Dylan Stewart sits atop the 2027 edge rusher board, and the gap between him and the field is razor thin. On PFN’s “Hot List,” analyst Ian Cummings laid out his way-too-early top five, and the South Carolina junior took the top spot heading into the 2026 college football season. The bigger takeaway might be what sits behind him.
“The 2027 class, in my opinion, has a good chance to be stronger than the 2026 class, both in terms of top-end blue chip talent and depth,” Cummings said.
A Two-Man Race at the Top of the 2027 Edge Class
Stewart and Texas edge Colin Simmons are, in Cummings’ words, “fighting tooth and nail, neck and neck for the edge one spot.” Either could finish first. For now, Stewart’s raw physical ceiling breaks the tie.
A five-star recruit out of Washington, D.C., Stewart posted 6.5 sacks and 10.5 tackles for loss as a true freshman in 2024, then watched his sack total dip in 2025 as he played through a back injury, even as his tackle-for-loss production held firm. The traits are what move Cummings. At 6-foot-5, Stewart shows a get-off that borders on the absurd.
“His explosiveness is more akin to teleportation,” Cummings said. “There’s some crazy reps on film where he’s able to get through gaps in a blink and swarm QBs before they even have time to process what’s happened.”
Simmons brings the more refined rush right now. The Texas pass rusher stacked 21 sacks and 29.5 tackles for loss across two seasons and led the SEC with 12 sacks in 2025. Cummings called him “an absolute banshee on the rush” and handed him the technical edge.
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“I think Colin Simmons has a leg up on Stewart as a pass rush operator right now,” Cummings said. The separator is frame. Simmons plays the more compact build, and Stewart’s longer, leaner body offers more room to add the mass that turns a pass-rush specialist into a three-down problem.
Why Quincy Rhodes Jr. and the Depth Behind Them Matter
Three more names fill out the list, and each carries first-round buzz. Arkansas’ Quincy Rhodes Jr. lands third after a breakout junior season of 8 sacks and 15.5 tackles for loss that earned second-team All-SEC honors. At 6-foot-6 and roughly 277 pounds, he pairs rare size with a finishing move Cummings keeps replaying.
“A freakish combination of size, lean mass explosion, short-area quickness, and bend,” Cummings said, pointing to “a wicked spin move that leaves tackles lurching.”
Ohio State’s Kenyatta Jackson Jr. checks in fourth. The four-star recruit who inherited the No. 97 jersey worn by Joey Bosa and Nick Bosa waited his turn, then broke through in 2025 with 6.5 sacks and 11 tackles for loss in Matt Patricia’s defense. Cummings sees “an imposing physical specimen” whose power can anchor multiple fronts once the rush plan rounds out.
Matayo Uiagalelei rounds out the five. The Oregon senior and brother of Chargers quarterback DJ Uiagalelei has piled up 18.5 sacks over three seasons, and Cummings highlighted the “red hot motor” that shows up on every snap. He pegged the 6-foot-5, 272-pounder with “early round, maybe even late first round upside at his maximum.”
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The board will move once the 2026 season starts and these traits meet live tackles again, and Stewart’s lead over Simmons could flip on a single Saturday. What looks settled now is the ceiling. Cummings sees “perennial All-Pro upside” in Stewart at his max, and a class with enough blue-chip talent to make 2027 the cycle edge-needy teams circle.
