Mel Kiper takes Arch Manning into consideration as he suggests future move for Quinn Ewers 

Quinn Ewers, Arch Manning, and the No. 3 Texas Longhorns are headed for the college football playoff. While they lost 22-19 in OT to the No. 2 Georgia Bulldogs in the SEC Championship Game, they qualified for the college football playoff. They will play the No. 16 Clemson Tigers in the first round on Saturday.

As the season reaches its climax, there has been increased discussion about the future of Ewers. Earlier in the season it seemed like a foregone conclusion that he would declare for the 2025 NFL draft. However, injuries have caused his draft stock to fall and now it is unclear. He still has one year of eligibility so he could return.

However, if he returns to Texas, it makes for an awkward situation because Arch Manning is ready to take the starting job. ESPN's Mel Kiper spoke about the situation on Thursday on the "First Draft Podcast."

"Arch Manning is going to be the quarterback at Texas next year," Kiper said. "So if you want to play college football, you probably have to move on somewhere. I would do that if I’m Quinn Ewers.

"I would not come out unless I really played phenomenal football in these playoff games and came into this draft process with tremendous momentum. I don’t want to become a second- or third-round pick."

Mel Kiper ranks Quinn Ewers as the sixth-best QB in the 2025 NFL draft class

If Quinn Ewers declares for the 2025 NFL draft, Mel Kiper ranks him sixth-best quarterback. He dropped his top 10 quarterback rankings last week and had him behind five other quarterbacks.

He ranks Shedeur Sanders, Cam Ward and Jalen Milroe all ahead of him as first-round picks. Additionally, he ranks Drew Allar and Carson Beck ahead of Ewers. This is not considered to be a strong quarterback class, so Ewers cannot expect to be a first-round pick if he ranks that low on the QB rankings by NFL teams.

Earlier in the season it looked like Ewers would be a guaranteed first-round pick. He was in the mix to win the Heisman Trophy, but injuries derailed his season. If he goes back to college next year, whether it is at Texas or somewhere else, he can improve his draft stock before the 2026 NFL draft. He will need to make that decision in the coming weeks.