John’s Final 2026 Mock Extravaganza

Indiana

Only lock of the draft. Mendoza had an incredible season and solidified his spot as the number one pick in the draft.

John's Team Needs:
QB, WR, DL/EDGE

Texas Tech

Somehow still a Jets fan so this is my annual complaint about drafting Zach Wilson to replace Sam Darnold. Actually, I will save it. But Zach Wilson will be playing in the CFL soon. I am going back to my original thought where Bailey is probably the cleanest edge prospect. Reese fits the 3-4 OLB bill but he may require a bit of development and he is one of those tweener prospects. The betting markets have reacted to the NFL Insiders saying they think Bailey will be the pick as well. For what it's worth, I would take Bailey here too. Reminds me of Will Anderson in a way, not on that level of course…yet. I get the feeling Darren Mougey values production.

John's Team Needs: QB, WR, EDGE, CB, LB

Ohio State

TRADE

I think the Cowboys are coming up to get him and the Cardinals are desperate to trade down. They are in a "win now" mode and I am sure Jerry Jones thinks they can actually win for some reason. I would imagine they do everything in their power to move up for him so I would be more suprised if it doesn't happen. I am going to keep Reese here with the knowledge it could be Arizona going best player available or someone coming up, like Dallas, to grab him. Trades in the top five are way easier said than done but with all the buzz around teams looking to move down and Dallas wanting to move up, I think it happens. Here is my first trade predicted and one I feel can actually happen. It is tradition for me at this point. Maybe this year I will be right.

John's Team Needs: EDGE, CB, S

Notre Dame

Mike Borgzoni says they will take the best player available regardless of premium position and they are not concerned with Bain's arm length. That could mean anything, I don't know I just know they aren't writing Bain off. Like I said in the intro, sometimes I feel like I should find another hobby, but I won't. Depends who they think the best player is I guess. I am torn on Love vs. Bain here. I do really have a weird feeling they may be taking Rueben Bain, but everything I have seen has said otherwise. With that being said, I cannot see them passing on the best offensive player in the draft. He will give Cam Ward an instant boost in the run game and the pass game.

John's Team Needs: WR, EDGE, RB

Ohio State

I have had Caleb Downs here over Sonny Styles here for a while. I am absolutely torn. I believe Caleb Downs is the best player in the draft and I think it fits the Harbaugh way more than Styles does. Harbaugh advocated for Kyle Hamilton in Baltimore and look what happened. Positional value is out the window this year. You know what you are getting with Downs. I would be shocked, I will say it again, shocked if he makes it past New Orleans at eight. There is also no way the whole Giants staff went to that Ohio State pro day and came away feeling like they did not have good options here. They could also move down, but again, easier said than done. Vegas seems to have this pick between Styles and Downs. I still would not be shocked if they took Styles here.

John's Team Needs: IOL, WR, DB, LB

Ohio State

Is the Monroe Freeling hype at 6 overall real? I feel like there is a slight chance they can get him at 24. I have them moving up to 18 from 24 to grab Freeling. Carnell Tate is the chalk pick here and I am going to stick with it. I think taking Freeling here may be a bit too rich. It is all about the value here and Carnell Tate is the best receiver in the draft. A lot of buzz with them trading down, but if they move out of the top 10, they may miss out on drafting the best receiver. He is one smooth route runner and would be a great fit if they are going to give Shedeur Sanders a real chance.

John's Team Needs: WR, OL, QB

Ohio State

Washington desperately needs help on defense and Sonny Styles would more than help them. He is a freak athlete and there is not a doubt in my mind that Adam Peters would sprint to the podium to get this pick in.

John's Team Needs: CB, S, WR, RB, DL

LSU

TRADE

The Saints have needs on the edge, at corner, and mostly at receiver. They Saints could do anything here but I just get the feeling they will take Mansoor Delane. However, they are always a mystery but my best guess would be this pick is between Mansoor Delane, Rueben Bain, or Jordyn Tyson.

John's Team Needs: WR, CB, DL

Miami

Protecting Mahomes should be priority number one here, so if Fano make its here I see him being the pick. First the Super Bowl and now Mahomes tore his ACL. There has been some recent buzz around Rueben Bain that is causing his stock to fall but I would think teams have known about this since it happened and have vetted since then. The draft process typically leaves no stones unturned, unless it was Laremy Tunsil. The Chiefs don't tend to shy away from that. Could it be Jordyn Tyson? I don't know but I am starting to lose my mind.

John's Team Needs: OL, CB, WR, EDGE

Miami

Harbaugh said he wants to build the trenches so here we go. Everyone is going to be thinking Tyson here but I am going against consensus here. They need to build the offensive line and probably take a defensive tackle in round two. Harbaugh has said so many times he wants to build the trenches. He will. Plus they have their luxury pick at five now.

Utah

Oh well, here comes the rebuild. To me, this pick comes down to the top offensive lineman or the top edge rusher available. Just depends who is available. They are starting this rebuild in the trenches I don't think they take a receiver just yet as they have glaring needs on the offensive line and defensive line. If Bain or Mauigoa fall here they will be the pick, just the Miami connection.

John's Team Needs: OL, DL, WR, CB, S

Alabama

TRADE



John's Team Needs: OT, QB, DL

USC

Makai Lemon fits the Rams perfectly. I think Monroe Freeling or Kayden Proctor could also be the pick here but wide receiver feels like the preference. A lot of comparisons to Amon-Ra St. Brown. Tough slot receiver. They are a bit of a wild card here as this is Atlanta's pick so this is a bonus for them. Davante Adams is probably only going to play another two years at the most and Puka Nacua is a loose cannon. This could be the first spot for Ty Simpson as well with Matt Stafford probably only playing one or two more years. It would be the perfect situation for Simpson and they need to develop someone behind him, hence my below team need at QB but I think they can look to do that in free agency.

John's Team Needs: OL, WR,

Penn State

Was originally leaning edge here but after the Maxx Crosby trade that wasn't and then the Trey Hendrickson signing, it opens up the door to help out the offense. They just lost Likely in free agency to the Giants so a replacement here makes sense but they also need a guard and lost Tyler Linderbaum to the Raiders. I am going to stick with them addressing the interior offensive line. The interior offensive line is the biggest need here so they may feel they need to address that more than adding another tight end.

John's Team Needs: IOL, WR, TE, EDGE

Tennessee

A decent amount of mocks have them going defense but they did take Egbuka out of shallow left field last year, if you will. Just in the sense that no one thought they would go receiver. So they could take someone no one is expecting. After losing Mike Evans they could go with a pass catcher. Sadiq feels like a sneaky good fit here but they do need help on defense. The medicals may be scary with McCoy but I am not sure if he makes it out of the top 15. This is my best guess here, this pick could come from deep left field.

John's Team Needs: EDGE, CB, WR

Oregon

Oh what could have been if they just kept Darnold. This is a best player available pick. As a Jets fan, I don't think this is necessarily who I would pick but I wouldn't be angry about it. I suppose that's all relative given how angry I was when they took Zach Wilson in 2021. Anyway, Sadiq would help in the pass game and the run game. It would give them a red zone threat as well. This is a bit out of left field, but it is a sneaky good pick. They do need a receiver too but Omar Cooper and Denzel Boston may not be on their radar at 16.

Georgia

It feels safe to say this pick will be on the offensive line with Taylor Decker retiring. If Kayden Proctor is here he will be the pick, and right now that is one big "if". They could also move up for Proctor but Freeling is also still a perfect fit here so they could stick and pick having two prospects they are comfortable taking. They need someone to step in at tackle This really feels like a Lions pick.

John's Team Needs: OT, CB, DL

Oregon

TRADE

I was originally thinking about having the Browns come up to 16 but the more I think about it seems like they are high on Proctor and Freeling and so are the Lions. There is buzz about the Cowboys moving to six because my lord and savior, Mel Kiper, said so. There is also buzz about them moving to three for an edge rusher which I find way more plausible. I think the Cowboys selling the farm to move to three makes more sense with an Arizona team that is desperate to move back. This would be exactly how the Browns drew it up.

John's Team Needs: OT, WR, QB

Indiana

Will they draft a receiver in the first round for the third year in a row? Omar Cooper is coming off an incredible season at Indiana. This pick makes a lot of sense to me. Look what happened last year when they took McMillan. They made the playoffs. Invest in Bryce Young. It's working.

John's Team Needs: WR, CB, OL

Alabama

TRADE

If the Cardinals move back and acquire this pick from Dallas, I would imagine Ty Simpson is in play. You know what, when they do it, not "if". This would be the spot. They got their tackle at 8 and it is also no secret they are high on Simpson.

Georgia Tech

They could do anything here. So here is my first one out of left field. Offensive line makes the most sense given that they signed Michael Pittman so receiver may be a bit of a stretch here. They are in desperate need of offensive line help, especially on the interior.

John's Team Needs: OL, QB, S

Clemson

Justin Herbert has taken a beating these last few years so I think they will be looking to add to the offensive line. However, they need the most help on the interior so that's where that pick would go. They can most likely find someone in the second round. I am sticking with Peter Woods here who is the best pass rushing defensive tackle in the draft. They lost Oweh in free agency so they need to start rebuilding that defensive line.

John's Team Needs: IOL, DL, LB

Arizona State

Howie could do anything. It all depends what happens with A.J. Brown as well. They have had a ton of visits regarding the offensive line so it feels like there is a sense of what they are going to do. If they do trade Brown, I would imagine that they will be aggressive in grabbing a receiver.

John's Team Needs: OT, DL, S

Oregon

TRADE

This pick makes the most sense as Harrison Smith is going to retire this year most likely. Thieneman is clearly safety number two this year and everyone has him linked to the Vikings. I think they know they will be able to get Thieneman in the 20s. After all, he is a safety. Kyle Hamilton was one of the more well renowned safety prospects and he went at 14.

John's Team Needs: DL, OL, S

Ohio State

They need to add someone in the middle to stuff the run. It's been their weakness. They did lose out in free agency in the secondary so this pick has to be on defense. With Kayden McDonald being the best interior run defender I am going to slot him here. They have also been all over Zion Young but they can grab him in the second round. I have a good feeling this pick will be on the defensive line. T.J Parker out of Clemson would be another one to watch for here.

John's Team Needs: DL, S, OT

Auburn

With the regime changes I get the sense they will be moving away from this let them run and stop the pass mentality. Faulk would be a steal here, I just could not find a spot for him but his range is in the 20s. He may require some development as a pass rusher but he is already a solid run defender.

John's Team Needs: DL, WR, S

Utah

They are going to need to solidify the offensive line with Trent Williams' future unknown. Matt Miller also said that they don't view the offensive line as a priority so all the more reason to slow Caleb Lomu here. He has positional versatility and can step into the left tackle role in the future

Texas A&M

This pick has to be on the offensive line. C.J. Stroud has done nothing but run for his life every time he touches the ball. If they get the right fit here at tackle that will be the pick. I think it would be between Chase Bisontis or Blake Miller. Or even Max Iheanachor if available. I am torn between the two. They made some good additions in free agency but they still have work to do here.

John's Team Needs: OL, DT, LB

San Diego State

They lost about every corner they had. I have heard that they trust Spagnuolo to coach up the corners they have. It would make sense to take at least one replacement and Chris Johnson can fill the role that McDuffie had. This pick could also go on the offensive line but they may be able to find one in the second round. I get the sense they are going to pass on corner at nine and wait to address it later in the draft. Chris Johnson has had a great pre draft process and plays a physical style which is what the Chiefs covet.

Clemson

They need to rebuild in the trenches. The new regime has emphasized that. With pick 11 most likely going toward the offensive line I think this goes toward the defensive line. T.J Parker is solid against the run and rushing the passer so he would be exactly what they are looking for.

Miami

Mesidor is a tricky prospect as well, they say he is right up there with Bain but he is already 25 years old which is why I have him going a bit later than consensus. Teams that are rebuilding typically want younger players. He would be a great fit in New England for a team that is ready to win.

John's Team Needs: OL, DL, WR

Tennessee

They did lose out on Riq Woolen in free agency so I would bet this pick goes toward the secondary. Colton Hood is a physical corner which is exactly what they look for. He has also been a pretty popular mock pick to Seattle. I love the fit.

John's Team Needs: CB, RB, TE