This 2026 NFL Draft two-round mock draft projects two trades.
-Los Angeles Chargers trade No. 55 to Philadelphia Eagles for A.J. Brown
-Arizona Cardinals trade No. 34 and 2027 second-round pick to Chicago Bears for No. 25
- Las Vegas Raiders - Fernando Mendoza, QB, Indiana (6-5, 225)
Mendoza is not just a by-default pick -- he's a legitimately coveted acquisition for the Raiders and gives them a credible chance at a quick rebuild.
- New York jets - Arvell Reese, OLB, Ohio State (6-4, 230)
Reese is a lot of raw materials at the moment but it's easy to see that the materials could mold into something substantial.
- Arizona Cardinals - Francis Mauigoa, OT, Miami (FL) (6-6, 335)
Paris Johnson on the left and Mauigoa on the right should make a quarteback's life easier. Whoever it is.
- Tennessee Titans - Carnell Tate, WR, Ohio State (6-3, 195)
Left tackle or wide receiver. The Titans must get better at one of those spots with this pick. Tate seems better than the left tackle options.
- New York Giants - Caleb Downs, S, Ohio State (6-0, 205)
The Giants might prefer David Bailey here, but Joe Schoen has cornered the Giants into going somewhere other than edge with Burns, Thibodeaux and Carter already there.
- Cleveland Browns - David Bailey, DE, Texas Tech (6-3, 250)
Garrett on one side and Bailey on the other would reduce the need for the Browns offense to score points.
- Washington Commanders - Rueben Bain, DE, Miami (FL) (6-3, 270)
Bailey is the prized edge defender of the draft, but Bain might be better than most consolation prizes.
- New Orleans Saints - Kayden McDonald, DT, Ohio State (6-3, 326)
McDonald is a convincing two-gap defender yet shows a lot more in pursuit than even other good two-gap tackles.
- Kansas City Chiefs - Sonny Styles, LB, Ohio State (6-5, 243)
Styles doesn't have an obvious recent comparison but his ability to provide standout coverage with major reach might allow a Julian Peterson sort of application.
- Cincinnati Bengals - Jermod McCoy, CB, Tennessee (6-0, 193)
Despite missing the 2025 season with an ACL tear, McCoy's tape in 2024 was good enough that, if paired with standout athletic testing, he could still push for the top 10.
- Miami Dolphins - Mansoor Delane, CB, LSU (6-0, 190)
The Dolphins have enough needs that pretty much anything is justifiable, though corner is certainly near the top of the list.
- Dallas Cowboys - Avieon Terrell, CB, Clemson (5-11, 180)
Perhaps this is a little early for Terrell, but a perpetual cycle of reaching to fix needs caused by prior ill-conceived splurges is Dallas' permanent condition under Jerry Jones.
- Los Angeles Rams (from ATL) - Jordyn Tyson, WR, Arizona State (6-2, 200)
Tyson produced convincingly at Arizona State and would give the Rams a strong long-term flanker prospect.
- Baltimore Ravens - Olaivavega Ioane, G, Penn State (6-4, 336)
The Ravens need to learn from the best teams in the league and make a dominant offensive line their urgent priority.
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers - Keldric Faulk, (3-4) DE, Auburn (6-6, 285)
Logan Hall was never it, but Faulk offers a more blue-chip version of the same premise -- athletic, rangy defender over the offensive tackle.
- New York Jets (from IND) - Jeremiyah Love, RB, Notre Dame (6-0, 214)
Love could easily go earlier than this and is generally projected to, but he'd be an easy enough pick for the Jets if he slipped this far.
- Detroit Lions - Max Iheanachor, OT, Arizona State
Taylor Decker has been a hugely important player for Detroit and if they don't have him then they need to reload urgently at tackle.
- Minnesota Vikings - Josiah Trotter, LB, Missouri
Perhaps this is a high projection for Trotter, but Brian Flores could do a lot of damage if he had prime Jeremiah Trotter Sr. on the roster and Josiah is a lot closer to that level than his brother Jeremiah Jr. was as a prospect.
- Carolina Panthers - Spencer Fano, OT, Utah
The Ikem Ekwonu situation is frustrating and Taylor Moton is only done when he says he is, but adding Fano should stabilize the Carolina offensive line in a way that fits their short- and long-term needs, with left tackle the short term and right tackle the concern once Ekwonu is back to full health and/or Moton retires.
- Dallas Cowboys (from GB) - Emmanuel McNeil-Warren, S, Toledo (6-2, 202)
Jerry blasts open massive ruptures in the Dallas roster with various myopic decisions and then spends the next offseason cycle trying to patch it back together. This is how it must be.
- Pittsburgh Steelers - Makai Lemon, WR, USC (5-11, 195)
There is an almost insistent hype that Lemon go as high as WR1 at this point, but he's the most slot-dependent of himself, Tyson and Tate as the league goes toward more tight-end reps than ever.
- Los Angeles Chargers - Kadyn Proctor, G/OT, Alabama (6-7, 366)
If the Chargers add Proctor at left guard and continue to trot out the Tucker Fisk-Scott Matlock duo then the 2026 Chargers offense could prove to be the Biggest of All Time.
- Philadelphia Eagles - Kenyon Sadiq, TE, Oregon (6-3, 235)
If the Eagles trade A.J. Brown as projected here then they'd need to reimagine their offense entirely. Switching to a more overtly two-tight end base would get bigger defensive personnel on the field to clear out space for Jalen Hurts to leverage as a passer, while the boost in average rep weight would also in theory provide sturdier support to Saquon Barkley.
- Cleveland Browns (from JAX) - Monroe Freeling, OT, Georgia
Freeling would give Cleveland a plausible long-term answer at either tackle spot, and they might need one at both.
- Arizona Cardinals (from CHI) - Ty Simpson, QB, Alabama (
This is just how the world works now. If you don't have a good quarterback, you pay some consultant to tell you that you need to spend your next pick on a quarterback, whoever it is.
- Buffalo Bills - Denzel Boston, WR, Washington (6-4, 210)
There's a lot of film-based hype for Boston that doesn't really register in his production profile. That incongruity will be an ongoing concern for me but at the least Boston is clearly athletic for a bigger receiver.
- San Francisco 49ers - Eli Stowers, TE, Vanderbilt (6-4, 235)
Stowers is not George Kittle and would never in theory be the same type of player but Kyle Shanahan is pragmatic enough to envision from-scrimmage threats from a variety of player types. Stowers won't be as rugged and won't help the same way as a blocker, but as a general target Stowers can provide the long-term answer for San Francisco while otherwise providing relief while the 49ers wait for Kittle to get back onto the field.
- Houston Texans - Jadarian Price, RB, Notre Dame (5-11, 210)
EPA World would throw an absolute fit if this happened but other than running back the only way Houston could conceivably improve their from-scrimmage personnel would be at tight end. If Houston misses out on Sadiq and Stowers then no such tight end is available. - Los Angeles Rams - Peter Woods, DT, Clemson
Lee Hunter can do a little more two-gap work than Woods and the Rams could really use some two-gap reinforcement, but their defensive philosophy seems to largely reject conventional run defense theory and Woods might be more interesting for one-gap purposes.
- Denver Broncos - Lee Hunter, DT, Texas Tech
Hunter looks like a two-down two-gap type but he was disruptive enough at Texas Tech that he might be among the uncommon two-gap tackles who can approach 600 snaps or more in a season -- a valuable thing when found.
- New England Patriots - Gabe Jacas, DE/OLB, Illinois
If the Patriots can't find an upgrade at right tackle with this pick then their next clearest route to improvement might be adding an edge disruptor like Jacas.
- Seattle Seahawks - Brandon Cisse, CB, South Carolina
Riq Woolen or/and Josh Jobe at boundary corner was a situation that worked out sufficiently well for Seattle in 2025 but could still be improved with a louder athletic talent like Cisse. Similarly, if Cisse needs time for schooling up then Jobe can probably serve as stopgap again.ROUND TWO
- New York Jets - Colton Hood, CB, Tennessee
One obvious way Aaron Glenn could make a positive mark for the Jets would be to coach up their next wave of prospects at corner, where he was such a good NFL player even though undersized.
- Chicago Bears (from ARI) - C.J. Allen, LB, Georgia (6-1, 235)
A better Chicago run defense would mean a lot for their next playoff run.
- Tennessee Titans - Caleb Lomu, OT, Utah (6-6, 309)
Dan Moore doesn't seem that great, and JC Latham needs to stay on the right side.
- Las Vegas Raiders - Emmanuel Pregnon, G, Oregon
Getting Klint Kubiak and Fernando Mendoza will definitely improve the Raiders offense, yet there is more building to do in the trenches.
- New York Giants - KC Concepcion, WR, Texas A&M (5-11, 190)
Concepcion has unusual start/stop and explosiveness to work with, so he'll have some role from scrimmage in the NFL. To this point, though, he has only consistently drawn viable targets on primitive routes that won't easily scale up to starter-caliber volume unless new routes draw new viable targets.
- Houston Texans (from WAS) - Connor Lew, C, Auburn
Lew looks pretty close to a blue-chip type at center, and if so he would be a steal here for Houston even as he recovers from an October ACL tear.
- Cleveland Browns - Chase Bisontis, G, Texas A&M (6-6, 310)
Joel Bitonio and Wyatt Teller was a top guard tandem for a while, but the Browns need to think about what happens next.
- Kansas City Chiefs - Akheem Mesidor, DE, Miami (FL)
The Chiefs need to run better and play better defense to give Patrick Mahomes (knee) more shelter. Of the two things, in this draft it probably is easier to improve the defense.
- Cincinnati Bengals - Dillon Thieneman, S, Oregon
Geno Stone is probably not part of the solution for Cincinnati.
- New Orleans Saints - Malachi Fields, WR, Notre Dame
There's a real drumbeat in draft media for Fields going in the first round, so perhaps the Saints could use him to keep Chris Olave free for easier targets at flanker and in the slot.
- Miami Dolphins - Keionte Scott, CB, Miami (FL)
Scott has a weird production profile and heads into the NFL over-aged (25 in August), but if he tests well athletically his playmaking upside might interest some team in the second round.
- New York Jets (from DAL) - Zion Young, DE, Missouri
Perhaps more of a strong-side type than a truly feared rusher, Young is nonetheless getting plenty of first-round hype.
- Baltimore Ravens - Christen Miller, DT, Alabama
The Ravens roster is not built particularly well but even before Nnamdi Madubuike's devastating injury the Baltimore defensive tackle personnel was extremely thin at best.
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers - Cashius Howell, (3-4) OLB, Texas A&M
Howell is often projected in the first round and perhaps he'll go much higher than this, but I'm a little leery of this fifth-year, transfer portal merchants unless they post strong athletic testing.
- Indianapolis Colts - Blake Miller, OT, Clemson
Clarity on Braden Smith's future would be helpful, but even if Smith is back he has had durability troubles that could make Miller a worthwhile selection here.
- Atlanta Falcons - Zachariah Branch, WR, Georgia
The Falcons wide receiver personnel has been mismanaged to an almost immoral extent. After Drake London and Darnell Mooney it has been practice squad-types for years, so Atlanta would be lucky to get Branch here.
- Minnesota Vikings - Kyle Louis, LB, Pittsburgh
Louis would give the Vikings another Josh Metellus basically, but one more trained toward linebacker than safety.
- Detroit Lions - Jacob Rodriguez, LB, Texas Tech
The Texas Tech run defense was nuts in 2025 and Rodriguez was among those who set that tone, smothering offenses from scrimmage while producing an outrageous number of big plays (four interceptions, seven forced fumbles, fumble recovery for a touchdown).
- Carolina Panthers - Anthony Hill, LB, Texas
Hill's production is memorably disruptive and these Texas guys always test well athletically, so maybe this is projecting him too late.
- Green Bay Packers - Emmett Johnson, RB, Nebraska
Johnson needs to have a good showing at the NFL Combine to crash this early in the draft but if he does the Packers might want to consider him. Johnson might be something like a faster Bucky Irving and the Green Bay offense is in trouble whenever Josh Jacobs isn't on the field.
- Pittsburgh Steelers - Jake Golday, LB, Cincinnati
The Steelers need to get their run defense at a high level again, and the defensive line is mostly maxed out already.
- Philadelphia Eagles - Chris Brazzell, WR, Tennessee
Brazzell can set the vertical and boundary spacing and give the Eagles a way to dictate safety positioning with the threat of the downfield target.
- Philadelphia Eagles (from LAC) - Caleb Banks, DT, Florida
Banks is often projected as a first-round pick and perhaps he'll be one, but guys like him normally work better as rotational guys, at least early in their careers.
- Jacksonville Jaguars - Bud Clark, S, TCU
They might only get one more year before he's hired elsewhere so the Jaguars better make this Anthony Campanile scheme hit hard in 2026. Clark would ideally test well athletically so that it would ease concerns that he might otherwise be a sixth-year merchant.
- Chicago Bears - T.J. Parker, DE, Clemson
Parker's athletic testing could help clarify his exact standing, and more specifically whether the league thinks he's more the 2024 or 2025 version of himself.
- San Francisco 49ers - Keylan Rutledge, G, Georgia Tech
Rutledge might be a worthwhile upgrade for San Francisco at left guard.
- Houston Texans - Gennings Dunker, G, Iowa
Epic Bacon guy but what can you do. Sometimes you have to draft those.
- Buffalo Bills - Billy Schrauth, G, Notre Dame
David Edwards might be the heir to a payday the Bills can't themselves offer, and while Schrauth has injury concerns he might be a need match for Buffalo.
- Los Angeles Rams - Chris Johnson, CB, San Diego State (6-0, 190)
Johnson could go higher than this but if his athletic testing trends toward average he might slip to the Rams.
- Denver Broncos - R Mason Thomas, DE/OLB, Oklahoma (6-2, 249)
Same reasoning as the Hunter pick. The Broncos need to make sure their defense maintains its dominance because the offense can't improve much, at least not with this draft.
- New England Patriots - Dametrious Crownover, OT, Texas A&M (6-6, 330)
The offensive tackle class falls off hard about now and the Patriots would ideally get someone who can eventually replace Morgan Moses.
- Seattle Seahawks - Kage Casey, G/OT, Boise State (6-5, 309)
One of the most impressive things about Seattle's Super Bowl win is how they did so with a true weakness at right guard. Casey would either fix that or at least provide some swing depth somewhere.
