Now that the college football season is in full swing, it’s time for a new article series! This week, we will begin our Build A Prospect series for the 2026 NFL Draft, starting with quarterbacks.

This is how this will work: there are seven quarterback attributes I’ve selected (processing, arm strength, accuracy, touch, release, pocket presence, and athleticism). The goal is to build the best possible quarterback using one prospect for each of these attributes.

Once we use a prospect, he cannot be used again throughout the rest of the attributes, so I must choose wisely. Let’s get started!

Processing

Garrett Nussmeier - LSU

Processing is the trait I value most in a quarterback, which encompasses the ability to read the field, decision-making, and presnap recognition. I think the best processor in the 2026 NFL Draft is Garrett Nussmeier of LSU.

The mental side of Nussmeier’s game jumps off his film. LSU gives him full freedom to make presnap checks with protections, alignments, and audibles.

This was evident in LSU’s week one matchup against Clemson. On a third and long in the fourth quarter, Nussmeier went through a series of checks at the line of scrimmage on his own accord, causing Clemson to change their defensive alignment and reveal an all-out cover zero blitz, and LSU picked up enough yardage that, if they wanted to be aggressive and go for it on fourth down, they could.

Nussmeier’s decision-making has been criticized at times, including by me, but something I’ve come to realize from his tape is that sometimes he sees a throwing lane that we just can’t see. The first play that comes to mind was a late touchdown throw against Ole Miss last season. It was one of those, “no, no, no… YES” types of throws.

While he could stand to be less risky at times, he possesses an advanced understanding of defensive coverages and how to attack them. He’s also efficient at getting to his backside reads if the front side of the passing concept doesn’t come open.

Arm Strength

Drew Allar - Penn State

Arm strength is the flashiest attribute of a quarterback. Organizations fantasize about being able to develop their own rocket-armed superstar, and no quarterback in the 2026 class possesses quite the cannon that Penn State’s Drew Allar does.

While I’m not nearly as high on Allar as other draft analysts, it’s undeniable that he has an absolute rocket attached to his right shoulder. He generates easy velocity on all of his throws, and his range down the field is absurd.

All this arm power comes with him having very wonky mechanics. If he could clean that up, his arm could even become stronger, as wild as that seems.

Accuracy

Fernando Mendoza - Indiana

Accuracy is more than just completion percentage or the ability to throw an accurate pass. Can you consistently put the ball in advantageous positions for your pass catchers on time? Indiana signal caller Fernando Mendoza answers that question with a resounding yes.

Last season at Cal, Mendoza’s weapons really didn’t help him. Jack Endries, Cal’s former tight end who is now at Texas, was a really good weapon for Mendoza. But outside of that, it wasn’t the best.

Mendoza isn’t a quick game merchant either. While he’ll pick you apart in the quick game if you give him that, he’ll also test your defense down the field. His ability to hit players in stride in the intermediate portion of the field, as well as 20 yards or more downfield, was consistent and impressive.

Here’s an analytical look at Mendoza’s accuracy, using completion percentage vs adjusted completion percentage. Both are far from perfect metrics, but adjusted completion percentage looks at on-target throws.

Last season at Cal, Mendoza’s completion percentage was 67.9% and his adjusted completion percentage was 75.5%. This season at Indiana, Mendoza boasts a 62.1% completion percentage but a 73.6% adjusted completion percentage. Again, neither is a perfect metric, but this gives an analytical picture of Mendoza’s accuracy.

Touch

Cade Klubnik - Clemson

The ability to throw with touch is essential for a quarterback to have success. Not every throw needs to be a fastball. Someone who understands this is Clemson’s Cade Klubnik.

While the start of the 2025 season hasn’t been what I had hoped for Klubnik, he still possesses touch to all levels of the field. I think Klubnik has a stronger arm than most give him credit for, but he doesn’t get carried away with every throw being a fastball.

The area of the field where I saw his touch come to the forefront the most was the deep middle area. Whether it was posts or seams, the touch Klubnik put on the football was nearly perfect.

Of course, some seams require a bullet pass, but against Cover Two, the quarterback has to put enough loft on the football to get it over the deep hook defender. Clemson ran seam routes against Cover Two a decent amount, and Klubnik was money on them.

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Release

Aidan Chiles - Michigan State

Quarterbacks need to get the ball out on time, with fractions of a second being the difference between a completion and an interception. Part of this is the release of a quarterback, and Michigan State’s Aidan Chiles may have the best of any in this class.

Chiles has been my favorite quarterback to study so far this season with how many tools he possesses, and the incremental growth he’s shown. One of my favorite parts of his game is his release. It’s short, compact, quick, and efficient.

This was one of my problems with Allar. Allar has very long arms, which naturally make his release longer, but it drags out further than it should. Chiles has zero wasted motion in his release.

The release of the football also impacts accuracy. The more elongated a release is throughout the process of the throw, the less room for error a pass has. This can lead to major accuracy issues, issues that Chiles still needs to clean up at times, but it has nothing to do with his release.

Pocket Presence

Josh Hoover - TCU

Pocket presence is necessary to play quarterback at the next level. You simply have to be able to operate from “muddy” pockets and not run yourself into pressure. TCU’s Josh Hoover is one of the best quarterbacks I’ve watched at the college level at manipulating the pocket to his advantage.

It takes confidence to be able to step up into a pocket and fire a missile. Hoover possesses that confidence. He trusts his offensive line and helps them out by navigating to cleaner areas of the pocket to create just a little more time.

Most importantly, though, he doesn’t run himself into pressure or sacks. This is a problem that plenty of quarterbacks have, but Hoover stays calm and quiet in the pocket.

Athleticism

LaNorris Sellers - South Carolina

Athleticism isn’t a required attribute for a quarterback, but it can certainly be a big plus. No one in this class is quite the athlete that South Carolina’s LaNorris Sellers is.

In my opinion, Sellers is the most athletic quarterback we’ve seen since Cam Newton. Lamar Jackson was faster and twitchier, but he wasn’t 240 pounds like Sellers is.

The acceleration Sellers possesses in getting to his top speed is insane, and his top speed is just as insane. Combine that with the fact that he’s the strongest quarterback we’ve seen in quite some time, and Sellers is the easy choice here.