Day 1 of the 2026 NFL Draft played out mostly as expected for quarterbacks. Fernando Mendoza went No. 1 overall to the Las Vegas Raiders, while Ty Simpson landed at No. 13 with the Los Angeles Rams. After that, the board thinned out quickly, reinforcing what evaluators have been saying for months about this class lacking true signal-caller depth.
And when a class is that thin, the spotlight will always go back in time. This time, it swung right back to Shedeur Sanders, whose 2025 draft slide still sneaks in every conversation. Now, with PFSN’s analyst Ian Cummings projecting the Browns’ long-term plans, Sanders is once again part of the discussion, only this time it comes with a not-so-subtle nod toward Cleveland potentially waiting it out for a bigger swing in 2027.
Shedeur Sanders Might Be on Borrowed Time in Cleveland
The bar is no longer about development and growth. It has shifted to immediate success, driven by the urgency of Todd Monken’s new regime. That is a tough setup for any quarterback, especially one entering Year 2, and even more so behind an offensive line that ranked last in the league in PFSN’s NFL Team OL Impact Metric with a 49.9 score and an F grade.
The margin for error shrinks quickly in that kind of environment, where patience is limited, and results are expected right away. To Sanders’ credit, though, he did show some promise, suggesting there is something to build on.
In Week 14 against the Tennessee Titans, he threw for 364 yards, three touchdowns, and added a rushing score. That outing put him alongside Joe Burrow as one of the only rookies in the Super Bowl era to hit 350-plus passing yards, three passing touchdowns, and a rushing score in a single game.
He also became the first Browns player to post 300-plus passing yards, three passing touchdowns, and a rushing score in one outing, while his four completions of 50-plus yards within his first three career starts placed him in a statistical tier matched only by Aaron Rodgers since 2000.
But he needs to do that consistently in 2026, or the 2027 QB class is going to bring brutal reality.
During Day 1 of PFSN’s Football Debate Club‘s Live Draft Show, Cummings said:
“Ideally, this is a pick to help the 2027 QB, let’s be honest. What do I think of Shedeur? I don’t know if his process is translatable. Listen, looking back on that class, we elevated Shedeur as a potential Day-2 prospect. I’ll admit, every year, I learn a little bit more about QB evaluation. So you can look at accuracy and completions and yards, and those things are important; they percolate for translatable processes.”
Cummings added, “A lot of people’s comp was like a Brock Purdy, right? I don’t know if he has that level of operational utility where I can say he’s going to be the long-term starter for them. He can earn it this year, for sure, in Todd Monken’s scheme. I’m not super confident after his first year.
“And ultimately, I think if you don’t have a guy who can elevate your roster as a QB, you risk settling for the doldrums and winning 7-8 games every year and that’s not where you wanna be. I think they will eventually go with either Dante Moore or Arch Manning. Way too early look at 2027, but I think it’s a future-minded pick.”
The 2027 class already has three names sitting firmly at the top. Dante Moore headlines the group as a mobile pocket passer with elite touch downfield. His ability to extend plays and throw on the move pops on tape, but evaluators still want to see cleaner post-snap processing against complex defenses.
Then there is Julian Sayin, who might be the most polished of the trio right now. A 77 percent completion rate and 32 touchdowns in his first year as a starter tell you everything about his efficiency. The ball placement, the timing, the poise under pressure, it is all there. The questions are more about durability and how he holds up physically throughout an entire NFL season.
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And lastly, Arch Manning, already touted by many as the QB with one of the highest ceilings. The traits are there to see with his size, athleticism, and arm talent, fitting today’s pro game perfectly.
But his 2025 tape showed inconsistency in the early days before a stronger finish. If that late-season growth carries over, he is the one teams could talk themselves into at No. 1.
