Jets fans must accept the Arch Manning dream is likely over (for now)

If we didn’t know any better, we’d think Texas Longhorn star Arch Manning wanted to avoid the New York Jets at all costs.

Manning likely won’t want to hear much consolation about his poor play, which has led to consecutive losses and significantly damaged the Longhorns’ College Football Playoff chances. But he’s likely in luck if he hopes to avoid playing for the Jets, Miami Dolphins, or any other quarterback-needy team expected to have a top-10 pick.

Rumors began mounting earlier this month that Manning won’t declare for the 2027 draft, and mock-draft creators agree. The Jet Press’ Mike Luciano is the latest draft analyst to project that the Jets will instead use the No. 6 pick on Notre Dame’s CJ Carr.

Luciano wrote that Carr “might be the safest of the big prospects in this class,” a claim we once envisioned hearing about Manning.

New York Jets fans shouldn’t expect the team to take Arch Manning in the 2027 NFL Draft

None of this is new to college football fans, but Manning stands out to casual fans in an unrivaled way. He’s the latest member of a historic football family with four Super Bowl rings and, depending on how voters feel about Eli Manning, could have a second Hall of Famer in the coming months. 

Archie Manning went No. 2 in the 1971 NFL Draft, with Peyton Manning (No. 1 in 1998) and Eli (No. 1 in 2004) following him. Arch has been linked to the No. 1 spot since high school, and good luck finding anyone who predicted he’d spend 2027 in college as a fifth-year senior.

We can’t guarantee that Carr or Oklahoma State’s Drew Mestemaker will become perennial Pro Bowlers. Frankly, the recent crop of first-round quarterbacks has us extremely concerned about what NFL offenses will look like when the likes of Patrick Mahomes, Lamar Jackson, and Josh Allen all begin to regress. 

No one should feel bad for a quarterback earning over $2 million in NIL, as callous as that sounds. If Manning does declare for the draft, we also won’t be surprised if a team talks itself into using a late first-round pick on him; as far as we know, he doesn’t have the character concerns that potentially caused Shedeur Sanders’ infamous drop to the fifth round.

But for Jets fans who will only start paying attention to college football ahead of the playoffs, we suggest getting familiar with the players not named Manning. You should specifically turn your attention to Carr, Miami’s Darian Mensah, and Ole Miss’ Trinidad Chambliss, all of whom are on pace to make the CFP.

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