Since taking over for the USCTrojans as starting quarterback, Jayden Maiava has had to constantly prove himself. Still, even after a large enough sample size, experts are not buying into him as a top quarterback in the 2027 NFL Draft.

In a recent article, writer Michael Middlehurst-Schwartz provides his early 2027 NFL first-round mock draft, and it does not include USC Trojan quarterback Jayden Maiava. Middlehurst-Schwartz has five quarterbacks he believes will be taken before Jayden Maiava, one of which is another Big Ten quarterback, Dante Moore.

Jayden Maiava, albeit being 2nd in the country in passing yards and consistently producing like an elite quarterback, still gets overlooked. The rest of the season will obviously play a big role in his draft stock. However, Jayden Maiava has 1 season and a half of sample size leading an explosive offense. That is after losing 2 NFL-caliber receivers.

Every single game, he makes an NFL-level throw. He has shown he can battle adversity, and he can show up in big games. He has a victory on the road against Penn State and a signature Big Ten win against Iowa now on his resume. He is a quarterback that Lincoln Riley has the utmost confidence in. There is not a throw he can't make.

I believe he has shown enough to be considered a late first-round draft pick. He has proven more than quarterbacks who are getting looked at solely because of the program they play in and their name.

Right now, as things stand, there is a great chance that Jayden Maiava will end up being one of the biggest steals for a franchise needing a quarterback. It will be fun to see him improve his stock the rest of the season and create some real buzz for him being a Heisman candidate.