Jets-Browns might not be the 'Arch Manning Bowl' we'd have expected

If you’d told us a month ago that a New York Jets-Cleveland Browns game would feature a division leader, we’d have asked why Patrick Mahomes was spending his bye week at MetLife Stadium.  

Feast your eyes on the Browns, who have won three straight and enter Sunday alone atop the AFC North. As for the Jets, they’ve dropped three straight and are fresh off an immensely disappointing loss to the short-handed Bears. 

Deshaun Watson and Geno Smith aren’t the notable matchup they would have been three years ago, but they’re not the quarterbacks on our minds ahead of Week 5. For all intents and purposes, the Browns and Jets are days away from kicking off the Arch Manning Bowl. 

Could the New York Jets or Cleveland Browns take Arch Manning in the 2027 NFL Draft?

You know the deal by now, so we’ll keep the background context short. Manning is a presumptive top-five pick in next spring’s draft, assuming that he forgoes his final year of eligibility and leaves the Texas Longhorns. 

Today isn’t about evaluating Manning or projecting how he’ll fare in the pros. That’s a job left for scouting departments — and with how ugly the quality of play among young quarterbacks has been recently, we don’t envy them. The transfer portal, players staying in college longer, and the coaching carousel have done significant damage to quarterback development.

Whoever finishes with a higher draft spot will be linked to Manning. Things are that simple. We’ve seen enough Cleveland-related misery to know that a 3-1 start can easily derail into a 5-12 finish, especially given the Browns’ quarterback problems. Watson is a league-average starter at best, regardless of what “redemption tour” narratives the national media has elected to push. 

For what it’s worth, Manning has completed 63.5 percent of his passes for 862 yards, seven touchdowns, and three interceptions for the No. 1 Longhorns. He’s also rushed for only 82 yards and no scores, though his pedestrian numbers are easily forgiven when Texas sits atop the polls. 

Speaking of quarterbacks, could we finally see the Jets turn to Cade Klubnik this weekend? Although Smith has avoided turnovers, they’re facing a 1-4 record. At what point does Aaron Glenn give Klubnik — a fourth-round pick this past spring — an extended audition with the starting offense?

For now, Jets and Browns fans still have their eyes set on Manning, and they’re likely not alone. The Arizona Cardinals have dropped three straight, and the Miami Dolphins are 0-4 amid the early stages of a rebuild. Who knows if the Tennessee Titans will even bother to stick with Cam Ward if they have a chance at landing Manning, whose uncle, Peyton, played at the University of Tennessee?

Things are always encouraging when we’re discussing the Jets’ possible draft plans through the first four weeks of a season. So much for all of that summer optimism.

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