Rivals Rankings Week: Who must be No. 1 within the 2026 Rivals250?
The 2026 class rankings can be up to date this week and No. 1 is up for grabs. Jahkeem Stewart reclassified as much as the 2025 class in October and since then Jackson Cantwell has moved into the highest spot.
The nationwide recruiting analysts – Adam Friedman, John Garcia Jr., Adam Gorney, Greg Smith and Sam Spiegelman – give their takes on who they suppose must be ranked No. 1 within the Rivals250.
RIVALS RANKINGS WEEK
Monday: 5-Star Countdown
Tuesday: New Rivals250 unveiled | Gorney goes position-by-position | Largest risers
Wednesday: New offensive place rankings launched | QB rankings breakdown | RB rankings breakdown | WR/TE rankings breakdown | OL rankings breakdown
Thursday: New defensive place rankings launched | DL rankings breakdown | LB rankings breakdown | DB rankings breakdown | ATH rankings breakdown
Friday: New state rankings launched | Who’s No. 1 in every state?
Saturday: Rankings Roundtable
FRIEDMAN’S VIEW: Ryder Lyons
The Rivals250 is a projection to the NFL Draft so which means the highest prospect within the rankings is a possible No. 1 total choose. The actual fact is that quarterbacks are chosen No. 1 within the NFL Draft at a fee a lot increased than every other place so the overwhelming majority of the time a quarterback must be on the high of the Rivals250. Ryder Lyons is my No. 1 quarterback proper now and the logical choice for No. 1 within the Rivals250 due to the pattern within the NFL Draft.
Lyons is a implausible quarterback prospect with the arm expertise, accuracy, mobility, area consciousness, and playmaking talents. There’s a pure athleticism to his recreation that makes it look simple on the sector.
There’s a caveat to having Lyons at No. 1. He’s anticipated to take a year-long spiritual mission earlier than he will get to school. Its potential affect on his improvement as a quarterback might make any individual like Faizon Brandon or Jared Curtis a better option by the tip of the rankings cycle.
GARCIA’S VIEW: Jackson Cantwell
There’s a little bit of a logjam on the quarterback spot for the 2026 class, mixed with key reclassifications as much as 2025, but Cantwell stays the highest-floor possibility to think about atop the rankings presently. He has nearly all of the surface-level traits one might ask for on the offensive sort out place, with an immense body, verified athleticism and the kind of nationwide recruitment an elite prospects calls for.
GORNEY’S VIEW: Ryder Lyons
In 20 of the final 28 NFL Drafts beginning with Peyton Manning in 1998, a quarterback has been taken No. 1 total so the percentages are usually not solely closely of their favor however it’s nearly a shock when a QB is not first off the board.
That has knowledgeable our rankings course of during the last a few years the place if there’s an elite quarterback then they need to be put No. 1 total even when we love gamers at different positions as a result of the historical past of the NFL Draft dictates that transfer.
And Ryder Lyons is an elite quarterback who’s so good for at this time’s place. He has all of the instruments to be an elite pocket passer however he is extremely dynamic exterior the pocket, throwing on the run or making folks miss along with his toes. Lyons is sort of a good mixture of all of the elite quarterbacks within the recreation wrapped into one with unbelievable dual-threat capabilities.
It will get a bit tough as a result of Lyons is planning to take a non secular mission after highschool however he is so gifted that I nonetheless suppose he is the No. 1 prospect within the 2026 class – even when it takes him a bit longer to show it.
SMITH’S VIEW: Jackson Cantwell
There are different gamers pushing Cantwell on this dialogue however he stays a transparent No. 1 for me. Cantwell has a uncommon mix of dimension with a large wingspan, athleticism and an important mentality. He’s a state champion thrower and could possibly be an Olympian there like his mother and father have been if he didn’t keep on with soccer. The Missouri native additionally has a excessive soccer IQ and needs to be nice. Cantwell is the full package deal as a cornerstone sort out.
SPIEGELMAN’S VIEW: Faizon Brandon
Faizon Brandon is surgical orchestrating his offense up and down the sector. He boasts excellent arm expertise to make throws everywhere in the area and the flexibility to increase performs or improvise exterior the pocket. Throughout a stay analysis this fall, we cherished how Brandon stepped up in huge moments — changing pivotal downs and distances and utilizing distinctive arm angles to slice up defenses. The five-star prospect is constantly correct and composed and made some big-time throws in several components of the sector when requested to. At a lean 6-foot-4 and 190 kilos, Brandon is difficult to include when he breaks the pocket, which is one other added aspect to his recreation.
He is undoubtedly the most effective on the most premium place, and Brandon’s present physique of labor and upside warrants No. 1 consideration
