Final 2026 NFL Mock Draft 3.0

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This is the third mock draft marked “final” that you’ll see on the website this week, and this is the true final “final” mock as we have three writers who are competing in The Huddle Report ‘s mock draft accuracy contest. The only prize is bragging rights, but isn’t that the best prize of all? The 2026 NFL Draft, set to start on Thursday, April 23rd, at 8 PM Eastern, represents a unique challenge. The class is viewed as shallow at the top with fewer than usual true first-round grades. The best players are at non-premium positions, while the top players at premium positions all have warts of some kind. Add it all up, and we might have a recipe for a draft that strays even further from consensus than usual. In one more day, we’ll find out. Until then, we have a ton of draft resources for your perusal, including a tracker of top 30 visits and other meetings, a constantly running rumor mill, prospect rankings and tons of individual player analysis. 2026 NFL Draft Visit Tracker 2026 NFL Draft Rumor Tracker Final 2026 NFL Draft Top 200 Big Board Final Mock 1.0 Final Mock 2.0 Final 2026 Mock Draft 3.0 1 — Las Vegas Raiders: Indiana QB Fernando Mendoza Chalk. This is the only pick I can say that about. 2 — New York Jets: Ohio State LB Arvell Reese Kudos to the Jets. I can’t remember the last time there was this much uncertainty about the No. 2 overall pick — currently expected to be either Reese or Texas Tech DE David Bailey . There was an early consensus all the way back in March about Reese, but at the beginning of April, Bailey surged forward on the back of a ton of national reports. Since then, the pendulum has swung back to Reese, fueled mostly by local Jets reporters who stayed on Reese the whole time. There’s still some buzz about Bailey, though, and this won’t be cleared up until the Jets go on the clock. 3 — Arizona Cardinals: Notre Dame RB Jeremiyah Love All the late buzz for the Cardinals and Love could certainly be week-of-the-draft rumor noise. However, I’ve thought dating back to February that this was an underdiscussed possibility for the Cardinals. Love is the draft’s best player; he just plays the least valued position outside of special teams. At No. 3 overall, that has to be part of the conversation, especially with a pass rusher still on the board. Love would be the league’s seventh-highest-paid running back once he signs the deal slotted for the No. 3 pick; Bailey would be the 34th edge rusher. However, this dynamic remains true no matter where Love is selected in the top five, and he’s widely expected to be a top-five pick. There shouldn’t be this inconceivable difference between No. 3 and No. 5. Additionally, Love’s skill in the passing game gives him more ways to return value, while Bailey doesn’t profile the same as the typical top-three pass rusher. It should also be noted that teams with new head coaches often invest in the side of the ball their coach has a background in. Cardinals GM Monti Ossenfort is probably the main decision-maker, but the Cardinals really wanted to lure first-year HC Mike Lafleur away from the Rams and will value his input. And while this isn’t how good teams make decisions, the buzz factor from picking Love can’t be ignored for Arizona. 4 — Tennessee Titans: Texas Tech DE David Bailey The way the board fell here makes this an easy pick. I think the ideal outcome for the Titans and new HC Robert Saleh would be to land one of the draft’s top pass rushers or defensive playmakers. All of Saleh’s…