PFF grades top 10 QBs going into next season and Darian Mensah should be higher

PFF has Ohio State QB Julian Sayin as the No. 1 returning signal caller in the country based on its passing grades, and for Miami fans, Darian Mensah checks in at No. 6.

Duke QB Darian Mensah will start for Miami next season

PFF's passing grade is the company's play-by-play evaluation of quarterback performance, meant to capture decision-making and throw quality.

Here's how the rankings shape out, with two ties included:

Sayin is first, followed by Dante Moore at No. 2 and Brendan Sorsby at No. 3. Next is Drew Mestemaker at No. 4 and Byrum Brown at No. 5, with Mensah at No. 6. The list then has a tie at No. 7 between CJ Carr and Noah Fifita, followed by Anthony Colandrea at No. 9, and a tie at No. 10 between Jayden Maiava and Arch Manning.

Sayin isn't a bad choice at No. 1, considering he threw for 3,610 passing yards and 32 touchdowns last year. But, Mensah was impressive in his own right.

Mensah threw for 3,973 yards with 34 touchdowns and six interceptions in 2025, earned second-team All-ACC honors, and helped Duke win the ACC. It's pretty obvious why Miami was okay with Mensah going through all of that legal trouble to make sure he was able to transfer to Coral Gables. It's a perfect fit, and Mensah could easily be higher, with all due respect to the other very talented QBs on the list.

Moore threw for 3,565 yards and 30 touchdowns while completing 71.8% of his passes. Sorsby is now the centerpiece of a Big 12 Conference title contender at Texas Tech. Mestemaker threw for 4,379 passing yards and 34 touchdowns in 2025 at North Texas before he committed to Oklahoma State.

And Brown is headed from South Florida to Auburn, and he posted 3,158 passing yards and 1,008 rushing yards in 2025.