Lance's 2027 Preseason Draft Prospect Rankings: QBs and Edge Rushers

A little refresher, these articles are for draft eligible players only, obviously. These are not the same as the weekly top ten player rankings articles, though as the year progresses with those I will use them to add players to these boards. I update these specific ones every 4-ish weeks during the season. Also, without the Combine, this is only college production, so for the analysis I include for each position I will be sure to include if the athletic testing weighs into the Score more heavily than their statistical production or vice versa. Alright, let's dive in:

Analysis: Easily the most important area in the weight of the score for the QB position is their full college production. Had Chambliss entered this draft class he would've been my #1 QB. He was great at Ferris State, and what he was able to do with Ole Miss last year was incredible. Now let's see how he does with an all new play caller. There's a lot of "one year" starters on the board, Sayin, Carr, Mestemaker and Williams are the obvious ones, but Dante Moore would also technically fall into that category as it's one full season of starting work for him. My point being that a lot can change in a year (just ask Sam Leavitt). They'll have to double-down on what they showed in 2025 if they're going to make a real run at being 1st round picks next year. Along with that, you'll notice Arch Manning is not on my list. He finished last year stronger than he started it, but it was far from enough to put him in my top ten. You don't make my lists because of the name on the back of your jersey, or the hype spewing out of the mouths of the talking heads. Going back to school was the right move, he now needs to build off that late season momentum. By my numbers, Craig could technically be as high as 2, but I'm going to take the prove it stance with him now that he's heading to TCU. The same applies to Taron Dickens, who I really like, but he is undersized, his body of work at Western Carolina was in fewer games than a lot of the other guys I'm looking at, and he's not guaranteed to be the starter at Northern Illinois, that's why he's on the outside of my top ten looking in. If you're wanting an FCS guy to keep an eye on, that would be Justin Lamson for Montana State. He has the size and the dual threat ability to start receiving first round buzz when the Combine rolls around. I'm not saying he will, or that he's even the highest rated FCS Quarterback on my board (that would be Chris Parson, and then Beau Brungard), but when you head to the NFL from that level you have a better shot at seeing your stock rise if you have the "prototypical" size.

Analysis: This should be of little surprise, but athletic testing is easily the biggest weight for the score here, which means this is going to change a lot before the draft rolls around. There are two big names not in my top ten that are prime candidates to skyrocket up my board after they do some athletic testing, and that's Dylan Stewart and Matayo Uiagalelei. Neither has had a very productive college career to this point (Stewart took a step back last season after a promising freshman year), but the running and the jumping can hide that away in a dark corner. As for my top ten, Simmons is the current favorite to be the first Edge Rusher (and I think first defender) drafted in 2027, and he has the production to back it up. I've finally started to see some love for Lubin, he tore it up last year in his first season in the power 4 (he was at Coastal Carolina before that). After that I have my reservations. Daley was stellar for Utah, and he's sticking with his coach by going to Michigan, but that late season ruptured Achilles is going to be tough to overcome. Labarbera was my highest rated Edge Rusher at the end of last season for my weekly positional rankings, but there's a size concern (height wise), and while the height itself isn't a major worry for me, it's the shorter arm length that usually accompanies it. Perkins also has a size concern, but in the weight department, and the main belief would be that he'll play off-ball as a pro, I decided to run him through both boards just in case. Kamara, Johnson and Trick are all moving up in their level of competition (Kamara and Johnson from the FCS, Trick from the Group of 6), will they be able to make a Lubin type of impact with their new teams?