Dylan Raiola has all the tools to shine bright in the pros. The Nebraska Cornhuskers quarterback, who had drawn unbridled comparisons with Patrick Mahomes, arrived at Lincoln with a lot of freshman hype. He partly did justice to that. Especially at the beginning. The Huskers went 5-1 to start the season. Followed by 4 losses. Guaranteed that stretch had tough games against Indiana and Ohio State, but losing to the Bruins? Matt Rhule had to do something. To save his chances of making it to the bowl game, the head coach brought in a new OC. Dana Holgorsen didn’t set the world on fire, but the team managed to win against Wisconsin. Six wins, bowl game, decent season.

The numbers don’t look that bad for their freshman QB. 2,819 passing yards, 13 TDs, and 11 interceptions. He capped off the season with a quarterback rating of 63.8. Raiola led Nebraska to a 20-15 win in the Bad Boy Mowers Pinstripe Bowl over Boston College. The questionable stretches, including the sacks, didn’t have everything to do with QB. Sometimes the coaching staff didn’t make good decisions at the end. At times, the O-line didn’t help. After the head coach made a bold remark about his QB’s weight concern, Raiola shed some pounds to accelerate his fitness in the field this offseason. Now, fans are looking forward to how it will aid in his solid sophomore season. But his early NFL buzz is turning the heads the most.

Raiola is likely to get on the draft board in 2027. He has an ample amount of time left on the card to fix his issues and emerge as the next breakout star his favorite NFL franchise is looking for. But the analysts believe he’s already a real catch for the A-lister pro teams. Sure, Raiola needs to hone his prowess! But at this point in time, he is elite enough to take the NFL world by storm. But how much of an elite does vouch for a top spot?

NFL Rookie Watch flamed up the fire even more, saying, “Dylan Raiola’s arm is absolutely UNBELIEVABLE for a sophomore. Raiola launched this ball from 50+ yards away and put it in the BUCKET. Several NFL scouts reportedly believe Raiola has a “very strong chance” of being the QB1 of the 2027 NFL Draft class.”

But the list of suitors for the top spot is long. Arch Manning, DJ Lagway, and Nico Iamaleava are butting heads for their prize. Manning is gaining an overwhelming hype over his NFL future. The kid is yet to play a snap as a full-fledged Texas starter, but scouts already seem to be in awe of their talents, tools, and pedigree. His elite passing ability even transcends his uncles, Peyton and Eli, to some extent. The way he produces the explosives in and out of the pocket makes him a serious candidate for the 2027 No.1 pick.

On the flip side, DJ Lagway, in his sophomore season, looks to work on his minor issues that kept Florida in the midline despite a four-game winning streak in the end. Field Yates deems Lagway to be the No.1 in 2027 NFL cycle for a reason. Despite the hamstring injury, his mobility in the pocket, ability to get on the running game speaks volume.

But Raiola? That’s off the chart. A bomb came out of scratch and shook the world of the critics! Raiola going No.1? The next Cam Ward? Even his idol wasn’t picked No. 1. Mahomes went No. 9 in the draft. Time will answer his actual prospects in the draft. But Raiola has already fixed his choice in the pro. When Ward was drafted by the Tennessee Titans, the baby Mahomes felt a jolt. Reason: he is a sucker for Nashville country music and a true bohemian swagger. “I was kind of pissed, I wanted to go to Tennessee. I wanted to get drafted by Tennessee or Vegas,” wrote the year 2 QB of the Huskers. With Ward getting chosen by the Titans, that spot may be gone for some time.

However, there are obvious names who can go past Raiola in the 2027 draft. At least, based on the information we currently have. DJ Lagway’s 2024 season has built enough hype for us to imagine a great draft spot for him. The same goes for Arch Manning if he returns to the Longhorns for a second year as the starter. Of course, Dylan Raiola can top these two QBs. For that to happen, both he and the Huskers have to produce.

Dylan Raiola actively boosts his Patrick Mahomes comparison 

Raiola is ruling the spring season with a solid redemption. Coach Rhule sees his passion and drive to do better and how it’s actually paying off. “He is ten steps ahead of where he was, and where he was, was pretty cool,” the head coach couldn’t play it cool anymore while appreciating his QB1 with an open voice.

But it’s not just that he’s prepping for the job he has. He wants to be the next face of the NFL, just like his Idol did. Rather, he’s prepping for the job he wants. The 20-year-old QB’s swagger headbands and his curly hair under the helmet might easily fool any newbie fan into thinking he’s watching old footage of Mahomes. Both come from a blueblood athletic family. But it seems that Raiola looks to enhance the resemblance factor even more.

To feed his Patrick Mahomes fancies, he jets off to Texas. In a May 23 video of Wilson Dittman Sports, the host spilled an interesting update about the QB’s offseason agenda. “He will be flying down to Texas with Nebraska’s top five wide receivers to personally train with them and his personal trainer, Jeff Christensen, who’s also the trainer of Patrick Mahomes and a bunch of other high-quality NFL quarterbacks.”

It will be intriguing to see how Raiola translates his talent to the NFL after his crucial two years with the Huskers and matches the fame and talent of Mahomes somewhere down the line.