior bowl. But not getting that opportunity is why I give a grade in the 80s rather than potentially a 90 and up there with the top five. Got it.

Wanted to get a feel for that because I think people are going to want to understand. why he's where he's at in the rankings when they're updated. No, I appreciate and I'm glad you called that out. All right. I think it's a perfect time to transition. What's fascinating about this class, in addition to the depth of talent, is where some of these NFL teams are in their current quarterback situation, right? And I kind of clump it into tears or maybe two different groupings of assuming things kind of play out the way that we think.

think they're going to play out. It's the most likely scenario. There's a few teams that are going to be heavy, heavy quarterback market and have a chance maybe to be drafting early enough to just take one and or have multiple picks in the first round. Those teams include the Jets, the Browns, the Cardinals. I would put Pittsburgh in this middle ground of, they're probably going to win a bunch of games, decent chance they make the playoffs, but they're every bit as QB needy for the future as those other teams.

Yep. Right? You got Aaron Rogers. The Sorsby situation, had he gotten a supplemental draft from the NFL, that opportunity? I thought Pittsburgh was kind of a perfect place. Right. You know, bring him in.

He's around Aaron Rogers. Aaron's not going to be back for 2027. Maybe he'll be at least kind and teach a couple things, but who cares if he is or he isn't? Soresby can sit back and learn from this guy as he's suspended for part, if not all the season, all that. But didn't play out that way. But Pittsburgh's a team that may be once again picking in the 20s, but this time it's not Kenny pick it. This time it could be CJ. car. It could be Sam Levitt. It could be Julian Sane if he makes, it could be Sorsby. It could be

Darien Mensa. That part's fascinating to me. So talk to me through those four teams that I mentioned. I would add anything different or who would you add? I would add Minnesota. I really believe that Minnesota is, I mean, I don't, I'm not a believer that Kyler Murray's long-term answer. J.J. McCarthy will be he's going into his third season now and won't be the starter. So, though, I mean, if we're being honest about where we stand right now, do we think J.J. McCarthy, they're going to pick up the fifth year option on J.J. McCarthy? I'd be stunned. I'd be stunned. So I think Minnesota is another team in there.

And then there's a bunch of, and I'm sure you're going to get these teams. But I also think, so let's go back to that first group. What's fascinating is, it's probable that, the Jets are going to have a top 5-7 pick, right? Right. Naturally. They also have those other two first rounders,

and we know they, first of all, Darren Mugi, the general manager, was actually at the Manning Passing Academy. Right. He's tall. Fucking string bean, by the way.

I couldn't believe how to. I had never met him before. He's like 6'4, man. Anyway, I saw one general manager there last year in 2025 and it was less need,

a team that took a quarterback in the first round. Right. But he's close with the Manning family. He consistently goes there, but he was there. And Ryan Poles was there because his son went. His son is a quarterback and was at the camp. This year, Poles was back, son there.

Met Ryan Poles' dad, grandfather. He's a third. trip, man. It was awesome to catch up with him. Anyway. But Moji was there. Detroit had a representative there in Chris Greer. Keep it on the lines, man. But anyway, so you get the Jets and the Browns with multiple picks.

The Browns have two. The Jets have three, right? There you would think some way some shape are going to wind up probably picking the top five, whether it's just earn the pick or can move up. with multiple picks. Arizona only has one pick, but I like Carson Beck. I just don't, I'm not settling with this draft class coming up.

And Pittsburgh and Minnesota are two teams that, quite frankly, it's very capable of getting in the playoffs. And if they don't, maybe they miss it by a game, and they're still picking in that like 18 to whatever, early 20 range. Okay? Right.

Then there are these other teams that I think are interesting. And these are the teams that could benefit from the depth of quarterbacks. But also, I think there might be a team or two that wind up taking a quarterback because like, when are we going to get an opportunity like this? Yeah. Atlanta is fascinating. One of my teams on that list, too.

Right? Atlanta's fascinating because you just drafted Pennix the same year McCarthy was drafted. This is a huge year. Do we have a guy or not? And can he say healthy and all that? third year for those quarterbacks, just to be clear. They were drafted in 24. This is the third season.

So by the end of this year, you're going to decide whether you're going to tag them, you're going to extend them, or you're going to just let them go in their final year of that rookie contract. You have one more year, but this is going to go a long way towards telling you whether or not you're going to do it. And to a tongue of Iloa was brought in as well, right? Yep. One year deal. Now there's some other teams that are big name programs, if you will, organizations. that I just want to throw on the radar.

My son Tate is a massive Baker-Mayfield Buccaneers fan. And I'm having a hard time telling them that there's some writing on this wall as an undersized guy's taking a lot of hits. He's got to have a big year, I think, for them to commit long-term. That's public knowledge, right? So they're an interesting team to keep an eye on. As they kind of revamped and got younger when their entire – their whole draft was defense, right?

Right. Then you get the Eagles. Is this just another offseason of a lot of noise? And AJ Brown's out and J.L. Hurtz is disgruntled, but he's going to be fine. And they just like to, they're that family. Like, Morris is Italian. So I'm always like, you guys just yell too much.

It's like there's a lot of yelling going on. But they couldn't love each other more. So maybe the Eagles are just that organization that are always going to be fighting. And there's going to be chaos. But they thrive on it. and then it's a beautiful, wonderful thing. But it feels like it's gotten a little bit. Or maybe Howie just Howie's and takes advantage of the depth of the class and says,

there's no way I'm not taking one here. Right. So they're one of those teams to keep an eye out. And in that division, that Dallas, Dak Prescott, age, money,

opportunity to draft someone younger, don't have to play. However that plays out, I'm told to keep an eye out on, Dallas could, by the way, the way they've rebuilt that defense in the last eight months, they legitimately could be playing for a Super Bowl this year. And I am the anti, like, get off first take and get up every fucking day. Like, it drives me crazy.

Can you imagine they're actually good? What will happen? It's going to be a frenzy. It will be nauseating. Nauseating. But keep an eye on Dallas. Anyone I missed? Yes.

Colts. Daniel Jones, if he doesn't have a good year. How about Texans? Is it C.J. Yes. How about, I think the lines are sneaky. They're a little more fringe. Yes.

But wouldn't surprise me. And then Carolina. I should have mentioned, he's brought, he's, I forget the exact title, but he's, he's, he's now Brad Holmes is the, is the, the general manager. We know Chris Spielman's there and they've got an unbelievable. Yeah. What John Dorsey's there now too. Oh, I don't know that.

They've put together like this super The SEAL team six front offices. Seal team six, thank you. But I think that's intriguing, the Detroit situation. So, yeah. Carolina. That's a lot of teams, man. I mean.

Carolina. And who's there? There were some snakes in the grass, man, that I think, like I said with Howie, I think there's some snakes in the grass. Carolina is real. Carolina is real. And Dan Morgan said, all the right things.

I was really encouraged by the progress I saw from, from Bryce Young in certain areas. And even the playoff loss, I was like, I'm starting to see it, right? But undersized, take some beatings, roller coaster. This is a proven. A lot of, I mean, from from car to young, not cars, I'm doing it again, Stroud to Young to Baker weirdly enough to the Minnesota situation, to Penix, too.

There's a lot of guys that like this is a, there's a lot of individuals with certain teams where this is like, oh, we're great. Sign them up. 40, 50, 50, 60 million, whatever it is. Or we're out. Like break up. Marriage is over. Like, it's kind of wild.

That's a lot of teams we're mentioning. Atlanta, Minnesota, Tampa Bay, Philly. I'm not going to throw Dallas in there. Detroit, not going to throw them in there. Yeah, they're French. I think Dallas and Detroit are fringe.

Yeah. Houston, Carolina. That's a lot of organizations. It is. And it couldn't be a better year for all of that kind of potential chaos with the quarterbacks in the NFL than the potential for this being one of, if not the best quarterback classes the draft has

ever seen, right? Yeah, one other team. And I can't see them doing it. But I never saw Atlanta drafting Pennix in the top 10 after signing great president to that deal. There's going to be one. Miami. I wrote them down. I should have mentioned it.

Yeah, Miami's another one to keep an eye on. I mean, do they fall in love with one of these guys? And Malik Willis doesn't have the year that they're hoping he has. And they paid him. it's a contract that it's a lot of money, but it won't, they can, my understanding is they can. There's options.

Yes. I also will never forget looking at their 30 visits pre-draft and the quarterbacks that they were bringing in just in case an opportunity. I'm talking third round, but when you sign a guy, a big name guy, and you're clearly re, retort,

No organization shredded more before starting to build. It's from scratch. I've never seen anything like. John Eric Sullivan, John Eric Sullivan in a weird way, the new general manager, has like a dream opportunity as a pure evaluator. Like there's nothing better.

There's no pressure to win right now. That old roster is stripped down. It is yours to build however you want to build it. And they had an awesome draft. They did. So, so, but to bring in all those quarterbacks and to be that interested, it signaled to me, yeah, they obviously are, they're counting on Malik to be awesome and to take the next steps and what he learned from LaFleur. But we're not banking our entire organization and my career is the new first time general manager on that it's definitely him. No questions asked.

So, agree. Which is smart business. Yeah. All right. This has been fun. We appreciate the NFL or the ringer. NFL show, I should say. We appreciate the NFL too. Give me us a hell of a life, you know.

Good business. We appreciate everyone. But we appreciate the ringer NFL show for giving us the opportunity to spread our wings a little bit here in the ringer. Maybe get to a little bit different audience. If you like what you heard today, the McShay show, it's on Netflix. It's on Spotify. It's on Apple, wherever else you get your podcast. We'd love to have you part of our family, if you will. And if you thought we sucked, then you probably aren't even listening this because you probably turned the thing off day.

If we sucked, it was an off day. We're usually much better. It was definitely an off day. It definitely was. Mench, as always, brother, five stars. Thanks, man. Ringer NFL show is produced by Chris Sutton. Video editor is Stefano Sanchez

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