What We Learned About the 2026 NFL Draft Class in Week 1 of College Football

The first full week of the 2025 college football season is officially in the books, which means we've finally got some fresh film to break down from the top prospects in the 2026 NFL Draft class.

Last weekend's action featured some marquee matchups with some of the biggest names in next year's class, including a star-studded quarterback class and a ton of blue-chip defenders who made an instant impact in Week 1.

On the latest episode of "Best Podcast Available," I sat down with Dane Brugler from The Athletic to break down what we saw from this year's top prospects in their first action of 2025, including the quarterback group that featured lackluster showings (Texas' Arch Manning), impressive outings (South Carolina's LaNorris Sellers, LSU's Garrett Nussmeier, Penn State's Drew Allar), and others who were somewhere in between (Clemson's Cade Klubnik).

"Honestly, I think Week 1 went about as expected for this group of quarterbacks, with the exception of Arch," Brugler said. "Going into Columbus, your first ever road start, to face a defense with a ton of talent, a defensive coordinator where you basically don't know what to expect...for most quarterbacks, you get that first start against a more manageable opponent. Not so in this case."

While he likes the potential of this quarterback class, Brugler cautions that there's still plenty to be proven on the field before he's ready to crown any of them as a can't-miss prospect at the top of the draft.

"If you're an NFL team, and you're looking for that quarterback savior (in this class), good luck," Brugler said. "I don't think it's that type of class. I think overall, it's okay to be excited about this group of quarterbacks, because it was so dang hard, at least for me, to get excited about last year's class. And so, this year, I think it's okay to look at some of this potential and say, 'I could see how this could work; there's a trajectory for this guy, and if this guy proves this (in 2025), we might have something here.' It's important to have realistic expectations as we go through the season, because this is a very promising yet flawed group."

Early draft boards for next year are often dominated by defenders at the top, and that was evident in last weekend's action. Clemson's Peter Woods got special mention, but Brugler was also quick to remind us that early-season games always favor the defensive side of the ball.

"We have to point out that season openers, early in the season, the defenses are always ahead," Brugler said. "That's just how this works, especially in college. You don't have a preseason; there's a lot of things you're still working out."

Brugler spent time singing the praises of some emerging talents in the 2026 class, and even gave us some BBQ tips before wrapping things up with our "Random Player from Draft History" segment.

To check out the entire conversation, watch the full episode of BPA here: