What should we make of Texas quarterback Arch Manning?

That question was prominently featured on the latest episode of The Off The Charts Football Podcast. Ryan Rubenstein and Andrew Oja from our Operations department were joined by James Weaver from Research & Development to break down the top College Football Playoff contenders by looking at the top players, position groups, and coaching philosophies for each team.

Texas and Manning got a good amount of their attention.

"His accuracy was pretty pedestrian last year," James said. "Our Independent Quarterback Rating had him pretty far down the list as far as Power 5 quarterbacks go."

"They truly have an All-Star team here," Ryan said. "They really retooled through the transfer portal. I'm really excited to see what the running game is going to look like, especially with those two backs.  I think the running game is actually gonna be a huge part of this team identity going forward."

The three of them also got around to talking about BYU, Georgia, Indiana, Miami, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Ole Miss, Oregon, SMU, and Texas Tech by the time they were done.

Listen to the full episode to get their takes on each team and a better picture of how this season could shake out.

The 2026 NFL Draft Website has scouting reports for more than 400 of the top players. With that, we’ve got ratings and rankings. It’s basically everything a GM would want to know about the NFL’s top rookies heading into the 2026 season (we’ll be getting to the 2027 Draft at a later date).

Our statistical information package includes Total Points, our proprietary metric that values everything that happens on the field, as well as position-specific performance data in the form of raw totals, averages, and percentile rankings. And we explain our stats in our glossary.

Stat of the Week: Minor League Baseball’s Top Defensive Player

SIS Baseball Podcast w/ Nationals SS Eli Willits and Brewers IF Dylan O’Rae

Eli Willits is only 18 years old and he’s already a major league-caliber glove by the standards of Defensive Runs Saved. You can read about that in our Stat of the Week, then hear our interview with him and Brewers prospect and standout defender Dylan O’Rae. Listen to the end for job tips from Jack Cecil of the Pirates R&D department.

Fernando Mendoza’s Toughest NFL Adjustment Has Nothing To Do With Football

For Athlon Sports, Doug Farrar looks at the transition of quarterbacks who have to take snaps under center rather than in shotgun.

Ranking The 32 NFL Teams by Watchability

Ben Solak at ESPN.com rates the league’s teams for competitive games, big plays, star players, and lack of dreadfulness.

Check out the newly-redesigned SIS website! We’ve made it easier for you to find our articles, our data, and information about the tools and resources we offer. Give it a try on your desktop, laptop, phone, or mobile device.

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Check us out on Bluesky, where we share content and notes regularly, as well as some of your other favorite content outlets. You can also find us on X, Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn. And as you can see in the image above, we encourage our folks to post on Reddit too.

On Off the Charts, members of the R&D team, and special guests dig into statistical insights, tactical analysis, and personal opinions, aimed at providing listeners with a comprehensive understanding of the week's key matchups and the intricacies of the sport. On The SIS Baseball Podcast, we interview current players and coaches about defensive excellence and review the latest baseball news.

The FieldingBible.com website is a great resource for your defensive stat needs. It features player and team stats, Defensive Runs Saved leaderboards, and more.