Dylan Stewart, not Jeremiah Smith, tops Brian Lamb’s 2027 NFL Draft big board as Trevor Goosby goes third and CJ Carr falls to No. 36

Almost every 2027 big board this fall has Ohio State receiver Jeremiah Smith at No. 1. Brian Lamb’s does not. His updated top 50, posted Monday after the sixth Saturday of the college season and revised Tuesday, puts South Carolina edge rusher Dylan Stewart first and Smith second.

Lamb ranks every prospect by a score on his own grading scale, and the order underneath is just as unusual. Texas left tackle Trevor Goosby is third. Arch Manning is fifth and the second quarterback on the board, even after a week when other evaluators marked him down. Notre Dame’s CJ Carr, who sits No. 1 on Justin Melo’s quarterback rankings, does not appear until No. 36.

Brian Lamb’s top 25

1. Dylan Stewart, EDGE, South Carolina
2. Jeremiah Smith, WR, Ohio State
3. Trevor Goosby, OT, Texas
4. Drew Mestemaker, QB, Oklahoma State
5. Arch Manning, QB, Texas
6. Colin Simmons, EDGE, Texas
7. Leonard Moore, CB, Notre Dame
8. Trinidad Chambliss, QB, Ole Miss
9. David Stone, DL, Oklahoma
10. Kelley Jones, CB, Mississippi State
11. Charlie Becker, WR, Indiana
12. Julian Sayin, QB, Ohio State
13. Jadan Baugh, RB, Florida
14. Ryan Coleman-Williams, WR, Alabama
15. Dante Moore, QB, Oregon
16. Darian Mensah, QB, Miami
17. Will Echoles, DL, Ole Miss
18. Kewan Lacy, RB, Ole Miss
19. Nick Marsh, WR, Indiana
20. Sammy Brown, LB, Clemson
21. Kade Pieper, IOL, Iowa
22. KJ Bolden, S, Georgia
23. Ashton Hampton, CB, Clemson
24. Trey’Dez Green, TE, LSU
25. Brauntae Johnson, S, Notre Dame

Nos. 26 to 50

26. Jamari Johnson, TE, Oregon
27. Ellis Robinson IV, CB, Georgia
28. Carter Smith, OT, Indiana
29. Jordan Seaton, OT, LSU
30. Greg Johnson, IOL, Minnesota
31. Cam Coleman, WR, Texas
32. Yhonzae Pierre, EDGE, Alabama
33. Chris Cole, LB, Georgia
34. Trevor Lauck, OT, Iowa
35. Ahmad Moten Sr., DL, Miami
36. CJ Carr, QB, Notre Dame
37. Melvin Siani, OT, Texas
38. Deuce Alexander, WR, Ole Miss
39. A’Mauri Washington, DL, Oregon
40. Justin Scott, DL, Miami
41. KJ Duff, WR, Rutgers
42. Austin Simmons, QB, Missouri
43. Boubacar Traore, EDGE, Notre Dame
44. Matayo Uigalelei, EDGE, Oregon
45. Zabien Brown, CB, Alabama
46. Bear Alexander, DL, Oregon
47. Reed Harris, WR, Arizona State
48. Teitum Tuioti, EDGE, Oregon
49. Damon Wilson Jr., EDGE, Miami
50. Koi Perich, S, Oregon

Why Stewart over Smith

Stewart is a projection pick. As a freshman in 2025 he had 4.5 sacks and led the Gamecocks with 12 tackles for loss. This season has been rocky. In the blowout loss to Alabama he punched an opposing player, argued with Shane Beamer after a roughing-the-passer penalty and pushed back when coaches pulled him late in the game. South Carolina suspended him for the Kentucky game.

Stewart apologized to Beamer and his teammates and was back on the field Saturday against Florida. In the first quarter he sacked Aaron Philo on 3rd-and-15, his first sack of 2026, and he added a forced fumble later in the game. Lamb’s board went up two days later, and it rewards the traits more than the stat line.

No other board on this site goes that far. Mike Renner had Stewart third, behind Smith and Notre Dame corner Leonard Moore, and Mel Kiper Jr. left him out of his latest top 10 entirely. Lamb is alone in saying an edge rusher, not the Heisman front-runner, should be the first name on the board.

Goosby is the first tackle, at No. 3

The other big surprise near the top is Goosby. At 6-foot-7 and 325 pounds, the senior has started every game at left tackle for Texas this year. He was named the Outland Trophy’s National Player of the Week after the Ohio State game in September. Renner ranked him eighth. In Gordon McGuinness’ first mock he went fourth to Houston. Lamb puts him ahead of every quarterback.

Three Longhorns are in Lamb’s top six: Goosby at 3, Manning at 5 and edge rusher Colin Simmons at 6. Simmons leads the FBS with 9.5 sacks. Kiper has him second overall.

How Lamb’s quarterbacks compare

Lamb has eight quarterbacks in his top 50, and his order looks nothing like the other boards’. Here is where each one lands on Lamb’s board, on Renner’s overall board, in Kiper’s latest top 10 and on Melo’s quarterback-only list.

Quarterback	Lamb (overall)	Renner (overall)	Kiper top 10	Melo QB rank
Drew Mestemaker, Oklahoma State	4	4	4	2
Arch Manning, Texas	5	21	—	3
Trinidad Chambliss, Ole Miss	8	22	6	6
Julian Sayin, Ohio State	12	75	—	10
Dante Moore, Oregon	15	45	—	4
Darian Mensah, Miami	16	81	5	5
CJ Carr, Notre Dame	36	10	7	1
Austin Simmons, Missouri	42	100	—	8

Mestemaker is the only quarterback the four agree on. He is fourth overall for Lamb, Renner and Kiper. Manning is where they split. Lamb keeps him fifth after Texas’ loss to Oklahoma, while Ian Cummings listed him as a Week 6 faller and Renner wants to see knockout games against top opponents first. Carr is the reverse: Melo has him first, Renner 10th and Kiper seventh, while Lamb has six other quarterbacks ahead of him.

What to watch this weekend

• Dante Moore (No. 15) is out again Saturday against Nebraska. It is his second straight missed game since the concussion he suffered against USC on Sept. 26, and Oregon may start Dylan Raiola against his former school.
• Ryan Coleman-Williams (No. 14) has been ruled out of No. 6 Alabama’s game at No. 14 Tennessee.
• Ohio State at Indiana puts Smith (No. 2) and Sayin (No. 12) against Indiana receivers Charlie Becker (No. 11) and Nick Marsh (No. 19) and tackle Carter Smith (No. 28). Ohio State is favored.
• Notre Dame at BYU features Leonard Moore (No. 7), safety Brauntae Johnson (No. 25), Carr (No. 36) and edge rusher Boubacar Traore (No. 43). The Irish are double-digit favorites.

Kiper’s own top-25 big board and positional rankings are still expected this week. When they come out, they will show whether anyone else is willing to rank a player ahead of Smith. For the full set of analyst boards and mocks, see the 2027 consensus big board.