2026 NFL Draft: Five bold predictions, including multiple Cowboys trades

The start of the 2026 NFL Draft is just hours away and if the past few weeks have been any indication, this could go down as one of the most unpredictable drafts of all time and that’s mostly because no one seems to have any idea what’s going to happen. 

Well, we do know one thing that’s going to happen: At the top of the draft, Fernando Mendoza is expected to be the pick for the Raiders, but after that, it’s all a mystery. To help solve that mystery, I’m going to be making five bold predictions for the first round. 

These predictions are meant to be bold, but somewhat grounded in reality, so we won’t be sending Joe Burrow to Minnesota for a seventh-round pick. Sorry, Vikings fans. With that mind, let’s get to the predictions. 

1. Chiefs crash the top five with big trade

For the first time in 13 years, the Chiefs are going into the draft with a top-10 pick. The last time it happened came in 2013 when they used the No. 1 overall pick on Eric Fisher. If general manager Brett Veach has proven one thing during his time in Kansas City, it’s that he’s not afraid to make a splash trade in the draft. In 2017, Veach led the Patrick Mahomes parade. The Chiefs went into that draft with the 27th overall pick and they ended up making a trade all the way up to 10th to get Patrick Mahomes. Three months after that draft, Veach was promoted from co-director of player personnel to general manager and he’s been on the job ever since. 

For this year’s draft, you might not see a jaw-dropping trade like the one that brought Mahomes to Kansas City, but Veach is still expecting a wild first round. 

“I think it should be an entertaining night and there will probably be a lot of trades,” Veach said in his pre-draft press conference. 

Basically, if Veach sees someone he likes, he’s going to try and get that player and that’s what we have the Chiefs doing here. In this prediction, the Chiefs end up making a trade with the Cardinals to move up to third overall. Here’s what the proposed deal looks like: 

• Chiefs get: Third overall pick
• Cardinals get: Ninth overall pick, 29th overall pick, 2027 second-round pick

The Chiefs, who need to make sure they get some pass-rushing help in this draft, use their new pick to take either David Bailey or Arvell Reese. With the Jets expected to take one of those two players at second overall, the Chiefs grab the guy who falls to them at third. 

As part of the deal, the Chiefs send a 2027 second-round pick to Arizona instead of their 40th overall pick this year. The Chiefs make that move with the thinking that they’ll be good in 2026, so the 2027 pick will likely fall somewhere after pick 56. 

As for the Cardinals, the big news here is that they would get to add another first-round pick and it’s at a spot in the draft (29th) where they could potentially get Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson. 

2. Rams make bold move into top 10 for a receiver

If there’s one thing you should know about Les Snead, it’s that he’s one of the most forthcoming general managers in the NFL. At the league meeting back in March, Snead admitted that his team tried to make a trade for Eagles receiver A.J. Brown. 

“We chatted with Philly, nothing worked out,” Snead said at the time. “There were talks, we had discussions, didn’t work out. That happens.”

The Rams tried to hit a home run at the receiver position and although it didn’t work out with Brown, the bold prediction here is that they take a another big swing by trading up to the sixth overall pick. Here are the terms of the proposed trade: 

• Rams get: Sixth overall pick, 
• Browns get: 13th overall pick, 2026 third-round pick (93rd overall), 2027 second-round pick

With the sixth pick in hand, the Rams should have two main options at receiver — Carnell Tate or Jordyn Tyson — and they end up using it on Tate. With that pick, the former Ohio State star will join a stacked Rams receiving group that also includes Puka Nacua and Davante Adams. 

As for Cleveland, the Browns are always looking to add future picks, so they’d likely be thrilled to add a second-rounder for next year. The Browns also have a roster that has plenty holes, so they would likely be able to find someone they like at 13th overall. 

3. Jets make TWO top-10 picks

The Giants will be going into the draft with two top-10 picks, but they won’t be the only team with that honor, because the Jets are going to join them after making a splashy trade with the Commanders. Going into the draft, the Jets have four of the first 44 picks, so they certainly have the ammo to make a big trade. 

Let’s take a look at the Jets’ first four picks currently sit: 

• Round 1: Second overall
• Round 1: 16th 
• Round 2: 33rd
• Round 2: 44th

For this trade, we’re going to have the Jets keep the second overall pick, but the bold prediction here is that they trade the 16th overall pick to the Commanders. 

Let’s take a look at the proposed deal: 

• Jets get: Seventh overall pick
• Commanders get: 16th overall pick, 2026 second-round pick (44th overall), 2026 fourth-round pick (140th overall)

The Jets then use the seventh overall pick to grab a receiver. In this case, we’re going to have them take Arizona State’s Jordyn Tyson. Going into the draft, the Jets’ biggest needs are arguably at pass rusher and receiver, and they’ve now filled those needs with their first two picks. In this deal, they were also able to hold on to the 33rd overall pick, which leaves the door open for them to possibly grab Ty Simpson. 

As for the Commanders, they have just six picks in the draft, which is tied for the fourth-fewest in the NFL. As of right now, the Commanders don’t have a second-round pick OR a fourth-round pick, but they would get both of those in this trade with the Jets. 

4. Cowboys make TWO first-round trades

There’s been some speculation that the Cowboys might try to move up into the top five, but we’re going to pump the brakes on that and have them going a different route. In this scenario, we first have the Cowboys making a trade up to eighth overall in a deal with the Saints. 

• Cowboys get: Eighth overall pick
• Saints get: 12th overall pick, 2026 third-round pick (92nd overall), 2027 third-round pick

The Cowboys had one of the worst defenses in the NFL last year and they absolutely need to add some help on that side of the ball. At 12th overall, there’s no guarantee any of the top defensive players they’re eyeing will be available, but at eighth overall, it seems like a lock that they’d be able to land someone like Caleb Downs, Mansoor Delane or Rueben Bain Jr. 

After making the eighth overall pick, the Cowboys will be on the clock again at 20th overall. With teams eyeing Ty Simpson, the Cowboys are suddenly in a perfect position to trade back because their 20th pick is ahead of the Steelers, Browns, Jets and Cardinals, all teams that might think about taking Simpson. The Jets end up calling the Cowboys and the two teams hash out a deal: 

• Cowboys get: 2026 second-round pick (33rd overall), 2026 fourth-round pick (103rd overall), 2027 third-round pick
• Jets get: 20th overall pick

The Jets use their pick on Simpson, which means based on the two trades we have them making, they’ll walk out of the first round with David Bailey/Arvell Reese, Jordyn Tyson and Ty Simpson. In our scenario, the Jets wouldn’t pick again until the fifth round (179th overall), but New York fans would probably be thrilled to see the team get that kind of haul in the first round. 

As for the Cowboys, they’d suddenly have the first pick in the second round, which means they’d have 24 hours to work the phones if they wanted to try to make another trade before the start of the second round on Friday. 

5. Jeremiyah Love falls out of the top 10 (unless someone trades up to get him)

These are bold predictions so I’m going to end with the boldest one of all: The Notre Dame running back falls out of the top 10. 

There’s been some speculation that Love could go as high as third overall, so this prediction could certainly blow up in my face, but running back is a generally a position you draft high when you’re one player away from being a contender and none of the teams at the top of the draft are a player away. The last time a running back got selected in the top 10 and won a Super Bowl with the team that drafted him was Reggie Bush. He was the Saints’ second overall pick in 2006 and New Orleans ended up winning the Super Bowl with him in 2009. 

Since then, 11 running backs have been taken in the top 10 and none have won a Lombardi Trophy with the team that drafted him. Only one of the 11 has even made it to the Super Bowl with the team that drafted him and that was Todd Gurley with the Rams. Taking a talented running back when you have much bigger needs on your roster just hasn’t worked out. 

With that in mind, let’s break down where Love could go and why I don’t think he would necessarily make sense for any team in the top 10. We’re going to start with the Cardinals at three since it’s highly unlikely we see Love go in the top two.

Of course, Love is a generational prospect at running back, so I could certainly end up being very wrong here. 

Although I don’t think any of the above teams should take Love, I could see a surprise team trading up to get him. If Love falls to the back half of the top 10, the Cowboys or Rams could potentially show some interest in making a small trade up. The Ravens might even be a team that would think about taking Love if he started to fall. Derrick Henry just turned 32, so Baltimore is going to have to start thinking about its future at running back. The Vikings are another team that might be intrigued if they don’t have to trade into the top 10 to get him.  

If you want to check out a few more possible trades that could happen during the draft, I came up with five player deals that could go down over the next three days and you can check those out here.