2026 NFL Draft: Rankings, Finest Staff Matches for High 12 Quarterbacks

[ad_1] Of the highest 150 NFL prospects on my remaining Large Board, you’ll see solely eight quarterbacks included, with simply three among the many first 100. If the draft falls that approach, it will likely be the primary since 2000 during which there weren’t not less than 4 QBs among the many first 100 gamers chosen.

Most years, the primary spherical is the spherical to look at for quarterbacks. And this 12 months isn't any exception, as the place (and when) Ty Simpson is chosen will generate enormous ripple results on this draft. However I count on the most important run on QBs to transpire within the fourth spherical.

We’ve documented the ups and downs of this 12 months’s class because the starting and finish of the season. Now, with the draft lastly upon us, I've grades on the highest 12 draftable quarterbacks.

Right here is how I rank them and why.

12. Mark Gronowski, Iowa Projected spherical: 7/UDFAPro comp: Jaren HallBest staff suits: San Francisco 49ers, Dallas Cowboys

With an NCAA-record 58 profession wins, together with two nationwide championships at South Dakota State previous to ending his collegiate profession at Iowa, Gronowski actually is a winner. And he possesses NFL measurement, athleticism and toughness, as properly. Regardless of what his profession 103-27 landing to interception price and 63% competitors proportion counsel, nonetheless, Gronowski lacks ideally suited accuracy. He has the dual-threat skill and intangibles to stay as a backup and developmental undertaking, warranting late-round consideration.

11. Joe Fagnano, Connecticut Joe Fagnano of UConn participates in a drill through the 2026 NFL Scouting Mix at Lucas Oil Stadium on February 28, 2026, in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Picture by Cooper Neill/Getty Photos)

Projected spherical: 6-7Pro comp: Bailey ZappeBest staff suits: New England Patriots, Tennessee Titans, New Orleans Saints

A conventional pocket passer with good anticipation, zip and accuracy to assault brief and intermediate zones, Fagnano’s sport interprets higher to the NFL than a number of the different Day 3 candidates. Nevertheless, he’s an older prospect (he turns 25 this month) and one who confronted restricted competitors over his profession, taking part in 4 seasons at Maine (an FCS faculty) earlier than transferring to UConn, the place his manufacturing was boosted by the presence of speedy wideout Skyler Bell. However make no mistake, Fagnano’s manufacturing was eye-popping at Connecticut: a 48:6 TD-INT ratio over two seasons as a starter. He varies his launch properly and takes care of the soccer, not often placing it in harms approach. Fagnano additional helped his inventory on the East-West Shrine Bowl.

10. Diego Pavia, Vanderbilt Projected spherical: 6-7Pro comp: Max DugganBest staff suits: Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Cincinnati Bengals, New York Jets

Padilla is the underdog that attracts so many to sports activities within the first place. He’s a 5-foot-10, 207-pound former zero-star recruit who constructed himself right into a Heisman Trophy finalist and four-time staff captain with victories over each Alabama and Auburn in his profession. He’s best-suited for an RPO assault, exhibiting braveness and craftiness as a runner (31 speeding TDs over his profession), in addition to good accuracy on the transfer. Nevertheless, that accuracy wanes because the passes get deeper, and I believe he’ll battle with the tighter home windows within the NFL. He’s at his finest taking part in off script, and never each staff will likely be comfy together with his improvisational type and persona. That stated, I really like his competitiveness and creativity.

9. Haynes King, Georgia Tech Projected spherical: 6Pro comp: Tyrod TaylorBest staff suits: Buffalo Payments, New York Giants, Denver Broncos

It isn’t usually {that a} quarterback leads a Energy 4 convention in speeding touchdowns, however that was the case with King, whose 15 scores on the bottom was yet one more than he threw final season. These numbers belie King’s intriguing accuracy (and willingness to check tight home windows) on brief to intermediate throws. He can throw the ball with zip and contact alike. He lacks the arm energy of a few of this 12 months’s different draftable quarterbacks, nonetheless, and, as such, is a bit scheme dependent. As his speeding totals counsel, King is a dynamic athlete for the quarterback place, clocking in at 4.46 seconds within the 40-yard sprint. He started his faculty profession as a four-star prospect for Texas A&M however struggled with accidents there earlier than transferring to Georgia Tech, the place he steadily developed into probably the most productive quarterbacks in class historical past. His work ethic, competitiveness and dual-threat skills might assist him discover a area of interest within the NFL, although possible as a backup.

8. Cade Klubnik, Clemson Cade Klubnik of Clemson participates in a drill through the 2026 NFL Scouting Mix at Lucas Oil Stadium on February 28, 2026, in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Picture by Lauren Leigh Bacho/Getty Photos)

Projected spherical: 5 (No. 145 prospect rank)Professional comp: Brett HundleyBest staff suits: Denver Broncos, San Francisco 49ers, Minnesota Vikings

Quarterbacks usually get an excessive amount of of the reward when issues go incorrect and Klubnik is an ideal instance of how they will get an excessive amount of of the blame when a staff struggles. He was removed from faultless for the Tigers’ disappointing 2025 marketing campaign, watching his passing touchdowns plummet from 36 as a junior to simply 16 (in 12 video games), regardless of his completion proportion leaping to a career-high 66%. At 6-foot-2, 207 kilos, Klubnik lacks ideally suited measurement and possesses solely common arm energy. However he is a top quality athlete with good accuracy on brief to intermediate passes, together with on the transfer. Like numerous athletic passers, he tends to stay too lengthy on his preliminary learn, then skip too shortly by secondary progressions after which begin to drift out of the pocket, dropping his eyes and on the lookout for an escape route. He acquired into some dangerous habits making an attempt to place a Clemson offense that didn’t have the dynamic playmakers it as soon as had onto his again. I nonetheless see starter-level potential, however Klubnik wants some refining and a greater supporting forged to get again to his prior playmaking self.

7. Drew Allar, Penn State Projected spherical: 4 (No. 120 prospect rank)Professional comp: Landry JonesBest staff suits: Pittsburgh Steelers, Cleveland Browns, Los Angeles Chargers

If one had been to attract up the prototypical NFL quarterback, it'd look lots like Allar. He checks in at a stable 6-foot-5, 228 kilos, and he has an absolute bazooka of a proper arm. He could make each throw in an NFL playbook and enters the league as a three-year starter with a sterling 61:13 TD-INT ratio. However as I instructed FOX's Eric Williams in his piece on this 12 months's Most Underhyped and Overhyped Prospects, I’ve but to see Allar present the requisite instincts to translate his expertise into constant high-level play. He will get frazzled when his preliminary learn is taken away and too usually resorts to checkdowns, relatively than trusting his arm (or teammates) to make vital performs. He regarded like a future first-round choose again in 2023 however he is regressed since, and his senior marketing campaign was abruptly minimize brief because of a damaged ankle that saved him from collaborating within the All-Star video games and pre-draft exercises. There isn't any denying Allar’s attract. Nobody must be shocked if he's drafted sooner than my rating. However I believe he’s additional away than his traits and stats counsel.

6. Cole Payton, North Dakota State Projected spherical: 4 (No. 116 prospect rank) Professional comp: Jake LockerBest staff suits: Inexperienced Bay Packers, Pittsburgh Steelers

Payton is comparable in some ways to the aforementioned Taylen Inexperienced in that he's a basic dual-threat quarterback whose skill as a runner is each bit as helpful as his present passing expertise. His first begin on the collegiate stage, in truth, got here at operating again, not quarterback. He's a left-handed energy thrower nonetheless studying the nuances of passing the ball with timing and precision. However there are some "wow" throws on tape — and an intriguing number of them — together with the usual verticals that require imaginative and prescient and arm energy, but in addition post-corners needing contact and rollouts that exhibit his skill to throw precisely on the transfer. A bodily, decided runner, Payton provides off some Taysom Hill vibes, however I believe he has extra upside as a passer. He’ll require endurance, however he's arguably essentially the most intriguing developmental quarterback of this class.

5. Taylen Inexperienced, Arkansas Taylen Inexperienced of Arkansas participates in a drill through the 2026 NFL Scouting Mix at Lucas Oil Stadium on February 28, 2026, in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Picture by Lauren Leigh Bacho/Getty Photos)

Projected spherical: 4 (No. 113 prospect rank) Professional comp: A mixture of Randall Cunningham and Anthony RichardsonBest staff suits: Indianapolis Colts, Baltimore Ravens, Philadelphia Eagles

There are few gamers on this draft at any place with extra spotlight reel performs than Inexperienced, a outstanding 6-foot-6, 227-pounder who enters the NFL with a staggering 94 general touchdowns scored over 4 seasons unfold between Arkansas and Boise State. His explosive playmaking skill was apparent on tape, however the numbers he produced on the Mix had been gorgeous nontheless — together with a 4.36 40-yard sprint and 43.5-inch vertical leap. Groups on the lookout for a real dual-threat quarterback might see Inexperienced as a possible famous person. The priority is that Inexperienced stays fairly uncooked as a pocket passer given his 46 profession begins. He sometimes waits for his receivers to get open, relatively than anticipating home windows, staring down his main targets and permitting defensive linemen alternatives to bat down extra balls than you’d count on for a quarterback of his peak. He's too fast to float out of the pocket and drop his eyes to scramble relatively than stepping up in opposition to strain to permit pass-catchers time. Inexperienced is a lottery ticket that might repay huge, however he requires an offense catered to his ability set and there are solely so a lot of these within the NFL.

4. Carson Beck, Miami Projected spherical: 4 (No. 107 prospect rank)Professional comp: Mason RudolphBest staff suits: Miami Dolphins, Washington Commanders

Beck personifies the philosophical divide about this 12 months’s quarterback class. Critics are fast to level out that Beck struggled in huge moments. Optimists can simply counter that his cerebral play and precision passing out of pro-style offenses are why his groups persistently performed in huge video games within the first place. Those that imagine in "QB wins" as a metric word that Beck was 37-6 as a starter over his profession at Georgia and Miami. Beck seems the half at practically 6-foot-5, 233 kilos, with a handy guide a rough over-the-top supply and good accuracy to all ranges of the sector. He's pretty much as good throwing the ball off play-action as any quarterback on this class, exhibiting the pre-snap recognition that comes with going through elite competitors (in video games and practices) over his profession. Beck is a basic rhythm passer who's implausible when he feels comfy within the pocket, however hasn’t persistently proven the "ice in his veins" poise to undertaking as a frontline NFL starter.

3. Garrett Nussmeier, LSU Projected spherical: 2-3 (No. 70 prospect rank)Professional comp: Drew LockBest staff suits: New York Jets, Pittsburgh Steelers

Given the place he's prone to be drafted, Nussmeier might very properly show the perfect worth of this 12 months’s quarterback class. That could be a daring assertion, certainly, on condition that he was benched for the ultimate month of his remaining marketing campaign. However just like Ty Simpson, Nussmeier wasn’t surrounded by the standard LSU supporting forged — the Tigers struggled with drops, inconsistent blocking and a poor operating sport. An stomach pressure suffered early on restricted Nussmeier’s arm energy, however that didn’t cease him from taking the dangerous throws into protection that had earned him a first-round grade in my preliminary QB Tiers article getting into the season. Nussmeier lacks ideally suited measurement at slightly below 6-foot-2, 203 kilos, and his gunslinger mentality is as prone to get him into hassle as it's to assist him succeed, however I need that sort of "let it rip" confidence at quarterback. The son of an NFL (and CFL) quarterback and present offensive coordinator of the New Orleans Saints, Nussmeier enters the league as mentally ready for the complexities of the professional sport as anybody on this listing. At worst, I see a longtime high quality backup with an opportunity to "shock" as way more.

2. Ty Simpson, Alabama Ty Simpson of Alabama participates in a drill through the 2026 NFL Scouting Mix at Lucas Oil Stadium on February 28, 2026, in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Picture by Stacy Revere/Getty Photos)

Projected spherical: 2 (No. 33 prospect rank) Professional comp: Jimmy GaroppoloBest staff suits: Arizona Cardinals, Los Angeles Rams

Undersized and getting into the NFL with only one season as a starter, Simpson’s faults are straightforward to see. However so too are his strengths, together with the short psychological processing that comes from being a coach’s son, in addition to spectacular accuracy each within the pocket and on the transfer. He's a proficient passer with as many "big-time throws" in 2025 as any quarterback on this class. And whereas Alabama is perennially loaded with expertise, Simpson wasn’t blessed with the identical caliber of a supporting forged as his latest Crimson Tide predecessors, usually throwing his receivers open relatively than having them break off the large performs on their very own that may pad a QB’s statistics. The monitor file for quarterbacks getting into the NFL with lower than 20 collegiate begins is scary, and the 6-foot-1, 212-pound Simpson (15 begins, all in 2025) was overwhelmed up by the tip of this season. It takes some religion to undertaking him as a future franchise quarterback — however the passing skill and moxie are there.

1. Fernando Mendoza, Indiana Projected spherical: 1 (No. 4 prospect rank) Professional comp: A mixture of Jared Goff and Andrew LuckBest staff match: Las Vegas Raiders

At practically 6-foot-5, 236 kilos, Mendoza actually seems the a part of an NFL quarterback, and he possesses the arm energy and accuracy to star on the highest stage, as properly. It's his intangibles, nonetheless, which have me most excited. The composure he confirmed in guiding Indiana to its first nationwide championship undertaking properly to dealing with the psychological rigors he’ll face on the subsequent stage. There isn't any denying that Mendoza was aided by a comparatively easy RPO-based Hoosiers offense, however too usually his critics fail to say how shortly he tailored to this scheme after starting his profession at Cal, the place he additionally confirmed future NFL starter skill. Nobody ought to count on Mendoza to be a franchise savior — he lacks the elite bodily traits of No. 1 general candidates of prior years. However he’s good, powerful, decided and poised. If he’s given a top quality supporting forged, the Mendoza magic can proceed within the NFL.