Winners & Losers: 2026 NFL Draft

The 2026 NFL Draft has officially come and gone. A total of 257 players heard their names called, realizing a lifelong dream of becoming part of the National Football League.

Ohio State led the way with 11 players selected, while the Miami Dolphins paced the league with a draft-high 13 picks. On the other end of the spectrum, the Los Angeles Rams made just five selections.

It’s one thing to have a plethora of picks and multiple chances to hit, but it’s not about how many selections you have. It’s about how you use them. Let’s take a look at the biggest winners and losers from this year’s draft.

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Winners

Kansas City Chiefs

Draft Picks:

• Round 1, No. 6: Mansoor Delane, CB, LSU

• Round 1, No. 29: Peter Woods, DT, Clemson

• Round 2, No. 40: R Mason Thomas, EDGE, Oklahoma

• Round 4, No. 109: Jadon Canady, S, Oregon

• Round 5, No. 161: Emmett Johnson, RB, Nebraska

• Round 5, No. 176: Cyrus Allen, WR, Cincinnati

• Round 7, No. 249: Garrett Nussmeier, QB, LSU

Absolutely loved what the Chiefs did in this draft.

Trading up to make sure they landed the best cornerback in the class in Mansoor Delane set the tone immediately.

Then, with their second first-round pick, getting Peter Woods at No. 29 felt like robbery in terms of value.

Outside of David Bailey, R Mason Thomas might be the best natural pass rusher in this entire class.

Cyrus Allen in the fifth round? That’s the kind of pick that ends up looking ridiculous in two years when he’s not only on the 53-man roster but firmly in the rotation.

And then you cap it off with Garrett Nussmeier, a high-upside project quarterback who now gets to sit behind Patrick Mahomes and learn from Andy Reid.

You really couldn’t script it much better than this.

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New Orleans Saints

Draft Picks:

• Round 1, No. 8: Jordyn Tyson, WR, Arizona State

• Round 2, No. 42: Christen Miller, DT, Georgia

• Round 3, No. 73: Oscar Delp, TE, Georgia

• Round 4, No. 132: Jeremiah Wright, G, Auburn

• Round 4, No. 136: Bryce Lance, WR, North Dakota State

• Round 5, No. 172: Lorenzo Styles Jr., CB, Ohio State

• Round 6, No. 190: Barion Brown, WR/KR, LSU

• Round 7, No. 219: TJ Hall, CB, Iowa

The Saints made it abundantly clear what their mission was: build around second-year quarterback Tyler Shough.

Jordyn Tyson has the kind of talent where you can realistically say he could end up being the best receiver in this class when it’s all said and done.

And they didn’t stop there.

Oscar Delp and Bryce Lance are both guys who will have a real chance to contribute early. This wasn’t just about adding bodies; this was about adding weapons.

On the defensive side, Christen Miller was a top-five interior defensive lineman in this class. Lorenzo Styles Jr. brings a ton of versatility. You can line him up in the slot or even roll him back at safety in certain packages.

And don’t overlook the return game. Styles and Barion Brown could very well be competing for those duties from Day 1.

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Cleveland Browns

Draft Picks:

• Round 1, No. 9: Spencer Fano, OT, Utah

• Round 1, No. 24: KC Concepcion, WR, Texas A&M

• Round 2, No. 39: Denzel Boston, WR, Washington

• Round 2, No. 58: Emmanuel McNeil-Warren, SAF, Toledo

• Round 3, No. 86: Austin Barber, OT, Florida

• Round 5, No. 146: Parker Brailsford, C, Alabama

• Round 5, No, 149: Justin Jefferson, LB, Alabama

• Round 5, No. 170: Joe Royer, TE, Cincinnati

• Round 6, No. 182: Taylen Green, QB, Arkansas

• Round 7, No. 248: Carsen Ryan, TE, BYU

For the second year in a row, the Browns absolutely crushed their draft.

Pound for pound, Spencer Fano might be the best offensive lineman in the entire class. Then you turn around and draft KC Concepcion after finishing dead last in wide receiver production (per PFF)—that’s how you fix a problem immediately.

And they weren’t done.

Denzel Boston in the second round, a player with a consensus first-round grade, sends a message: this offense is going to look completely different next season.

Emmanuel McNeil-Warren is another guy who can step in right away and contribute, especially with his versatility.

Austin Barber and Parker Brailsford give this team flexibility up front, which is something they desperately needed.

And while Taylen Green may not factor into the immediate QB competition, he fits exactly what Todd Monken wants at the position. That matters more than people think.

This is how you reshape a roster.

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Losers

Jacksonville Jaguars

Draft Picks:

• Round 2, No. 56: Nate Boerkircher, TE, Texas A&M

• Round 3, No. 81: Albert Regis, DT, Texas A&M

• Round 3, No. 88: Emmanuel Pregnon, G, Oregon

• Round 3, No. 100: Jalen Huskey, S, Maryland

• Round 4, No. 119: Wesley Williams, EDGE, Duke

• Round 5, No. 164: Tanner Koziol, TE, Houston

• Round 6, No. 191: Josh Cameron, WR, Baylor

• Round 6, No. 203: CJ Williams, WR, Stanford

• Round 7, No. 233: Zach Durfee, EDGE, Washington

• Round 7, No. 240: Parker Hughes, LB, MTSU

Outside of Emmanuel Pregnon, who I believe is an absolute steal in the third round, you could argue the Jaguars reached on just about every other pick.

If the goal was to find a tight end who could actually make a difference, there were better options still on the board than Nate Boerkircher. And that’s really the issue here. I’m not seeing many immediate impact players from this class.

You can talk yourself into development, sure. But where are the difference-makers?

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Green Bay Packers

Draft Picks:

• Round 2, No. 52: Brandon Cisse, CB, South Carolina

• Round 3, No. 77: Chris McClellan, DT, Missouri

• Round 4, No. 120: Dani Dennis-Sutton, EDGE, Penn State

• Round 5, No. 153: Jager Burton, C, Kentucky

• Round 6, No. 201: Domani Jackson, CB, Alabama

• Round 6, No. 216: Trey Smack, K, Florida

  
  

No first-round pick after trading for Micah Parsons meant Green Bay had to be sharp.

They were… for one pick.

Brandon Cisse looks like a player who can step in and potentially fill that CB1 void. After that, though, things fell off. Could some of these guys contribute? Sure.

But this is a team with expectations of competing for a championship when Micah Parsons is healthy, and I don’t see many players here who actually move the needle toward that goal.

That’s the disconnect.

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Detroit Lions

Draft Picks:

• Round 1, No. 17: Blake Miller, OT, Clemson

• Round 2, No. 44: Derrick Moore, EDGE, Michigan

• Round 4, No. 118: Jimmy Rolder, LB, Michigan

• Round 5, No. 157: Keith Abney II, CB, Arizona State

• Round 5, No. 168: Kendrick Law, WR, Kentucky

• Round 6, No. 205: Skyler Gill-Howard, DT, Texas Tech

• Round 7, No. 222: Tyre West, EDGE, Tennessee

Every year under Brad Holmes, it feels like we question the Lions’ draft—and every year, he makes people look wrong. This year? I’m not ready to give that benefit of the doubt.

Blake Miller at No. 17 wasn’t surprising because of the position, but it was surprising because of who was still on the board. Monroe Freeling and Max Iheanachor both offered more upside and, in Iheanachor’s case, a more well-rounded profile.

Derrick Moore can play. Keith Abney II has real potential as a slot corner.

But beyond that, how many true starters came out of this class? It just feels like there was too much meat left on the bone early in this draft.

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Final Thoughts:

Time will tell who got it right and who completely missed.

Because the reality is, the draft isn’t just about talent. It’s about development, fit, and situation. The players who maximize their opportunity and land in the right system are the ones who ultimately separate themselves.

With rookie minicamps approaching, teams are about to find out very quickly whether they’ve found diamonds in the rough or fool’s gold.