With the Las Vegas Raiders securing the No. 1 pick in the 2026 NFL Draft, many have penciled in them selecting Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza. As of now, he’s the best quarterback prospect expected to enter the class.
However, there’s one quarterback who could make things interesting. Texas quarterback Arch Manning has previously said that he doesn’t plan to declare for the 2026 NFL Draft, but that’s something that can change.
He was considered a lock to be the No. 1 pick in 2026 before his first season as a full-time starter got off to a rocky start. He got better as the season went on and has shown some really exciting ability. If he were to change course and declare for the draft, former NFL quarterback Dan Orlovsky believes the Raiders would take him with the top pick.
“Not even close. He’d be the runaway No. 1 pick,” Orlovsky said on the “Dan Patrick Show.”
“Arch Manning is kind of like the throwback 1970s quarterback with modern day training and nutrition,” Orlovsky continued. “I’m a huge fan of this guy. He physically remarkably gifted. He’s intelligent when it comes to the football, understanding of speed and space. I think he’s wired the right way. When you watch him on the sideline, he’s ultra-competitive. I think he’s weathered a lot. When he [goes to the NFL], he’s going to have weathered so many storms, and we know that’s a huge deal.”
Manning Would Be Risky Pick
Manning is the nephew of former No. 1 picks and Super Bowl-winning quarterback Peyton and Eli Manning. That’s a big reason he’s gotten a lot of hype, but he’s also proven to be a very good quarterback in his own right.
That said, taking him with the No. 1 pick would be a big risk. He looked great at times for Texas, but he was also ineffective a lot of the time. Now, his skillset is more intriguing than Mendoza’s, but he doesn’t have nearly the experience. Mendoza would be the safer pick.
John Spytek Talks No. 1 Pick
What the Raiders decide to do with the No. 1 pick this year will have major ramifications. If they get it right, it could jumpstart the rebuild. If they get it wrong, it could set the team back even further.
General manager John Spytek hinted at the fact that the Raiders will probably take a quarterback.
“The league is littered with, when you get the top pick right, those guys are franchise-altering players,” Spytek told reporters on Monday. “There’s probably no more important hire in an NFL organization than the head coach. They’re the daily guy. They set the vision. They set the cadence.
“They are what touches the players every day and demand excellence from players, and the players are the ones that have to go out there and do it. And the more good players you have and the better person at the helm that you have steering that ship, my experience is the more successful you are. Are there two more important hires in an organization than a quarterback and a head coach? I think we probably all would agree that those two men usually steer the ship and that’s out in front of us right now.”
Former QB Shares Revealing Arch Manning-Raiders Take