NY Jets could receive Arch Manning lifeline if NFL makes much-desired change

The NY Jets may not be projected to win many games in the 2025 season, as analysts seem unconvinced that Justin Fields is capable of turning this franchise around.

The Jets may find it difficult to select Manning, who is widely regarded as the leading contender to earn the role of No. 1 overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft, if they scrounge out a few wins here and there. Without some sort of lottery system similar to what is the NBA, Manning may not come to New York.

After the Dallas Mavericks turned a 1.8% chance at the No. 1 overall pick into the right to select Duke star Cooper Flagg, Adam Schefter called this an idea the NFL should consider working with, citing both the fact that it will make the end of seasons more competitive and result in a ratings boost.

If this were implemented before the 2026 NFL Draft, including similar odds to what the NBA and MLB have installed as they try to curb tanking, the Jets might have an even better shot at bringing Manning to New York.

Adam Schefter's NFL Draft lottery would help Jets get Arch Manning

On one hand, a lottery would discourage teams from bottoming out near the end of any given season, thus preventing a race to the bottom that would "reward" a team that is putting the least competitive product on the field with a player who could change their fortunes.

On the other hand, tanking is a much more widespread epidemic in basketball and baseball that needs to be curtailed by a lottery. Imagine the sparks that would fly if a team goes 2-15 and loses their shot at Manning by falling to No. 5 overall in the order.

The Jets will likely be bad, but not No. 1 pick bad, in 2025. Even in a class that features Penn State's Drew Allar and South Carolina's LaNorris Sellers, Manning could be the prize if he ends up fulfilling his immense potential. Even if Fields gives the Jets a few wins, ping pong balls could have come in handy.

The NFL will likely not institute a lottery anytime soon, as it is much harder (bordering on impossible, some might say) to try and lose NFL games on purpose. The Jets will likely need to prepare for a world in which yet another top Manning prospect slides out of their grasp.