2026 Mock Draft Thread

[DoubleDeluxe]

James Foster's mock draft 1.

Has us taking Mesidor which surprised me as both James and Kinnen aren't fans. Monroe Freeling goes 6 to the Browns, a pick Mayo has as a possibility.

6th for Freeling, whoa!

 

[manxman2601]

6th for Freeling, whoa!

Maybe not if you think of him as the best LT in the draft.

 

[DoubleDeluxe]

Maybe not if you think of him as the best LT in the draft.

This is true.
Just goes to show how much the rankings can differ and change.
When I first started playing around with Sims a few weeks ago Z young was a 4th rounder, now he’s a fringe 1st.
Singleton was a 5th rounder, seems now to be likely top 100 pick. I like him for our 3rd back if the value is there. I’m a PSU fan, Singleton does everything well, has size and speed and can catch.

 

[AQPE]

I say this every year: there will be at least 4 OT prospects and 2 IOL prospects taken in the first round this year, and maybe 4 other OL in round 2. The state of things in the NFL for the LT position is lousy and has been so for quite a while now.

I’m not convinced there is a single prospect in this years class that is truly worth a top 15 pick but watch it happen probably times 2. That doesn’t mean guys like Mauigoa or Freeling will not be fine players but reaching for need is nearly as risky as ignoring need

 

[mayoclinic]

James Foster pre-combine mick:



He has the Pats taking Akheem Mesidor at 31. Foster has Mesidor outside his top 50, was originally going to go with Blake Miller.

Of note:

2. Jets. Sonny Styles

4. Titans. David Bailey

6. Browns. Monroe Freeling. This is where I had Freeling going in my recent 3-round mock.

9. Chiefs. Jeremiyah Love. This is where I had Love going in my recent 3-round mock.

10. Bengals. Caleb Downs. This is where I had Downs going in my recent 3-round mock.

16. Jets. Makai Lemon. This is where I had Lemon going in my recent 3-round mock.

17. Lions. Kadyn Proctor. Yes, please!

18. Vikings. Aveion Terrell. This is where I had Terrell going in my recent 3-round mock.

20. Cowboys. CJ Allen.

21. Steelers. Ty Simpson. This is where I had Simpson going in my recent 3-round mock.

22. Chargers. Emmanuel Pregnon.

23. Eagles. Spencer Fano.

24. Browns. Denzel Boston. This is where I had Boston going in my recent 3-round mock. Foster has Cleveland taking Freeling at 6 and Boston at 24, which is exactly what I had 2 weeks ago.

25. Bears. Caleb Banks. Foster's DT1, I had him going 21 picks earlier.

30. Broncos. Jeremiah Trotter.

32. Seawhawks. Chase Bisontis. I had them taking Emmanuel Pregnon, who is off the board in this mock.

Overall, 8 of Foster's top 24 picks (1, 6, 9, 10, 16, 18, 21 and 24) were identical to my recent mock.

Max Iheanachor, Caleb Lomu, and Blake Miller slip to the 2nd round! Also Lee Hunter. Trade up time!

 

[hornetfb85]

All aboard the trade up to 20 for Freeling train (personally still don’t think that’s near high enough) as long as we hammer the Edge position hard in free agency

 

[DoubleDeluxe]

All aboard the trade up to 20 for Freeling train (personally still don’t think that’s near high enough) as long as we hammer the Edge position hard in free agency

Chaisson should re signed imo unless his price gets unreasonably high.
Landry would/should be a cut if possible, but I don't think his contract makes sense to cut this offseason.
Maybe he can be better if healthy, but I have my doubts.
There are guys in the draft that could be legit pass rush threats after round 1. Some of them may be specialists to start their NFL careers, but that's ok.
I like M. Lawrence but he will be a riser, but doubt he gets to round 1. Could move move up to rd 2.

 

[40yrpatsfan]

I agree with @One-If-By-Sea , @mayoclinic and @MrTibbs

1. I do think there's merit in playing Wilson at RG. Firstly, with the addition of Linderbaum, that's a super athletic OL. Also, if Wilson has a years experience at RG, at the very least his career will be an interior OL supersub able to back up all three interior positions.

2. Linderbaum would be an excellent addition but, if he makes it to FA, a very expensive and popular one. There's no guarantee we win a bidding war.

3. Yes we can afford that if we cut Onwenu. However, he has been our best OL and it would cause even more disruption. He's here for one more year - we can find his replacement next year.

4. Adding Freeling, shifting Campbell and Wilson inside, drafting Moses' future replacement while keeping Onwenu and Moses is the least disruptive fix (other than the status quo). It puts people in their best positions.

5. While there is draft capital cost this year, in my mock it used up three premium draft picks, it upgrades three OL positions, costs very little extra in terms of salary and means no later round picks need to be used on the OL*. Assuming it all works out, the OL project is finished for the forseeable future.

* Assuming we re-sign Onwenu long-term to a more friendly

Campbell’s not getting moved from LT so we should mock draft accordingly. A LT 5th round or later as depth maybe. We do need a RT though.

 

[mayoclinic]

6th for Freeling, whoa!

I mocked Freeling to Cleveland at #6 on 1/31. I think that's his ceiling, unless he blows away the Combine, in which case Arizona at #3 could possibly be in play.

I think his floor is probably 23-24. If he somehow gets past Detroit at 17, I would consider trading up.

Armand Membou shot up draft boards last year. Freeling could have a similar rise. We'll know more in 2 weeks.

 

[rads2005]

I had to watch the video to see who #30 actually was. I was like, another Jeremiah Trotter?

 

[hornetfb85]

Wish these mock generators would stop tempting me with Freeling

 

[DoubleDeluxe]

Wish these mock generators would stop tempting me with Freeling

I like it, but Thieneman, prefer a LB there if one was available (Rodriguez....etc)
Like the player, but really wouldn't go safety that early if at all I (I would like Hawkins back) and definitely wouldn't add a second safety. Would prefer a double dip at TE or a later rd RB.

 

[mayoclinic]

Wish these mock generators would stop tempting me with Freeling

The problem with the simulators is you are bound by their board. You get great mocks that are totally unrealistic.

 

[DoubleDeluxe]

The problem with the simulators is you are bound by their board. You get great mocks that are totally unrealistic.

nflmockdraftdatabase seems to have the most realistic rankings from what I've seen, but it has it's faults.

 

[mayoclinic]

I find simulators helpful to get an idea of the shape of the draft, but otherwise I go with what I think is realistic.

That mock has a lot of low probability options. Cumulatively, it is just not realistic. There are at least 4 major player drops, and 0 chance of them all happening.

 

[DoubleDeluxe]

I find simulators helpful to get an idea of the shape of the draft, but otherwise I go with what I think is realistic.

That mock has a lot of low probability options. Cumulatively, it is just not realistic. There are at least 4 major player drops, and 0 chance of them all happening.

Never say zero. One thing I have learned following and watching the draft for almost 40 years, never say never.
Never guarantee player X won't drop to rd/position X, and never guarantee a player won't be taken as high rd/position X.
Usually the top 20-30 players are pretty much consensus and most teams have a similar board. After that all bets are off.

 

[mayoclinic]

Any 1 can happen. All 4? Nope.

I'd love:

31. David Bailey
63. Monroe Freeling
95. Ted Hurst
125. Treydan Stukes
131. Kyle Louis

But it's a pipe dream.

 

[DoubleDeluxe]

Any 1 can happen. All 4? Nope.

I'd love:

31. David Bailey
63. Monroe Freeling
95. Ted Hurst
125. Treydan Stukes
131. Kyle Louis

But it's a pipe dream.

Freeling might be long gone by 31, more likely than not.
Just today I say a mock that had Freelnig going 17 right after his teammate Miller!
NFL analysts (there are good ones) have their boards, as do knowledgable fans, but we have all witnessed over the years how much team boards differ from what everyone thinks they know about what the rankings are.
There's still the combine and pro days. Guys will rise and fall.
I would never guarantee anything about the draft after the first 20ish picks.
I've seen it every year, people guarantee guys will/won't go by a certain pick, and they are wrong just as often as they are right.

 

[DoubleDeluxe]

That said, I do agree the sims are good for kinda an overall picture. and not much else.
I like to play around with them just for fun, and I do like them for showing me players that I'm not familiar with, it forces me to do research on those players.

 

[hornetfb85]

Mock draft simulators are cruel. Feed into hope for individual players being available possibly even though my brain knows they won’t.