October 25, 2026

I’ve spent a lot of time evaluating prospects for the 2027 NFL Draft, and one thing is becoming increasingly clear to me. This draft class has some outstanding talent, but that talent isn’t distributed evenly across the different positions.

I’ve put together my preliminary position strength rankings, and I want to explain exactly what these rankings represent.

First, I’m not ranking positions based on their importance in the NFL. I’m not ranking them based simply on how many players at each position will eventually be drafted, either.

I’m ranking them based on the quality and depth of talent I expect to come off the board earliest in the draft.

In other words, which positions offer NFL teams the greatest concentration of high-end talent in the early rounds?

And right now, I believe wide receiver leads the way.

JB’S 2027 POSITION STRENGTH RANKINGS

  1. Wide Receivers
  2. Safeties
  3. Quarterbacks
  4. Cornerbacks
  5. Edge Rushers
  6. Interior Defensive Linemen
  7. Offensive Tackles
  8. Tight Ends
  9. Linebackers
  10. Centers
  11. Running Backs
  12. Offensive Guards

WIDE RECEIVERS LEAD THE CLASS

Right now, I’m projecting four wide receivers to come off the board in the first round.

What separates this group from the others, in my opinion, isn’t necessarily the number of first-round selections. It’s the overall quality of the talent and the depth behind those top prospects.

Jeremiah Smith is obviously the headliner, but this is a position where I believe NFL teams will have some very attractive options early in the draft.

I currently have wide receiver as the strongest position group in the 2027 class.

THE SAFETY CLASS IS SPECIAL

Here’s something that might surprise a few people.

I’ve got safety ranked as the second-strongest position group in this draft.

And I’m currently projecting four safeties to be selected in the first round.

That’s an unusually high number for a position that hasn’t always received premium consideration in recent drafts.

But I’m not concerned with historical trends when I’m evaluating individual players. I’m concerned with what I see on film.

If a player has first-round ability, I’m going to grade him accordingly, regardless of the position he plays.

And right now, I believe this safety class has a chance to be exceptional.

QUARTERBACKS: THREE FIRST-ROUND GRADES, BUT POSSIBLY FIVE FIRST-ROUND PICKS

This is where I think people need to understand the difference between evaluating football players and predicting what NFL teams will do on draft day.

I currently have only three quarterbacks carrying legitimate first-round grades.

However, I believe as many as four or five quarterbacks could actually be selected in the first round.

Those are two entirely different things.

I’ve been evaluating quarterbacks for a long time, and one thing I’ve learned is that NFL teams will reach for the position.

They always have, and they probably always will.

The quarterback position is simply too important, and when a franchise believes it has an opportunity to find its next starting quarterback, sometimes desperation outweighs sound evaluation.

That doesn’t mean the player suddenly becomes a first-round talent.

It means a team is willing to spend a first-round pick on him.

There’s a difference.

I don’t change a player’s grade because I believe an NFL team might draft him higher than he deserves.

My job as an evaluator is to determine what kind of football player he is, what his strengths and weaknesses are, and how those traits project to the next level.

I’m not interested in inflating grades to match mock drafts.

So while I have quarterback ranked third overall, I want to make it clear that I don’t believe there are five quarterbacks in this class who currently deserve first-round grades.

I believe there are three.

That could change as the evaluation process continues.

CORNERBACKS AND EDGE RUSHERS ROUND OUT THE TOP FIVE

I currently project three cornerbacks and three edge rushers to be selected in the opening round.

Both groups have some outstanding talent at the top, but I don’t believe either position has quite the same overall early-round strength as the three groups ahead of them.

That doesn’t mean there won’t be some exceptional players available.

There absolutely will be.

But when I’m comparing these groups from top to bottom, I give the advantage to wide receiver, safety and quarterback.

THE MIDDLE OF THE CLASS

Interior defensive line comes in sixth, followed by offensive tackle, tight end, linebacker and center.

These are positions where I see quality prospects, but I’m not convinced the concentration of elite talent matches what we’re seeing at the top of my rankings.

One thing I always caution people about is confusing a position’s overall depth with its elite talent.

You can have a position that produces ten or twelve draft picks without having a single player who deserves a first-round grade.

On the other hand, you can have a position with four outstanding prospects and a significant drop-off after that.

That’s why I look at both the top-end talent and how far that talent extends into the draft.

RUNNING BACKS AND OFFENSIVE GUARDS BRING UP THE REAR

Right now, I have running backs ranked eleventh and offensive guards twelfth.

And I don’t project more than one player from either position to be selected in the first round.

That doesn’t mean there won’t be productive NFL players coming out of those groups.

There will be.

But when we’re talking about the concentration of elite prospects who should command early selections, I believe these are the two weakest position groups in the 2027 draft.

Running back is also a position where draft value can complicate the evaluation process.

A player might have tremendous ability, but NFL teams have become increasingly selective about investing first-round picks in running backs.

That’s another reason I believe it’s important to separate a player’s actual grade from his projected draft position.

MY EARLY FIRST-ROUND PROJECTIONS

Here’s where I currently stand with the five strongest position groups:

Wide Receivers: 4 projected first-round selections

Safeties: 4 projected first-round selections

Quarterbacks: 4 to 5 projected first-round selections, but only 3 currently carry first-round grades on my board.

Cornerbacks: 3 projected first-round selections

Edge Rushers: 3 projected first-round selections

That means I’m projecting somewhere between 18 and 19 of the first 32 selections to come from just five position groups.

That’s a significant concentration of talent.

And it tells us something about where the strengths of this draft class appear to be developing.

FINAL THOUGHTS

We’re still early in the evaluation process, and these rankings aren’t written in stone.

Players will rise. Players will fall. Some will declare for the draft, and others will return to school.

But I’ve always believed that the most important part of evaluating a prospect is remaining true to what you see on film.

I’ve never been particularly interested in following the crowd when it comes to scouting football players.

I have my own evaluation process, my own standards and my own expectations for what constitutes an NFL-caliber prospect.

And I don’t believe a player should receive a first-round grade simply because somebody thinks he’ll be selected in the first round.

A first-round selection is where a team drafts a player. A first-round grade is what I believe that player has earned.

Those two things don’t always agree.

And as we move closer to the 2027 NFL Draft, I suspect we’re going to see that distinction become particularly important with this quarterback class.

For now, wide receiver and safety lead what I believe could be a very interesting draft, while quarterback remains the position where NFL demand could significantly exceed the number of players who actually deserve first-round consideration.

That’s where my board stands today. And as always, the film will determine where it goes from here.

James Baxter | JB Talking Sports

Evaluating the player, not the hype.