2026 NFL Draft newsletter: Bold predictions, mock draft, AFC teams under pressure

Welcome to the Thursday edition of the Pick Six newsletter!

We are now just one week away from the start of the 2026 NFL Draft, which means you have just seven days to finalize all the details of your draft party. If you’re not having a draft party, then you have seven days to make friends with someone who is.

We’re going to hit the NFL Draft hard today. Not only do we have 10 bold predictions, but we also have a list of five AFC teams that must ace the draft, and we have our annual mock draft that every fan base is going to hate.

As always, here’s your reminder to tell all your friends to sign up for the newsletter. Let’s get to the fun.

1. Bold predictions for the NFL Draft: Two teams trade out of top 10, Ty Simpson gets left out of first round 

With just seven days to go until the start of the NFL Draft, we decided now is the perfect time to dump some bold predictions on you. JP Acosta, the host of “Pushing the Pile,” came up with 10 of them. 

Will all of these takes come true? Probably not, because if they all came true, then they wouldn’t be bold. Will some of them come true? My guess is yes. 

Let’s take a look at three of JP’s boldest predictions: 

1. Browns AND Cardinals trade out of top 10. The 2026 class doesn’t have many sure things. You could get the same caliber of player in the top 10 as you could in the 17-19 range, while also recouping more picks and ammo to stash for Day 2. I think we’re going to see multiple trades on night one, and two teams that could trade out are the Cardinals and Browns.

2. RB Jeremiyah Love goes in the top five. The last time a running back was picked in the top five was Saquon Barkley in 2018. Players such as Bijan Robinson and Ashton Jeanty have come close, but no cigar. The NFL has shied away from drafting running backs in the top five, given how long backs last and the reliance on a great offensive line, but this draft class is different. Love is one of the most sure things in a class that doesn’t have many, and that could be what makes him a top-five pick. 

3. QB Ty Simpson falls out of first round. Yes, I understand he is a quarterback, and the quarterback tax will get guys picked a lot higher than expected, but I don’t think Simpson is going to be a Round 1 guy. … Starting at No. 33 with the Jets and No. 34 with the Cardinals could be his range.

Acosta made TEN bold predictions, and if you want to see his full list, you can do that here.

2. The mock draft that will frustrate every fan base

Ladies and gentlemen, it is officially time for my favorite mock draft of the year: The mock draft where we do our best to frustrate every single fan base by making a bad first-round pick for each team that’s also somewhat realistic. We see this happen every year in the draft. 

Remember when the Patriots used a first-round pick on N’Keal Harry? Remember when the Eagles took Jalen Reagor over Justin Jefferson? Well, Garett Podell remembers those picks. We put him in charge of this mock draft, and we’re going to take a look at some of his most interesting picks from the first round. 

• Jets (No. 2 overall): RB Jeremiyah Love (Notre Dame). While Jeremiyah Love is viewed as one of the best prospects in this draft, he plays one of the least valuable positions in football as a running back. New York making this move with Breece Hall on the franchise tag would be an exorbitant amount of resources spent on running backs. 
• Titans (No. 4 overall): CB Mansoor Delane (LSU). The Titans spent an NFL-most $316.1 million in free agency this offseason, with much of that going to the team’s cornerback position after signing both Alontae Taylor (three years, $58 million with $42 million guaranteed) and Cor’Dale Flott (three years, $45 million with $32 million guaranteed). In an effort to make new head coach Robert Saleh’s secondary airtight, the Titans over-index their resources at the position by drafting another corner here.
• Bengals (No. 10 overall): WR Carnell Tate (Ohio State). Only the Cowboys’ and Jets’ defenses surrendered more points than the Bengals in 2025. Yet, the Bengals just can’t help themselves, and they select local product Carnell Tate with an eye toward Joe Burrow having enough firepower to win shootout after shootout by lighting up the scoreboard. 
• Ravens (No. 14 overall): S Caleb Downs (Ohio State). The Ravens add a third first-round safety after drafting All-Pro Kyle Hamilton in the opening round in 2022 and Malaki Starks in the first round last year. The best player available method goes awry when the Ravens could desperately use help along the interior of their offensive line after the free agency departure of Pro Bowl center Tyler Linderbaum. 
• Steelers (No. 21 overall): QB Ty Simpson (Alabama). The selection of Ty Simpson would set the present-day and future Steelers squad back years at the quarterback position. Simpson’s processing ability just isn’t at an NFL level at the moment after being a one-year starter in college, and he doesn’t have the elite athletic traits necessary to mask that issue.

If you want to know how the rest of this mock draft turns out — and trust me, you do — you can check out Podell’s full mock here. 

3. Jets seven-round mock draft: New York is loaded with picks

This is a huge draft for the Jets. They have nine picks, and according to our draft chart, they have the most valuable set of picks in the league. That’s mostly due to the fact that they’re the only team in the NFL that has two first-round picks AND two second-round picks. 

The Jets currently have the longest playoff drought in the NFL, and if they want that to ever end, they’re going to need to crush this draft. So what do they need to do? 

We put Zach Pereles in charge of making EVERY Jets pick for all seven rounds, and he has them loading up on defensive players with three of their first four picks. 

The Jets have a total of nine picks in the draft, and we’re going to check out what Pereles came up with for their first five selections: 

• Round 1 (No. 2 overall): EDGE Arvell Reese (Ohio State)
• Round 1 (16th overall): CB Jermod McCoy (Tennessee) 
• Round 2 (33rd overall): WR KC Concepcion (Texas A&M)
• Round 2 (44th overall): CB D’Angelo Ponds (Indiana)
• Round 4 (103rd overall): QB Garrett Nussmeier (LSU)

If you want a full explanation for the picks or if you’re wondering how the other four picks turned out, then be sure to check out Pereles’ full mock draft for the Jets here.

4. Five AFC teams that must ace the NFL Draft

Earlier this week, we took a look at the five NFC teams that need to ace the draft. Today, we’re going to flip things around and cover the five AFC teams that need to ace the draft. 

Every team will be facing pressure to improve their roster during the draft, but according to Garrett Podell, the five AFC teams below will be under more pressure than others in the conference. And of course, we’re starting with a team we already covered: The Jets. 

1. JETS (9 picks)
Round 1: Second overall
Round 1: 16th (via Colts)
Round 2: 33rd
Round 2: 44th (via Cowboys)
Round 4: 103rd
Round 4: 140th (Compensatory selection)
Round 5: 179th (Compensatory selection)
Round 7: 228th (via Cowboys through Bills and Raiders)
Round 7: 242nd (via Bills through Browns)

Podell’s breakdown: They have the resources to actually turn things around. Deals at the trade deadline that sent All-Pro defensive tackle Quinnen Williams to the Cowboys and cornerback Sauce Gardner to the Colts netted them two first-round picks and two second-round picks in the 2026 draft. If the Jets can acquire two cornerstone players in the opening round while netting, at minimum, two more serviceable starters in the second round, there could be a reason for hope for Gang Green.

2. CHIEFS (9 picks)
Round 1: Ninth overall
Round 1: 29th (via Rams)
Round 2: 40th
Round 3: 74th
Round 4: 109th
Round 5: 148th
Round 5: 169th (via Rams)
Round 5: 176th (Compensatory selection)
Round 6: 210th (via Rams)

Podell’s breakdown: Yes, Kansas City isn’t a traditional rebuilding team, but the urgency for them to hit on their selections at the top of this draft is just as high or higher than almost every team in the entire NFL. The Chiefs are projected to rank in the bottom 10 of the league in salary cap space in 2026, 2027 and 2028, according to OverTheCap.com, and this draft presents them a rare opportunity to pick inside the top 10 with Mahomes on the roster.

3. RAIDERS (10 picks)
Round 1: First overall
Round 2: 36th
Round 3: 67th
Round 4: 102nd
Round 4: 117th (via Vikings through Jaguars)
Round 4: 134th (Compensatory selection)
Round 5: 175th (Compensatory selection)
Round 6: 185th
Round 6: 208th (via Bills through Jets)
Round 7: 219th

Podell’s breakdown: It’s all but official new head coach Klint Kubiak will have a new franchise quarterback to develop in Fernando Mendoza after selecting him first overall. If the Raiders can hit on both of their Day 2 picks, they could be in position to build a strong, young team around their new face of the franchise right away.

4. BROWNS (9 picks)

Round 1: Sixth overall
Round 1: 24th (via Jaguars)
Round 2: 39th
Round 3: 70th
Round 4: 107th
Round 5: 146th
Round 5: 149th (via Bengals)
Round 6: 206th (via Bears)
Round 7: 248th (via Seahawks)

Podell’s breakdown: Retooling the NFL’s 31st-ranked scoring offense (16.4 points per game) will be a major priority in this draft with the Browns looking for cornerstone players along the offensive line and at wide receiver.

If you want Podell’s full explanation for why each of these teams needs to crush the draft, or if you want to know who the mysterious fifth AFC team is, we’ve got that here. 

5. Under-the-radar players in the NFL Draft: 20 prospects Pete Prisco is higher on than scouts

After spending six straight weeks watching film, Pete Prisco has emerged from his cave to unveil his Better-Than Team. Every year, Prisco identifies 20 draft prospects he likes more than NFL scouts do. Over the years, Prisco has hit some home runs in this article: He liked QB Dak Prescott, WR Stefon Diggs, TE George Kittle and TE Travis Kelce more than scouts did. 

He’s got 20 names on his list this year, and we’re going to take a look at three of them below: 

• RB Emmett Johnson (Nebraska). Of all the backs in this draft, Johnson might have the best vision. I love runners who can see the hole, make a cut, and get positive yards. Guys who can only make plays when the hole is in front of them are concerning for me. This kid has the ability to play with patience and make people miss. At 5-foot-10 and 204 pounds, he is a solid back who can break tackles. Some teams have concerns about his speed, but he ran a 4.49-second 40-yard dash at his pro day to help alleviate those concerns.
• WR Zachariah Branch (Georgia). At 5-foot-8 ½ and 177 pounds, Branch has game-breaking speed. I love that. He reminds me some of Tank Dell, a smallish receiver with speed who was on this team in 2024. Branch transferred to Georgia last year from USC and led the SEC in catches with 81. But the yards-per-catch average was just 10.0. For a speed guy, that’s way too low. Some of that had to do with the limited route tree he ran at Georgia. One personnel man told me he was the alpha in the room at USC, rather than receiver Makai Lemon, a projected first-round pick. 
• TE Nate Boerkircher (Texas A&M). Boerkircher was a walk-on at Nebraska and played there for four years before transferring to Texas A&M last year. He ended up helping his draft stock in a big way with 19 catches and three touchdowns last season, showing off the ability to be a quality in-line blocker. His tape shows a smart player who knows how to sit down in zone coverage and win against linebackers in coverage.

There are 17 more prospects who got the Prisco stamp of approval, and if you want to check out his full list of under-the-radar guys, we’ve got that here. 

6. Extra points: NFL Draft intel and rumors

It’s been a busy past few days in the NFL, and since it’s nearly impossible to keep track of everything, I put together a quick roundup for you.

• NFL Draft rumors from CBS Sports NFL Insider Jonathan Jones. With just one week to go until the draft, there is a lot of draft buzz to cover from around the league — and Jones has it all in his latest column. Who will the Jets take at No. 2 overall? Will Caleb Downs fall out of the top 10? Will Ty Simpson go in the first round? Jones offered some insight on those big draft questions, plus he offered some news and nuggets from around the league. You can check it all out here. 
• YouTube likely to land NFL’s new five-game package. The NFL is selling off a five-game package this year that will likely include the Australia game, the Thanksgiving Eve game and potentially a second Black Friday game. As of last week, Netflix, YouTube and Fox appeared to be the frontrunners for the package, but it looks like YouTube is going to win the bidding. According to Front Office Sports, the NFL has entered a long-form contract review with YouTube. This doesn’t mean a deal is done, but as FOS notes, a review usually indicates a deal is going to happen, so get ready for five games this year to be on YouTube. The Google-owned company carried one game last year that was available for free to everyone on YouTube’s website, so it will be interesting to see if Google goes that route again. 
• Ravens’ new uniforms will be unveiled Thursday night. For the first time in 26 years, the Ravens are going to unveil a new uniform. The team came out with a Color Rush uniform in 2016 and an alternate purple helmet in 2024, but its main look hasn’t been updated in nearly three decades. That will change tonight when the team unveils its new uniform in a ceremony that’s scheduled to start at 7:45 p.m. ET. 
• Commanders unveil new uniforms. Speaking of new uniforms, the Commanders unveiled their new look Wednesday, and if you haven’t gotten a chance to check it out yet, you can see it here. The new uniforms are nearly identical to what the team wore from 1982 to 1991 when they won three Super Bowls. They also have a black alternate uniform. The Commanders also left their name off the front of their new uniform, which is interesting, if only because it means they wouldn’t have to make any changes if they were ever to decide to change their name again. 
• Rams refresh their uniforms. The Rams are refreshing their uniforms. This will include the modern horn sleeve being added to both their home and away uniforms. They’ll also be adding white pants to their closet to go along with the yellow and blue ones they already have. The final part of the refresh will come this summer when they unveil two new uniforms. You can read more about the refresh here. 
• NFL takes another step toward using replacement officials. The NFL might actually end up using replacement officials this year. With the league and NFL Referees Association still at a stalemate in their negotiation for a new CBA, the NFL has started the process of onboarding potential replacement officials, Jonathan Jones has reported. The NFL has started doing background checks on potential replacement refs, and the league will also hold in-person training sessions with NFL officiating supervisors starting on May 1, per ESPN. The NFLRA CBA expires on May 31, and if there’s no new CBA in place by then, the league will start sending replacement officials to team facilities on June 1.