Sports Illustrated Ranks Top 2026 QBs

The Jacksonville Jaguars won't be needing a starting quarterback in the 2026 NFL Draft, but that doesn't mean next year's quarterback class won't impact Jacksonville.

With Trevor Lawrence firmly in place both in terms of being a franchise quarterback to build around and in terms of cap space committments, the Jaguars were never going to be in the quarterback market in 2026.

This was amplified even further by the Jaguars trading away their 2026 first-round pick to the Cleveland Browns as a part of the Travis Hunter trade.

With that said, the 2026 quarterback class is widely expected to be significantly better than the poor 2025 class. And if that is the case, the Jaguars and their second-round pick could certainly benefit as more non-quarterbacks get drafted later and later.

It remains to be seen exactly how early the Jaguars' second-round pick will be next year, but a strong quarterback class would be good news for the Jaguars either way.

As a result, it is at least worth tracking the 2026 class for Jaguars purposes. As long as it isn't a 2025-level class in terms of quality, the Jaguars should benefit in some way.

With that in mind, Sports Illustrated recently ranked their top quarterbacks for the 2026 NFL Draft and there are some names worth watching on the list (of which Arch Manning is not included).

"There will be redshirt sophomores included on this list. Arizona State’s Sam Leavitt, South Carolina’s LaNorris Sellers and UCLA’s Nico Iamaleava each started and impressed in 2024. Of course, whether they enter the 2026 draft remains to be seen, but they’re certainly on professional radars," SI said.

"There are several quarterbacks on this list with the tools to become the No. 1 passer in the class or be chosen in the first round. Part of summer scouting is projecting players’ growth in specific aspects of their game. Not all of them make that step, and their stock suffers as a result."

With toolsy starters such as LaNorris Sellers and Drew Allar in the fold, the 2026 class certainly seems like it has the potential to be one of the best yet. And if that is the case, the Jaguars will be benefactors.