Are NFL Teams Already Tanking for Texas Longhorns' Arch Manning?

Even before Arch Manning takes over as the Texas Longhorns' starting quarterback, the NFL hype surrounding him is already astronomical.

That's bound to happen when he's the nephew of Peyton and Eli and grandson of Archie, but even though his name is the main reason for his hype, it's not the only one.

For one, Manning was the top recruit in the 2023 class, receiving a near perfect rating from all the major recruiting outlets. For two, he has looked pretty good at Texas so far, even though that sample size is obviously very small.

Texas Longhorns quarterback Arch Manning breaks the attempted tackle from Texas A&M Aggies defensive back Marcus Ratcliffe. | Maria Lysaker-Imagn Images

For those reasons and more, Manning is widely seen as the favorite to go No. 1 overall in the NFL Draft, whenever he decides to enter it. The question is: how desperate will teams be to land him?

Mike Sando of The Athletic (premium content) recently spoke with anonymous NFL executives about teams' free agency moves this offseason, and when the Cleveland Browns came up, one executive pondered if there might be "a temptation to suck" for Manning. In other words, wondering if teams would intentionally tank for a better chance at landing Manning.

The Browns are in a rough spot at the quarterback position. Their trade for Deshaun Watson in 2022 has proven to be a complete disaster, as he's barely played in the three years since and has been awful even when he has played. Right now, their projected starter for next season - Watson could miss most or all of the season after tearing his Achilles again - is Kenny Pickett, who threw a grand total of 42 passes last season.

Cleveland does have the No. 2 overall pick in this month's draft, but it may not make sense to take a quarterback there. If the Tennessee Titans take Miami's Cam Ward at No. 1 overall, which feels pretty likely at this point, then the Browns would likely have to reach for Colorado's Shedeur Sanders at No. 2. As Sando's article revealed, many executives aren't convinced they'll do that.

If the Browns do decide to tank in hopes of landing Manning, though, they're taking a severe risk. There's no guarantee whatsoever that Manning enters the draft in 2026, as he could easily stay at Texas for another year and come out in 2027. Not to mention, they could easily incur the wrath of the league if they aren't careful.

It's an intriguing possibility, but until there's more certainty on Manning's future, it's hard to see any team actively try and lose for him.