Kirk Herbstreit thinks the Jets should consider waiting until 2027 to draft a quarterback, pointing to Arch Manning as a potential target.
The Amazon Prime Video analyst was calling Thursday night’s Jets-Patriots game with Al Michaels when the conversation turned to New York’s quarterback situation. The Jets are now 2-8 after trading away Sauce Gardner and Quinnen Williams, stockpiling five first-round picks across 2026-27 in the process. The question facing the franchise: What do you do with all that capital when you desperately need a quarterback?
“Of course, what you’re doing when you get good players like that, you get draft capital, you’re asking your fans to be patient,” Michaels said. “Jets fans have been patient since 1969. They know patience.”
“To be candid, covering college football, this was supposed to be a monster year for quarterbacks,” Herbstreit said. “Turns out, a lot of them flopped. And so, you’re looking at the following year being a huge year. So, do you go for a stopgap Kirk Cousins-type of guy for ’26 and use that draft capital in other areas to get stronger? And then go for the home run potential in ’27. That’s probably the direction I would go.”
Kirk Herbstreit offers his thoughts on how the Jets should address the QB situation going forward. 🏈🎙️ #NFL #TNF pic.twitter.com/5HlbUJo0LI
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) November 14, 2025
NFL executives told The Athletic this week they’re not seeing franchise quarterbacks in the 2026 class.
“Nobody is playing the position well enough to be like, ‘That dude can take over my franchise,'” one executive said. “I don’t love any of [the quarterbacks] right now,” another added. “We’re trying to grasp onto somebody because there isn’t anybody, and it’s such a flavor of the week. Good luck right now.”
The class was expected to rebound from a weak 2025 group. Instead, the quarterbacks who entered the season with first-round buzz haven’t separated themselves. Indiana’s Fernando Mendoza has the strongest case to be QB1, but there’s no consensus franchise guy. The 2024 class had six quarterbacks go in the first 12 picks. The 2025 class saw only two taken in the first round. Early evaluations suggest 2026 looks closer to 2025 than 2024.
“A lot of people are thinking Arch Manning, he was supposed to be a guy that maybe was going to come out this year,” Herbstreit continued. “He hasn’t announced anything. My guess would be he’ll come back to college for one more year. So, he might be the guy in ’27 that maybe the Jets could possibly hold out and maybe get him the following year.”
Manning entered the season as the Heisman favorite and projected No. 1 pick. Before anyone could start building narratives about him declaring for 2026, his grandfather, Archie, told Texas Monthly back in August that “Arch isn’t going to declare early.”
The Manning family has form here. Peyton stayed at Tennessee through his senior year despite being the consensus top pick. Eli did the same at Ole Miss. Arch is in his third year at Texas and first as the starter. Leaving after one season would break the family pattern, and nothing about how the Mannings operate suggests Arch is interested in rushing the process.
That timeline works perfectly for the Jets if they’re willing to be patient. They hold three first-round picks in 2027 — their own, Dallas’ from the Quinnen Williams trade, and Indianapolis’ from the Sauce Gardner deal. They also have two first-rounders in 2026, giving them flexibility to build the roster this year while positioning themselves to draft a franchise quarterback the following spring.
The 2027 class looks significantly stronger than 2026. Ohio State’s Julian Sayin has been the best quarterback in college football this season, completing 80.9% of his passes while leading the Heisman race. Florida’s DJ Lagway, Nebraska’s Dylan Raiola, Notre Dame’s CJ Carr, and Manning all figure to be in the conversation, as do Oregon’s Dante Moore and South Carolina’s LaNorris Sellers, both of whom are expected to return to school.
Draft analysts are already calling 2027 one of the best classes in recent memory, not just at quarterback but across the board. South Carolina’s Dylan Stewart and Texas’ Colin Simmons project as elite edge rushers. Ohio State’s Jeremiah Smith and Alabama’s Ryan Williams are generational wide receiver talents. The Jets could theoretically land a quarterback, an elite pass rusher, and a top receiver all in the first round if they execute correctly.
Herbstreit’s prescription — sign a veteran on a short-term deal in 2026, use the draft capital to address other needs, then swing for a franchise quarterback in 2027 — makes sense if the Jets believe the 2026 class is as weak as NFL executives are saying.
Whether the Jets actually follow through is another question. The franchise hasn’t made the playoffs since 2010. Woody Johnson is still the owner. Aaron Glenn is coaching his first season after the organization cycled through Robert Saleh and interim Jeff Ulbrich last year. The temptation to force a quarterback pick in 2026 just to say they addressed the position will be strong, especially in a market that demands immediate answers.
But if Herbstreit is right about the talent disparity between the two classes, the Jets would be better off waiting. They’ve been bad for 15 years. Another year of mediocrity while positioning for Manning or Sayin beats reaching for a quarterback who doesn’t have franchise upside.
The Jets have the draft capital to execute this plan. They have the flexibility to build around whoever they eventually draft. Whether they have the patience to actually do it remains the question.