2026 Top 10 Mock Draft: Raiders get their QB, Top pass rushers go back to back and Cam Ward gets new WR1

By: Christian Diodati

As the dust settles ahead of Super Bowl 60 between the Seattle Seahawks and New England Patriots. The teams in the top 10 will be looking to strengthen their rosters in hopes of winning a championship. One of the key ways teams build Super Bowl contenders is through the draft and as seen with several different teams throughout the NFL, a good or bad draft class can have a monumental impact on a team’s future, making the draft an exciting yet pivotal time for NFL fans

1st Overall: Las Vegas Raiders. QB Fernando Mendoza:

Mendoza has been mocked to the Raiders since the Raiders secured the first overall pick and since Mendoza led Indiana to their first ever National Championship. Additionally, with Dante Moore returning to Oregon to run it back with the Ducks, Mendoza is now the undisputed best QB available in the draft. Mendoza recorded 3535 passing yards and a conference high, 41 touchdowns and 182.9 passer rating leading and winning the Heisman. In the Conference Championship and College Football Playoffs, he threw 9 passing touchdowns to 1 interception and 1 rushing touchdown in the College Football Final.

Throughout his college tape, Mendoza’s IQ and ball placement shone. Mechanically, Mendoza’s release is sound and his vision to identify blitzes and leverage pre snap. Despite his arm not necessarily being a cannon, Mendoza’s accuracy makes up for it. Mendoza can also use his legs to secure first down, tying back to his ability to make quick reads and see the field well, rather than speed or running ability. His footwork also needs to improve in order to make off balance throws accurately and It remains to be seen whether Mendoza can make off-script plays at the NFL level. Nonetheless, Mendoza is clearly the most NFL ready QB in large part due to his mechanics, making him a tantalizing prospect for the Las Vegas Raiders.

The Raiders have been in turbulance since 2021 when they last made the playoffs. Since then, the Raiders collapsed as Josh McDaniels clashed with Raiders stars like Davante Adams, Josh Jacobs and Derek Carr, culminating in Derek Carr’s departure. The Geno Smith and Pete Carroll experiment and led to the Raiders getting the 1st overall pick for the first time since 2007. Mendoza has the potential to be the best QB the Raiders have had since Derek Carr and is going into a team with serious offensive talent in running back Ashton Jeanty and tight end Brock Bowers. The biggest obstacle for a rookie Mendoza will be the Raiders offensive line, which ranked dead last in the league according to pro football focus, with Kolton Miller getting injured and backup Left Tackle Stone Forysthe giving up 13 sacks, while Right Tackle DJ Glaze gave up 10 sacks. Ultimatley, the Raiders taking Mendoza gives them the best chance to compete in the AFC West as they continue to rebuild in a division with Patrick Mahomes, Justin Herbert and Bo Nix.

2nd Overall: New York Jets. LB Arvell Reese:

The Jets are the next major team in need of a Quarterback after Justin Fields failed to become the franchise signal caller for the Jets. However, things got complicated with the news of Dante Moore returning to Oregon, as if Jets fans needed more complications amidst a season where they struggled at the QB position and traded away star defensive players Sauce Gardener and Quinnen Williams, beginning another rebuilding period for the Jets.

Offensively, the Jets have a solid offensive line with Olumuyiwa Fashanu, Armand Membou and a returning Alijah Vera-Tucker. At Wide Reciever, the Jets have Garrett Wilson, despite only playing of the season and ultimately being shut down, still led the team in receiving yards. However, defense has been something the Jets have tried to make a key part of their identity since Robert Saleh was coach and former defensive Coordinator Aaron Glenn is likely intent on keeping it that way.

Enter Arvell Reese, the All-American and National Championship winning Linebacker for the Ohio State Buckeyes who just had his breakout season. He recorded 69 total tackles, 34 of which were solo tackles while logging 6.5 sacks and 10 tackles for loss and was a part of a two-headed monster alongside senior Sonny Styles. Reese saw most of his usage as a run stopper for the Buckeyes, with 220 of his 529 total snaps being as a run defender, thanks to his ability to quicky diagnose plays. Despite this, he still has legit upside as a pass rusher with an explosive first-step and NFL ready build. Arguably, Reese’s biggest strength is his tackling, finishing the season with an elite 4.7 to 6.7% missed tackle rate. Coverage is Reese’s biggest weakness which showed when he lost his routes on opposing Wide Receivers, especially when they would break behind him. Furthermore, despite his pass rushing upside, he lacks actual pass rushing instincts or moves. Additionally Reese only has one full season as a starter which could leave teams nervous of his sample size and production at the NFL level.

Ultimately the Jets need a new face of their defense and Reese has the ability and run-stopping ability to become that, which is all the more important in a division with TreVeyon Henderson, James Cook and De’Von Achane. The Jets have also shown an ability to develop players on defense made evident by Gardener and Williams as well as other pieces like Jowon Briggs and Will McDonald, making Reese and ideal pick for whatever General Manager Darren Mougey and Head Coach Aaron Glenn envision for the team.

3rd Overall: Arizona Cardinals. OT Francis Mauigoa:

Arizona’s enters an offseason with its future uncertain after firing Jonathan Gannon and are still looking for his replacement. Additionally, there appears to be questions regarding Kyler Murray’s future with the team and whether Arizona plans to keep him or move on from. However, in either case whether they keep Kyler as their signal caller or look for a new QB, Monti Ossenfort’s best move is improving the offensive line is the right move for a Cardinals team that has to compete with two top 10 defensive lines according to pro football focus in the Los Angeles Rams and Seattle Seahawks. Meanwhile the Arizona Cardinals were one of the bottom offensive lines, ranking 29th in pass blocking efficiency scoring an 82.3 on the season.

Francis Mauigoa has been a tone setter for Miami’s offensive line from the moment he stepped onto the field. He started all 13 games at Right Tackle for the Hurricanes and was recognized as a Freshman All-American and All-ACC Honorable Mention. He played in all 13 games again for Miami before starting all 16 games this year on their college football playoff run. Throughout each season he improved technically which allows him to act as an anchor with rushers hitting a brick wall when going against him. He’s got an NFL ready build able to absorb contact and is quick for his size logging a 1.72 10 yard split and is able to maintain control at high speeds. As long as he continues to work on keeping his hand placement in the frame and work on reading blitzing packages, He’ll be a core piece of the Cardinals future along with Paris Johnson Jr.

4th Overall: Tennessee Titans. WR Carnell Tate:

Carnell Tate while at Ohio State was a key piece in their receiving room behind Jeremiah Smith. The Chicago native made an impact right away despite competing for touches with NFL talents like Chris Olave, Marvin Harrison Jr and Jaxon Smith Njigba, finishing with 264 yards and a touchdown. In his first season as a starter alongside Jeremiah Smith, he recorded 733 receiving yards and four touchdowns and winning a National Championship. His final season in Ohio State was his best, logging 875 yards and 9 touchdowns, five of which were over 40 yards. He’s a physical receiver, measured at 6’3 and 193 pounds. Additionally, the large size is completed with natural catching, only recording 3 drops on the season. Tate also has great body control which is how he wins his routes against corners. IQ wise, Tate has shown the ability to attack coverages by setting up vertical routes with his eyes and tempo, his ball tracking is especially something to keep in mind at the NFL. However his 4.6 forty time leaves a lot to be desired and can scare some teams. However Tate’s college success, body control and physical tools make him an exciting prospect for any team looking to upgrade their wide receiver room.

Since trading AJ Brown, the leading receivers for the Tennessee Titans offense has lacked the same explosiveness that made them so formidable. Cam Ward’s rookie season was filled with highs and lows as he showed potential, throwing for 3169 yards and 15 touchdowns. However, he also threw for 7 interceptions and fumbled the ball 11 times. Tennessee’s offense struggled throughout the season and it led to Ward’s game struggling.

Selecting Carnell Tate gives Ward a much needed target alongside rookie receiver Chimere Dike, who set the rookie record for all-purpose yards with 2427 yards, setting a rookie record, while also being tied for most receiving touchdowns on the Titans with 4. By adding Tate to a young receiver room, the Titans

5th Overall: New York Giants. S Caleb Downs:

Caleb Downs had another stellar season at Safety for the Buckeyes. His 2024 season saw him win the 2024 National Championship and win the 2025 Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year, recording 82 tackles, 49 of which were solo tackles along with half a sack and 7.5 tackles for loss. He shut down the offense in the air 2 interceptions on 6 passes defended. He continued his great season in the playoffs, setting the tone for the Cotton Bowl against Texas with 1 tackle for loss and one crucial interception. In the National Championship, he and J.T Tuimoloau led Ohio State in tackles with five.

This year downs kept his foot on the gas, snagging 2 interceptions on 2 passes defended. He ran a while recording 1 sack, 5 tackles for loss and 68 tackles. It proved to be good enough to land him 9th in Heisman voting with 2 first place finishes.

Several strengths in Down’s game stand out, for one, his ball hawking skills are elite making him a key piece for zone defenses; made evident by the fact Quarterbacks had a QB rating of 55.0, however, this also leads to him gamble for big interceptions when forcing an incompletion was the right move. He also needs to work on his eye discipline as he keeps his eyes in the backfield for too long, opening passing lanes. Ultimaltey, Downs is able to play the modern safety position at a high level thanks to his versatility in the passing and rushing defense.

After assembling a small but talented core of young stars in Jaxon Dart, Cam Skattebo and Malik Nabers. On the defensive end, they’ve been able to build an imposing defensive line with Brian Burns, Dexter Lawrence and Abdul Carter. However, the passing defense was middle of the pack this year, with Quarterbacks only throwing 9 interceptions against the giants defense and logged an average passer rating of 94.3. A bigger concern for the Giants was their lack of a run defense. The Giants gave up the second most rushing yards this season with 2470 and a league worst 5.3 carries per game. Caleb Downs is able to help with both aspects of the Giants defense and becoming a potential building block for an exciting young core in the defense with Abdul Carter and Andru Philips.

6th Overall: Cleveland Browns. OT Spencer Fano:

Fano arrived to Utah as one of the highest ranked tackle prospects after three years at Spanish Forks. In his first season, he played 12 games and established himself as a key part of a Utah offensive line that was strong in 2023 as Utah finished 8-5. Fano would become more and more important in Utah as throughout his three years he started 35 of 37 games at both tackle spots. His final season at Utah was his best, being named Big 12 Offensive Lineman of the year.

Fano’s strengths include great mobility and physicaility for a linemen. He’s also got great balance and centre of gravity meaning he won’t be outmuscled on the line easily and his explosiveness allows him to consistently meet defenders at the point of attack and winning his matchups. However, Fano’s reliance on flash technique in pass protection means he can get exposed by inside counters, which will be a problem at the NFL level. Additionally, while Fano is strong enough to play on the line and make an impact at the college level he’s lean for an NFL offensive linemen, which could present concern for generating movement against the bigger interior defenders of the NFL. Nonetheless Fano has the physicality and intangibles to be a solidifying force at the tackle for any team.

Free Agency looks to be a time of turnover for the Cleveland Browns with 30 players entering free agency; 6 of whom are key players, 4 of which are on the offensive line including Joel Bitonio, Wyatt Teller, Cam Robinson and Ethan Pocic. It’s unlikely that Cleveland will be able to retain all of the offensive line and with Cleveland entering another rebuild as he Deshaun Watson contract continues to haunt the Browns.

It leaves building through the draft as the main way the Browns can get better. The Browns already assembled a great class last year with Mason Graham, Carson Schwesinger, Quinshon Judkins, Harold Fanin Jr and Shedeur Sanders all showing promise. By drafting Spencer Fano, the Browns can continue to build upon a strong draft record and ideally rebuild quicker to get back to the playoffs for the first time since 2023 and win a playoff game for the first time since 2020.

7th Overall: Washington Commanders select DE Ruebin Bain:

Rueben Bain Jr was a monster throughout his season with Miami and was a key piece to their run to the national championship. Bain earned consensus All-American status and was the 2025 ACC Defensive Player of the Year after recording 54 tackles, 15.5 tackles for loss and 9.5 sacks along with an interception and forced fumble on the year. It was his best season since his freshmen year at Miami, when he won the ACC Defensive Rookie of Year after logging 44 tackles, 12.5 tackles for loss and 7.5 sacks. At just 21 years old as of writing, he enters the NFL draft with sky high potential, enough to possibly change the shape of an NFL defense.

On tape, Bain’s speed to power is special, allowing him to win most bull rushes. His first step is also elite, able to attack before linemen can get their hands ready, such as against Texas A&M this year when he put up 3 sacks and 4 tackles for loss in a win for Miami. In the run defense, he can hold up well against double teams and efficiently closes up gaps to blow up the play. Finally, his motor is always at max level, allowing him to finish blown up plays with key cleanup sacks. However, Bain also enters the draft with a limited counter moveset, relying more on physicality then technical skill which is an advantage he won’t have as much in the NFL. His gap line discipline also leaves teams wanting, he’ll gamble for sacks, leave gaps early which opens up escape routes for quarterbacks, which also doesn’t pair well with a 18.8 percent missed tackle rate when faced with technical running backs. These issues aren’t significant however, and if Bain can shore up his technique in these areas he’ll be the face of a good defense in the NFL as he was at Miami.

A face of the defense is exactly what Washington needs after a down year due to injuries. Most of their key defenders are in their prime or at the age of decline, including Bobby Wagner, Frankie Luvu and Von Miller, all of whom will be in their early to mid thirties by next season. Washington was also the third worst rushing defense, with teams rushing for 2411 and 18 touchdowns on the year. Their passing defense wasn’t much better as they gave up the fifth most passing yards with 4371 while only intercepting the ball 8 times. If Washington wants to continue to compete in their new era with Jaden Daniels, they have to improve their defense with some young talent and Rueben Bain would be a big addition to the Commanders defense

8th Overall: New Orleans Saints select LB/EDGE David Bailey:

After three years of steady improvement at Stanford, David Bailey turned heads when he entered the transfer portal, becoming one of the best defensive players available. Texas Tech was able to get him for the 2025 season and he immediately produced in a stellar 12-2 season for the Red Raiders. Bailey led the Big 12 in sacks and tackles for loss with 14.5 and 19.5 respectively. He also finished the season 6th in team tackles with 52 and forced 3 fumbles, recovering 1.

Physically, Bailey ensures his 405Ibs bench, 550Ibs squat and 22.16 miles per hour speed translates directly onto the field. His first step is incredibly explosive, throwing his assigned blockers into disarray. Hs motor is always on, able to make key tackles down the field and clean up blown up plays with urgency. Bailey combines great physical skills and high motor with a deep technical bag of countermoves, rips, long arms, inside spin moves, ghost moves; he can do it all and at a high level to keep blockers on their toes and win matchups. His technical ability extends to his skills in coverage, showing proper depth awareness and zone drops to the point where teams can feel comfortable with him in a passing defense. However, Bailey can get muscled off the point of attack by linemen, causing issues with his gap integrity within the run game. His over aggressiveness also leaves running lanes open. Ultimately, Bailey has legit skill and power for the NFL and once he works on his game with NFL coaches, he’ll have the chance to be a difference maker for any defense.

It’s what New Orleans needs heading into the year, although their defense was relatively middle of the pack, and they have some solid pieces in Chase Young and Kool-Aid McKinstry, free agency has this defense at a crossroads as longtime stalwarts Demario Davis, Cameron Jordan and Alonte Taylor are free agents. Jordan and Davis are in their late thirties while Taylor is entering his prime after another strong season. With the future up in the air for both of them. The Saints will need someone to fill the hole a departed Davis, Jordan or both could bring. Bailey can hopefully fix that issue as he enters the NFL, becoming another young piece with McKinstry and Young.

9th Overall: Kansas City Chiefs select RB Jeremiah Love:

In his freshmen season at Notre Dame under Audric Estime, Love showed some flashes in Notre Dame with 385 yards and 1 touchdown. His first full season as the starter was a thing of beauty, rushing for a conference high 1124 yards, 6.9 yards per carry and 17 touchdowns. He continued his high level of play in the 2025 season, rushing for a conference high 1372 yards, 6.9 yards per carry and 18 rushing touchdowns on the season. The 2025 season would also see his rushing yards per game increase from 70.3 yards per game to 114.3 yards per game, a massive jump, culminating in coming third place in Heisman voting.

On tape, Love is a weapon in the open field, a threat to take it to the house every play, especially in open space. He’s also got great patience and vision in the backfield, able to take advantage of holes in the defense and let run plays develop to get positive gains. He’s also a creative runner with a deep bag of tricks he can put to use such as spin moves and cuts. However, Love’s route tree remains limited which needs to improve at the NFL level. Love also needs to improve his pass blocking so he can continue to compete with NFL pass rushers. Jeremiyah Love will be able to work on these issues as he moves on to the NFL. Once he does, he’ll be able to make a big difference in any team’s run game.

The Kansas City Chiefs haven’t been able to give Patrick Mahomes a run game throughout his career. In fact, in all of Mahomes’ years as the starting QB, he’s never had a running back rush for 1000 yards, the closest was Isiah Pacheco in 2023 with 935, the year they repeated as Super Bowl Champions. This lack of a run game finally came to a head this year with the Chiefs top rusher being Kareem Hunt with only 611 yards. Mahomes himself, was only 200 yards away from being the lead rusher on the team finishing the season with 422 rushing yards. The heavy workload for Mahomes led to the worst case scenario, a torn ACL for Mahomes. With Mahomes out for a significant amount of time next season, the Chiefs need a difference maker in the backfield to keep up with the Chargers and Broncos in the AFC West, who have seen their run games improve under their new running backs in RJ Harvey and Omarion Hampton. In the wider NFL, the Chiefs saw first hand how a strong run game can lead to success when they lost to the Philadelphia Eagles after acquiring Saquon Barkley. The Chiefs are entering a retooling period and by bringing in Love, they can give the offense a much needed second level that can bring them back to dominance.

10th Overall: Cincinatti Bengals select CB Mansoor Delane:

Mansoor Delane’s Journey to the NFL draft has been one with many stops. Three years are Archbishop Spalding High School had him surrounded by Division 1 talent, and it pushed him to become of of the best corner back recruits heading into college. He would land at Virginia Tech and although his freshman season would only last 8 games, he made his impact, logging 3.5 tackles for loss, 8 passes defended and 1 interception. He would continue his strong play at Virginia Tech until the 2024 offseason where he would transfer to the SEC by joining LSU. Delane would finish his career at Virginia tech with 146 tackles, 22 passes defended and 6 interceptions, establishing himself as one of the most reliable corners in college football. He would continue his strong play at LSU, snagging 2 interceptions, 45 tackles and a career high 11 passes defended, becoming a stable brightspot in a turbulent LSU season.

Delane’s strengths include great coverage skills and instincts that put him in the position to shut down his matchups, fluid hips allow him to turn and adapt quickly to shifty wide receivers and mirror faster wide receivers without losing ground. He’s also incredibly disciplined, never getting flagged while at LSU. He’s also got great ball production and physicality, allowing him to finish plays with interceptions and batted down passes. All of this culminates in opposing QBs recording a 27.5 passer rating and not allowing a single touchdown on him in 2025, the epidemy of a no fly zone. Delane’s game is not without flaws however as vertical NFL receivers can cause problems for him especially if they get the jump on him at the line of scrimmage. To add to that, his aggression in ball production has led to him gambling for picks or pass breakups, leading him opening passing windows which will get exploited in the NFL. With proper development however, Mansoor Delane can maintain the reliability he was famous for at Virginia Tech in the NFL.

Cincinnati has been underachieving mainly due to their defense being one of the worst for the last three years. Despite having arguably one of the most talented offenses in football with Joe Burrow, Jamar Chase, Tee Higgins and Chase Brown, the Bengals can’t finish games with how poor their defense has been. Zach Taylor has addressed defense in the first round in 3 out of 4 drafts since making the superbowl, acquiring Daxton Hill, Myles Murphy and Shermar Stewart. However, the results have been limited despite finding some key contributors in later rounds with Demetrius Knight, Jordan Battle and Cam Taylor Britt. This is the highest the Bengals have picked since drafting Jamar Chase in 2021, giving the Bengals a huge opportunity to fix their defense. A corner back room of Daxton Hill, Cam Taylor Britt and Mansoor Delane can go a long way in building a proper defense and getting back to the playoffs.