NFL Draft Mailbag
A month into the college football season feels like the perfect time to get a feel for the landscape surrounding the 2026 NFL Draft by answering your questions. I petitioned for questions on X (@Anthony_Russo97) and got some really interesting ones that I’m excited to dive into.
Which 3 positions do you think are deepest for this draft cycle? Which 3 are most limited in number? - @SteveSWFL
This feels like a good baseline to start. I’d say immediately wide receiver comes to mind. Jordan Tyson, Makai Lemon, Denzel Boston and Carnell Tate all came in as potential first rounders and have lived to the hype while Germie Bernard and KC Concepcion have exceeded my expectations and new names like Chris Brazzell II and CJ Daniels have emerged. The EDGE group looks promising led by Rueben Bain Jr at the top with Keldric Faulk, Matayo Uiagalelei and Cashius Howell entering round one talks and personal favorites like Quincy Rhodes Jr and Anthony Lucas starting to breakout. Finally, I’ll say safety. Caleb Downs is still great. Dillon Thieneman is still great. Plus Kamari Ramsey, Bud Clark and Earl Little Jr are firmly in day two talks.
I still hate the tight end group. Other than Kenyon Sadiq, there isn’t one I’d even consider in the top 50. The cornerback group is still dicey. Mansoor Delane has been sensational but Xavier Scott is hurt (more on that soon), Jermod McCoy is still a question mark and I haven’t seen anyone else I’d talk about for round one. Then there’s the guard class. If we see Francis Mauigoa, Ryan Baer and Brian Parker II kick inside in the NFL like I think they should, this is a different conversation. But just based on who is playing guard right now in college, I’m sorely disappointed in this year’s crop.
How many QBs do you think get drafted in 2026 (in any round)? - @nfldraftfanatc
Get ready for a series of QB questions here. For this question I went back to the last 5 draft classes and compared the average number of QBs to what I think of this class.
2025 - 13
2024 - 11
2023 - 14
2022 - 9
2021 - 10
Now quantity doesn’t necessarily dictate quality but I would expect somewhere near the average of this. My official guess is 11. I expect several top guys to not come out this year but I still think this group as of now has above average talent and upside.
What QBs do you like as round 1 guys rn? - @SeanReneau2
Right now, not many. LaNorris Sellers hasn’t been ideal so far but he still warrants a 1st round pick for me. Fernando Mendoza was a 2nd round guy for me in summer scouting and has probably played his way into round one right now but I want to see more. Dante Moore is close but needs to prove himself against better competition. Drew Allar, Cade Klubnik and Garrett Nussmeier at this point, barring some sort of spectacular jump, just don’t feel like they’re going to show round one upside for me by season’s end.
This QB class feels very up in the air. If you had to predict who is going to be the first guy off the board, who would it be and why? - @Jack_Brentnall
This is such a hard question which I guess is the point. I completely agree it’s up in the air and the answer I give here could be completely different by next week. Right now, solely going on just a predictive answer and not my own view on the players, it feels like the momentum is with Fernando Mendoza. He has chances to cement himself against Oregon, Penn State and potentially in the CFB playoff. If he does that, it’s probably his race to lose but LaNorris Sellers is firmly in the conversation with his elite size and athleticism.
How much does Xavier Scott’s injury and missed time impact his draft stock? - @NFLDraft_Westen
This has been one of the most devastating parts of the college football season so far. Scott had no business being on the field when he got hurt and Illinois’ pass defense looked anemic against Indiana and now braces for Lincoln Riley’s USC Trojans to come to town. Lower body injuries for corners can be a very damaging thing for draft stock and it’s tough to completely answer this question without knowing the exact injury (it’s believed to be his foot/ankle and required surgery). Already declaring Scott out for most if not the entire rest of the season tells me he has zero chance of going round one in the 2026 NFL Draft. I suspect that getting a medical redshirt is being considered to give him next year to rebuild his stock. If he does enter the draft, he’ll need to prove himself on the all-star circuit and pass the medical tests but I don’t think going on day two is out of the question.
How many USC players do you have graded in the 1st 3 rounds? - @shontong81
Am I the only one who thinks USC might have a top 5 roster in college football when it comes to NFL talent? There is talent all over this USC team and I expect several players to rise up draft boards. To answer the question, solely speaking on draft eligible players as of right now:
WR Makai Lemon - 1st round
WR JaKobi Lane - 2nd round
EDGE Anthony Lucas - 2nd round
SAF Kamari Ramsey - 2nd round
I want to shout out RB Waymond Jordan, LB Eric Gentry and SAF Bishop Fitzgerald. I don’t have any of them graded but I have seen/heard good things about them and it seems like they could be top 100 players as well.
Which player is nobody thinking about right now who will have the biggest climb up draft boards and become the player who everyone is talking about leading up to the draft? - @byoungsma1
If you’ve seen me on X you know I’m a big fan of several players I don’t believe are getting enough love (Bryce Lance, Anthony Lucas, Hollywood Smothers, Devin Moore etc.) But I wanted to dig deep and really find the ultimate gem that I think is still buried in dirt for pretty much everyone else.
Maybe I have too much of a fascination with North Dakota State but their QB Cole Payton has impressed me so much. He’s a true dual threat with a big frame and good arm and has the highest PFF passing grade of any QB either in the FBS or FCS. I don’t think he’s on at least 95% of scouts’ radars but if he keeps balling out and leads to NDSU to a championship season, he can definitely join the wide open QB race and I think NFL teams could see a Josh Allen lite.
Which 3 underclassmen (either RS Soph or JR) do you think are the most likely to declare this upcoming cycle? Of those same 3, which would you tell to declare and which would you tell to return? - @SparkScouting
Wouldn’t expect anything less than a thought-provoking question from Bill Sparks. Right now I feel most confident Caleb Downs declares. He already has a national title and his stock really can’t get higher than it is. I’d also be surprised if Jeremiyah Love returned to school assuming he plays out the whole season. He’s RB1 for a vast majority (not me) and it feels like an unnecessary risk to come back to school and possibly suffer another injury. Finally I’d say Carnell Tate for the simple reason I don’t think he’ll want to potentially be in the same class as teammate Jeremiah Smith in 2027.
If all of them have healthy productive seasons, they should all declare. If I had to pick one that I could most justify returning to school I’d probably say Tate. Following in the Emeka Egbuka path and getting that extra year of development could help him reach another level as a player and he’ll have Julian Sayin at QB with a full year of experience. Together he *could* potentially cement himself as a top 15 guy which right now, doesn’t appear to be his consensus.
Over your time of evaluating players who is one player you were so sure of that didn’t pan out and who is a player you had no faith in that turned into something special - @MandrewNFL
I’m not sure if this totally fits the first part of the question but I really believed Kyle Pitts would be dominating the NFL right now. While he’s still kind of contributing, he’s definitely not the offensive weapon I thought he’d become. If you’re looking for a little more of a whiff, I really thought N’Keal Harry was going to be a nightmare to deal with in the NFL. Despite this miss, I refuse to give up loving big WRs.
The first name I thought of for the second part of this was actually Will McDonald. Admittedly, the Jets should’ve drafted several players that wound up going after McDonald but I did not expect him to reach 10.5 season sacks by year two or really at all. He’s easily the Jets most reliable pass rusher and is making big plays like the punt block return TD against Tampa. I really hope he can continue to get stronger and develop.