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Following Week 2’s blockbuster matchup between Ohio State and Texas, two of the most talent-loaded teams in college football, many of the 2027 NFL Draft’s blue-chip prospects will face friendlier matchups this week.
Eleven of the top 12 players on PFF’s big board are either on a bye or playing in games where their teams are favored by more than 20 points.
The only blue-chip prospect who doesn’t fall into either category is South Carolina’s Dylan Stewart, but he has yet to play this season due to injury. If he does take the field for Saturday’s big game against Mississippi State, he will likely be on a significant pitch count.
Further down the big board, however, one game stands head and shoulders above the rest as the matchup to watch this weekend.
LSU vs. Ole Miss
If draft scouts are going to be anywhere on Saturday, it’ll be in Oxford, where Ole Miss and LSU will comfortably combine for the most draftable talent sharing a field anywhere in the country in Week 3.
At quarterback, Ole Miss’ Trinidad Chambliss and LSU’s Sam Leavitt are both on the outside looking in when it comes to the top prospects at the position in the upcoming class. Both have size or frame concerns in their next-level evaluations, but they’re also two of the best signal-callers in college football and are certainly capable of being selected inside the top 100 next April.
There’s room for debate over which quarterback faces the tougher assignment this week. Chambliss will take on one of the sport’s most talented defenses, featuring top 2027 prospects Jordyn Ross and former teammate Princewill Umanmielen along the defensive line, as well as one of the best safeties in college football in Ty Benefield. If that’s not enough, sophomore cornerback DJ Pickett isn’t eligible to enter the draft next April but already looks like a potential top-10 pick further down the line.
Leavitt will have to contend with the interior pressure generated by Ole Miss defensive tackle Will Echoles, the 32nd overall player on PFF’s big board, but the tougher challenge could be handling one of the most raucous stadium environments we will see in the sport this season. Kirby Smart’s return to Oxford will bring the atmosphere to a fever pitch on Saturday night, and Leavitt cannot allow the occasion to affect his play.
The other big name to watch is Ole Miss running back Kewan Lacy. He’s considered by some to be the best available running back in the upcoming class and has found the end zone in 11 straight games for the Rebels. LSU, however, has allowed just 94 rushing yards through two games and only 2.0 yards per carry. Something has to give.
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Ryan Coleman-Williams must come alive vs. Florida State
Alabama’s superstar wideout Ryan Coleman-Williams has seen his draft stock fall over the past year following a string of anonymous performances.
The freshman sensation of 2024 hasn’t produced a 60-yard receiving performance against a Power Four opponent in seven straight games. This weekend, he faces what could be one of the worst pass defenses in the power conferences.
The Seminoles have allowed 339 passing yards per game to open the season — the second-most among FBS defenses — and enter this matchup as 19.5-point road underdogs. If Kalen DeBoer is unable to get his No. 1 receiver heavily involved in the game plan this weekend, it may be time to start raising some red flags about Coleman-Williams’ long-term potential.
Quincy Rhodes Jr. must find his form against dominant Georgia front
Like Coleman-Williams, Arkansas’ versatile defensive lineman Quincy Rhodes Jr. is going through a rough patch that dates back to last season. He looked like one of the best pass-rushers in the SEC for much of 2025, recording 34 pressures, seven sacks and an 84.2 PFF pass-rushing grade through his first nine games to put himself in the conversation as a potential future top-50 draft pick.
Over his five games since, however, Rhodes has recorded just six pressures, earned a 54.2 PFF pass-rushing grade and failed to register a sack. A big performance against Georgia on Saturday would go a long way toward easing concerns about his recent form and draft stock.
The Bulldogs’ offensive line has allowed just four pressures and no sacks through two games. The unit lacks any blue-chip prospects in the upcoming draft but features a strong blend of highly regarded underclassmen and experienced seniors. Rhodes can line up anywhere along the defensive line, but he’ll need the rest of his team to keep the game close enough to force Gunner Stockton into obvious passing situations.
WR Nyck Harbor vs. CB Kelley Jones
Staying in the South, this is perhaps the best wide receiver-cornerback matchup on the Week 3 slate. South Carolina’s athletic marvel Nyck Harbor, ranked 70th on PFF’s 2027 big board, squares off against Mississippi State’s Kelley Jones, who comes in at No. 20.
The most fascinating element of this matchup is the sheer size of both players. Harbor stands 6-foot-5 and 239 pounds and towers over the vast majority of opposing defenders, but not Jones. At 6-foot-4 and 205 pounds, Jones is one of the biggest cornerbacks in the FBS.
These are two of college football’s freakiest athletes going toe-to-toe. Harbor has endured an early season to forget, including multiple drops against FCS opponent Towson, while Jones already looks to be in midseason form after a solid performance against Minnesota last weekend. Mississippi State’s defense plays an above-average amount of man coverage, so we should see plenty of isolated reps between these two giants.
EDGE Clev Lubin vs. T PJ Williams
A battle between Nos. 16 and 23 in the AP poll sees SMU standout offensive tackle PJ Williams face Louisville’s premier pass-rusher, Clev Lubin. Both players are arguably facing their most difficult individual assignment of the 2026 season.
Williams previously played right tackle but has taken to his new role on the left side like a fish to water. He hasn’t allowed a single pressure across 57 pass-blocking snaps so far this season.
That could all change against Lubin, however. The leader of Louisville’s defense finished last season with a 92.6 PFF pass-rushing grade, recording 63 pressures and 11 sacks while disrupting opposing quarterbacks on more than one-fifth of his pass-rushing snaps.
The two are also tightly bunched on PFF’s big board, with Lubin ranked 47th, just six spots ahead of Williams. Each is the only player from his respective school to feature inside PFF’s top 75. Lubin splits his snaps almost evenly between left and right defensive end, so we should see plenty of opportunities for these two to square off on Saturday.
The race for the first overall pick
It’s very early in the NFL season to start tracking the race for the first overall pick in a draft that is still seven months away, but wins in September count just as much as wins in Week 18.
The Dolphins and Browns have emerged among the teams at the top of the early draft order, and they are the two largest underdogs on the NFL slate this weekend against San Francisco and Tampa Bay, respectively.
The Cardinals were typically part of that bottom tier in preseason projections, but following a Week 1 upset victory over the Chargers, they are just 4-point underdogs at home against the reigning Super Bowl champions on Sunday afternoon. A repeat of last week’s upset would likely have many Cardinals fans shifting their attention toward the possibility of a playoff berth rather than a seat at the table near the top of the draft.