CLEVELAND, Ohio — As soon as the Browns traded down from the second pick in the 2025 NFL Draft and acquired a 2026 first-round pick from Jacksonville, the popular notion was that their next potential franchise quarterback might be a year away.
That’s not to say that neither Dillon Gabriel nor Shedeur Sanders could play well enough as rookies to change that plan. However, the odds of a late third-round pick or a fifth-round pick succeeding at quarterback are incredibly small.
The good news for the Browns is the 2026 NFL Draft class is much stronger at quarterback right now than 2025’s was. There’s no guarantee all the eligible quarterbacks will enter this draft. But the ones who certainly could look almost as enticing if not more than Miami’s Cam Ward, who went first in 2025 to the Titans.
As a disclaimer, I’m purposely not including Texas’ Arch Manning in this list of best eligible quarterbacks. I 100% get the Manning hype because he looks like the ideal prototype at 6-4, 225 pounds with the running ability he has, as evidenced by a 67-yard touchdown run in Week 2 vs. UTSA last season.
But there have been multiple reports including Jeff Howe of The Athletic suggesting that Manning is more than likely to not enter the 2026 draft, and it makes sense why. Manning has thrown a grand total of 95 passes at Texas, completing 63 for 969 yards, nine touchdowns and two interceptions. More and more, we’re seeing quarterbacks willing to stay in school for an extra season thanks to being able to profit from name, image and likeness.
His pedigree is undeniable, but he needs reps like all young quarterbacks do. That’s why I’m not including Manning in mock drafts or any of these rankings unless he declares for the 2026 NFL Draft.
Here are my top five quarterbacks in next year’s class.
1. LaNorris Sellers, South Carolina
Height, weight: 6-3, 242 pounds.
2024 stats: 196-299 (65.6%), 2,534 yards, 18 TDs, 7 INTs; 166 carries, 674 yards (4.1 avg.), 7 TDs.
At the moment, you could make a case for multiple different players to be QB1.
There is a lot to like about Sellers based off his first season as a starter that has him atop my rankings for now.
Firstly, he has such a unique physical build at 242 pounds combined with how well he runs. The size and physical tools make him as electrifying a playmaker as there is in college football right now.
While it’s easy to fall in love with the running ability, I’m more concerned with how a QB throws. Sellers checks that box with his high-end arm talent. The arm is extremely strong, but he is also pretty accurate. Plus, he is more than capable of beating you from the pocket and not just on the move.
What I want to see from Sellers in 2025 is better decision making after throwing seven interceptions to 18 touchdowns. He also needs to be better on third down after finishing 92nd in passer rating (121.79) among qualified passers in 2024.
He’s the type of quarterback where you initially watch for the physical tools and then you see his passing quality the more you watch. Sellers not only is QB1 right now, albeit by a narrow margin, but his ceiling says he can get even better, which is scary.
2. Garrett Nussmeier, LSU
Height, weight: 6-2, 200 pounds.
2024 stats: 337-525 (64.2%), 4,052 yards, 29 TDs, 12 INTs.
Nussmeier, the son of Saints offensive coordinator Doug Nussmeier, is the top returning passer in terms of yards from 2024, and only Kyle McCord (591) threw more passes.
When you watch Nussmeier, what you see is an incredibly quick throwing motion. The ball just pops out of his hand, and he typically delivers it with good touch. He lacks elite athleticism but knows how to play fast with his brain and how he reads defenses.
He is also mechanically sound, which is something you expect from the son of a coach.
Nussmeier has very good arm strength, but he wasn’t very accurate on deep balls, completing 36% of his passes of 20 yards or more (31 of 86). He will also need to protect the ball better in 2025 after throwing 12 interceptions, tied for the fifth most in the FBS.
He easily could have entered the 2025 NFL Draft and might have had a case for going in the first round. He will need to cut down on the turnovers and probably add a little more weight. But the gap between Nussmeier and Sellers is not very big in my book, and Nussmeier may be the best pure passer right now in this class.
3. Cade Klubnik, Clemson
Height, weight: 6-2, 210 pounds.
2024 stats: 308-486 (63.4%), 3,639 yards, 36 TDs, 6 INTs; 119 carries, 463 yards (3.9 avg.), 7 TDs.
So much talk coming into 2025 is how stacked Penn State is with many of its stars, including Drew Allar, putting their pro futures on hold for a year. But don’t sleep on Clemson, which has its own crop of high-end stars led by its talented dual-threat quarterback.
Like his team, Klubnik did not look good at all vs. Georgia. But a switch flipped for Klubnik and the Tigers immediately after that loss and he suddenly looked like a quarterback who could be in the QB1 conversation next spring.
The former five-star quarterback put up spectacular numbers in 2024, and I think his improvement as a runner was a big part of that.
Not only is he capable of gaining yards with his legs, he is also good at throwing on the run. Klubnik has proven he can throw the deep ball well, completing 44.9% of his passes (35-78) with 16 TDs and three interceptions.
Klubnik is also very tough. His game vs. Pittsburgh was a great example as he got sacked a season-high five times and still rushed for a game-winning 50-yard touchdown in the final minute.
But to maximize his potential, he will need to be more consistent and be better against pressure. He could also be better at diagnosing defenses post snap. The good news for Klubnik is those are things that can be improved on with more reps.
4. Fernando Mendoza, Indiana
Height, weight: 6-5, 225 pounds.
2024 stats: 265-386 (68.7%), 3,004 yards, 16 TDs, 6 INTs (at Cal in 2024).
First, I want to give an assist to Cory Kinnan of Daft on Draft who was among the first to push the hype of Mendoza as being a QB1 contender. All it takes to understand why is watching just a couple minutes out of his highlight film.
Mendoza has the size teams always want along with the mobility and quality arm to match. The fact that Cal went 6-7 last season with the 103rd-ranked rushing game (121.5 yards per game) speaks to just how well Mendoza played.
What I would like to see is Mendoza test defenses more down the field. He threw just 44 passes of 20 yards or more down the field, completing 18 (40.9%) for 524 yards, five TDs and an interception according to Pro Football Focus.
Mendoza will also need to be better at protecting himself after being sacked 40 times, one fewer than a three-way tie for the most in 2024 including Shedeur Sanders.
Now that he is at Indiana in Curt Cignetti’s offense, which was already good in 2024 with Kurtis Rourke playing through a torn ACL, Mendoza is poised to take a leap even further in 2025. He should have more help around him on a Hoosier team that made a surprise playoff run last season.
The gap from Sellers to Mendoza is honestly not all that large. He has the tools to be QB1, and it just comes down to how he acclimates to the Big Ten.
5. Drew Allar, Penn State
Height, weight: 6-5, 238 pounds.
2024 stats: 262-394 (66.5%), 3,327 yards, 24 TDs, 8 INTs.
For me, Allar, a former Medina superstar, has all the tools to be the top quarterback in this class. But every time I’ve watched him, there usually seems like there’s just something missing.
Allar has the size, arm strength and mobility teams want in the modern quarterback. Some might have also made the case that if he was in the 2025 NFL Draft, he could have gone ahead of Cam Ward.
And I do want to give him credit for being a more accurate and effective passer in 2024. The addition of Andy Kotelnicki from Minnesota as his offensive coordinator showed in Allar’s improved play.
However, I believe he made the right decision staying at Penn State. There is still plenty of inconsistency with Allar’s game, particularly with his mechanics and as a decision maker, particularly in big games. The interception he threw in the final seconds of the Orange Bowl vs. Notre Dame sticks out as a bad decision, but certainly one he can learn from.
As for his mechanical issues, you can see that with inconsistent accuracy. If you focus solely on Penn State’s three losses as well as the College Football Playoff wins vs. SMU and Boise State, Allar only completed 60% of his passes once and only twice had a positive TD-INT ratio.
College quarterbacks with inconsistent mechanics are common, and you can absolutely see that Allar’s arm talent is sensational. If he can clean up his mechanics, that should help him take another leap.
Others to watch
Here are five other quarterbacks to keep an eye on in 2025:
Aidan Chiles, Michigan State: Chiles is a very raw talent and must clean up his game as a passer, particularly after throwing 11 interceptions in 2024. But his potential is as high as anyone in this class because of his physical tools.
Nico Iamaleava, UCLA: Iamaleava’s promising first season as a starter at Tennessee ended on a sour note as he and his team struggled in a playoff loss at Ohio State. How he performs in a less-QB friendly system at UCLA than he had at Tennessee will be telling.
Kevin Jennings, SMU: Despite a nightmare performance at Penn State in the playoff, Jennings had a great first season as a starter at SMU. It’s hard to not be impressed by how he played in SMU’s comeback attempt vs. Clemson in the ACC Championship as the Mustangs came within a 56-yard field goal of forcing overtime after trailing by 17 at halftime.
Sam Leavitt, Arizona State: The dual-threat quarterback showed in the Peach Bowl double-OT loss to Texas that he’s very good in his own right and ASU’s great 2024 wasn’t just a product of Cam Skattebo. The pressure will be on him in 2025 with Skattebo off to the NFL.
John Mateer, Oklahoma: Mateer threw for 3,139 yards and rushed for 826 last season at Washington State, showing electrifying ability as a runner. He should have better talent around him at Oklahoma, but he will also be tested against better defenses starting in Week 2 vs. Michigan.
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