Even The GOAT Thinks The Arch Manning Slander Is Out of Control

Everybody needs their own amount of time to learn an develop.

No two people are the same - even if they're connected by last name and lineage.

So why are we so quick to tear down a 21-year-old kid like Arch Manning, who is just halfway through his first season as the starting quarterback for the Texas Longhorns?

If Manning's name was Vince Young, Matthew Stafford, Colt McCoy, Andrew Luck, or Joe Burrow, he apparently would have been given a year of grace to learn and grow at the position while he adjusted to the speed of the college game.

But not Arch Manning. Not in 2025. Instead, the national media and their social media sheep fall into the trap of instant gratification and declaring him a bust before he even hits double digits as a starter.

It has gotten so out of control, in fact, that even the greatest quarterback in the history of the game, Tom Brady, is coming to Manning's defense.

The GOAT caution's patience with Arch Manning

Texas Longhorns QB Arch Manning — Texas’ Arch Manning grinds the ball forward but not to the goal line against Kentucky | Scott Utterback/Courier Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

“Before, [players] had the kind of ability to fail when people weren't watching, to build that resiliency within themselves," Brady told SI.com. "So I think it’s a real challenge these days for these young kids because Arch Manning, you know, seems like a great kid and great player.”

“It’s just a very interesting media environment with the negativity associated with people. And I’d love to see some of these young players not have their confidence broken, you know, because they’re not their uncle … as a 17- or 18-year-old kid."

When you boil it down, it's really not a hard concept to understand. It takes time for a player who comes from a low-division private school to develop and get adjusted to the speed of the college game. It is something that every great college quarterback has had time to do.

The five quarterbacks we listed above - Young, Stafford, McCoy, Luck, and Burrow - are just a few of the many who took time to get to a point at which they reached expectations and achieved their own levels of greatness.

The problem is, thanks to the national media pushing Manning as the greatest thing in the history of football for the entire six-month offseason, that time was ripped away from him.

As a result, everyone expected him to come out and throw for 500 yards and 10 touchdowns per game.

And when he didn't do that, he was immediately classified as a major bust and disappointment and given every other asinine name in the book.

Does that sound fair? Not particularly.

Manning Has Been Better than Most Think

Texas Longhorns quarterback Arch Manning waves to the Oklahoma Sooners fans after he runs for a first down during the second half at the Cotton Bowl. | Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

Let's not forget, Manning also needs help from his supporting cast - i.e., his offensive line, receivers, tight ends, and running backs. Oh, and his coaches, too.

He can't do it all on his own.

And so far, in 2025 he's had to do exactly that.

Manning has started seven games as the full-time QB1; three of those have come against SEC teams, and one against the No. 1 team in the country on the road at Ohio State.

His offensive line ranks 74th in the nation in pass blocking grade and 54th in the country in run blocking grade.

Not to mention, his receivers have been underwhelming, and his running backs have been bad.

Despite that, Manning has been producing for his team. In fact, he has been basically their only offense, scoring 17 of the 21 offensive touchdowns the Longhorns have managed this season.

But that's not all.

As the starter, Manning has also completed 60.3 percent of his passes for 1,449 yards and 12 touchdowns with five interceptions. He has also rushed for 193 yards and five more scores.

That's as many as Joey Aguilar and Gunner Stockton, and it's more than Beau Pribula, Garrett Nussmeier, John Mateer, Trinidad Chambliss, LaNorriss Sellers, and DJ Lagway. It's more than Dylan Raiola, it's more than Cade Klubnik, and it's more than Carson Beck.

Manning Has A Ways to Go, and That's Ok

Texas Longhorns wide receiver DeAndre Moore Jr with quarterback Arch Manning — Texas Longhorns wide receiver DeAndre Moore Jr. celebrates with quarterback Arch Manning and other teammates after scoring a touchdown | Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images

Has he been perfect? Absolutely not. He has plenty to work on. He has the worst completion percentage in the SEC after his performance against Kentucky. He has been mechanically sloppy, particularly in the pocket. He still needs to learn how to slow the game down and process through his progressions.

All of that is ok. Young, Stafford, McCoy, Luck and Burrow all needed those things too.

But as with those five quarterbacks - and plenty of other ones throughout the years - the tools are there for Manning, and with time, patience, a full season under his belt to learn from and perhaps a little more help from the other nine new starters across the offense, he can get there.

The world just needs to be patient, and let him grow.

Kind of like they did for his uncles.

And a lot like they did for Brady himself.

“Peyton had a lot of years to develop. Eli had a lot of years to develop and, you know, I was a college kid once, too, and I wasn’t the best quarterback at that time,” Brady told Sports Illustrated. “And how people remember me after my pro career was a lot different than how they remember me after my college career, which is a lot different than how they remember me after my high school years.

"So give people a chance to learn and grow and develop and put them in the right situation.”