CJ Carr's NFL Draft 2027 Status Addressed by NFL Scouts After Notre Dame Beats Mensah, No. 1 Miami

CJ Carr led Notre Dame to its signature win of the season Saturday with a 31-24 victory over No. 1 Miami, and he appeared to help his NFL draft status in the process.

"Carr played an outstanding first half and a good-enough second half," Dane Brugler of The Athletic wrote. "As one scout put it to me a few weeks ago, Carr has a brain that was 'designed to play quarterback.' That is what we saw Saturday with his processing, both pre- and post-snap, which let him confidently rip throws. His operation already feels like it's on an NFL level."

Notably, Brugler reported that "educated guesses from scouts" suggest Carr will return to Notre Dame next season even though he "already looks like an NFL starter."

If he continues to play like he did Saturday, perhaps his stock will rise so much he will ultimately choose to enter the 2027 NFL draft.

Carr threw for 319 yards, three touchdowns and zero interceptions against the Hurricanes and is now the betting favorite to win the Heisman Trophy on FanDuel Sportsbook. If Notre Dame takes care of business as expected in its three final games against Boston College, SMU and Syracuse, it will be in the CFP with a potential Heisman winner leading the way.

And if Carr accomplishes all that and then leads the Fighting Irish to a national title, he will have nothing left to prove at the college level.

While B/R's NFL Scouting Department ranked Carr as the fifth-best quarterback in its 2027 NFL draft big board, that was back in September. He has since played at an elevated level while the positional picture around him has changed with Dante Moore and Julian Sayin out for the season and Arch Manning dealing with some inconsistency.

Ahead of the Miami game, ESPN's Mel Kiper Jr. ranked Carr as the eighth-best overall prospect in college football and third-best quarterback behind Drew Mestemaker and Darian Mensah.

Scouts may believe at this point Carr will return to Notre Dame, but he will surely have plenty to think about if he is a potential top-10 pick.