Field Yates has released his first 2027 mock draft of the season, and it covers only the top 10 picks. Jeremiah Smith goes first to the winless Los Angeles Chargers, Drew Mestemaker is the first quarterback at No. 2 to Miami, and the New York Jets come away with Notre Dame’s CJ Carr and Clemson cornerback Ashton Hampton thanks to two picks acquired in trades.
Yates published the mini mock on Wednesday, October 21, with the order set by the inverse of the standings through Week 6. “Since there’s plenty of football still ahead, I’m only going through the top 10 picks,” he wrote, adding that prospects could still return to school and that team needs will shift with injuries, trades and coaching changes before the draft opens on April 29.
Yates’ top 10
| Pick | Team (record) | Player | Pos. | School |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Los Angeles Chargers (0-6) | Jeremiah Smith | WR | Ohio State |
| 2 | Miami Dolphins (0-5) | Drew Mestemaker | QB | Oklahoma State |
| 3 | Tennessee Titans (1-5) | Leonard Moore | CB | Notre Dame |
| 4 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers (1-5) | Colin Simmons | EDGE | Texas |
| 5 | Washington Commanders (1-5) | Dylan Stewart | EDGE | South Carolina |
| 6 | Philadelphia Eagles (2-4) | Charlie Becker | WR | Indiana |
| 7 | New York Jets (via Dallas, 2-4) | CJ Carr | QB | Notre Dame |
| 8 | Houston Texans (2-4) | Trevor Goosby | OT | Texas |
| 9 | Arizona Cardinals (2-4) | Trinidad Chambliss | QB | Ole Miss |
| 10 | New York Jets (via Indianapolis, 2-4) | Ashton Hampton | CB | Clemson |
Smith to the Chargers: a receiver at No. 1 for the first time in 30 years
Yates traces part of the Chargers’ 0-6 start to a lack of difference-makers in the passing game. They have no receiver in the top 50 in receiving yards per game and rank 29th in yards after the catch. Smith has 984 yards and 12 touchdowns this season and could become the Big Ten’s career leader in receiving yards and touchdown catches as soon as the Halloween game against USC. “It has been 30 years since a wide receiver was taken No. 1 (Keyshawn Johnson in 1996),” Yates wrote. “That is very much in play in 2027.”
Three quarterbacks in the top 10
At No. 2, Yates notes that Miami’s deal with Malik Willis has no guaranteed money beyond 2027, which keeps quarterback in play. He gives Mestemaker “the early lead as the top QB in the class,” the same call Mel Kiper Jr. makes on his first 2027 Big Board, and calls the 20-year-old “a fearless playmaker who can impact nearly every blade of grass on the field” with his mobility and off-platform throws. Josh Edwards’ latest mock also had Mestemaker in Miami, but at No. 1.
The Jets take Carr at No. 7 with the pick that came from Dallas. Yates likes how the Notre Dame quarterback handles pre-snap duties and processes quickly, and points out that 36-year-old Geno Smith is on a one-year deal. Two picks later, Arizona takes Ole Miss’ Trinidad Chambliss even after spending the 65th pick in April on Carson Beck. “No quarterback in this class has played better in big games than Chambliss,” Yates wrote, noting he averaged 307 passing yards and accounted for six touchdowns in three College Football Playoff games last season.
Not in the top 10: Texas’ Arch Manning, Miami’s Darian Mensah and Missouri’s Austin Simmons, all of whom Kiper has inside his top 25.
Moore over Simmons for the Titans
Tennessee’s pick was the hardest call. “Do you build from the front to the back, or just take a surefire cornerback?” Yates asked. He chose Notre Dame’s Leonard Moore, who has allowed six catches on 153 coverage snaps, and called him “a true shutdown cornerback.” Texas edge rusher Colin Simmons “was nearly my pick here” and goes one spot later to Tampa Bay, which has only 11 sacks through six games. Simmons has 31.5 sacks and eight forced fumbles since the start of 2024 and is dealing with a high ankle sprain from last weekend.
Washington, 25th in sacks per dropback, takes South Carolina’s Dylan Stewart at No. 5. Yates says the best version of Stewart has a case as the top pass rusher in the class, but teams will ask about his one-game suspension for punching an Alabama player in the helmet and arguing with coaches. He has one sack this season and 12 over three years.
Becker to the Eagles, Goosby to Houston, and the Jets’ haul
Philadelphia, 2-4, adds Indiana’s Charlie Becker opposite DeVonta Smith after drafting Makai Lemon in the first round in April. Becker ranks 11th nationally at 99.1 receiving yards per game. Houston takes Texas tackle Trevor Goosby at No. 8, with Yates giving him a narrow edge over LSU’s Jordan Seaton for his run blocking and power, while saying he expects the Texans, winners of two straight, to pick much later than this.
The Jets’ second top-10 pick, from Indianapolis in the Sauce Gardner trade, becomes Hampton, a 6-foot-2 cornerback with nine passes defended and an interception this season. “Oh yeah, and they’d also have the 11th pick if the season ended today,” Yates added, floating Ole Miss defensive tackle Will Echoles there to refill the spot left by Quinnen Williams, another premium player the Jets dealt to build this haul of picks.
For how the order looked a week earlier, see our 2027 draft order tracker.
No published comments yet. Start the conversation.