When Oregon Ducks quarterback Dante Moore announced his return to college for another season, the shockwaves were felt far beyond the 2026 NFL Draft. Moore, a projected top-two pick, passed on the chance to go No. 1 or No. 2 overall. The quarterback-needy Las Vegas Raiders ended up selecting Indiana's Fernando Mendoza first overall, while the New York Jets—also desperate for a long-term signal-caller—chose Texas Tech edge rusher David Bailey. With no other passer worthy of the second pick, Moore's decision reshaped not just the 2026 draft, but the entire landscape of the 2027 draft.
That's where things get truly intriguing. Moore, along with Texas' Arch Manning, South Carolina's LaNorris Sellers, and several other quarterbacks, are all viewed as franchise-level talents. And with as many as a dozen NFL teams entering this season without a clear long-term answer under center—thanks to two consecutive weak quarterback classes—the race to land one of these stars is already heating up.
In professional sports, teams without the goods will do anything to get them. Just look at the NBA last season. The 2026 draft class features a rock-solid top four in BYU's AJ Dybantsa, Kansas' Darryn Peterson, Duke's Cameron Boozer, and North Carolina's Caleb Wilson—all considered future multi-time All-Stars. Teams began tanking—purposely losing games to improve draft odds—around Christmas, and the trend continued for the final four months. The product was ugly: nearly a third of the league sat their top players, fielding G League-caliber rosters night after night. The Utah Jazz were even fined $500,000 in February for compromising the integrity of the game, yet they kept the same practices going.
Now, the NFL could be headed down a similar path. With a generational quarterback class on the horizon, the temptation to tank for Dante Moore, Arch Manning, and Co. might be stronger than ever. For teams in need of a franchise passer, the 2027 draft isn't just an opportunity—it's a potential turning point. And the jockeying for position is already underway.