NFL Draft 2026: Neil Reynolds’ 5 storylines in Pittsburgh from Fernando Mendoza to commerce drama

The 2026 NFL Draft kicks off on Thursday evening and there are positive to be many headlines written because the 32 groups throughout the league choose the most effective gamers from America’s school soccer system.

This three-day choice course of stays crucial offseason occasion within the NFL and the ultimate probability for the golf equipment to inventory their rosters earlier than they open their pre-season coaching camps later this summer time.

The tales won’t simply centre round gamers who will hear their names referred to as and their NFL desires realised. There will likely be an incredible deal with trades – which might additionally characteristic veterans on the transfer – in addition to groups who merely need to make this upcoming weekend a hit.

Listed below are 5 storylines to comply with when the NFL Draft begins on Thursday evening and into the early hours of Friday morning.

Mendoza the Raider

The true intrigue will include the second choose on this Draft as a result of it’s a well-known and widely-accepted provided that the Las Vegas Raiders will choose Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza with the primary total choice.

There are nonetheless doubters who recommend Mendoza – a nationwide championship-winning quarterback in school – will likely be nothing greater than to serviceable NFL quarterback. However that’s in all probability being a bit of harsh. He’s an correct passer who has been in comparison with former Professional Bowler and NFL MVP Matt Ryan, though Mendoza can run when wanted.

The transfer makes whole sense. The Raiders received just a few good years out of Derek Carr, however they’ve been in quarterback purgatory for the previous 4 or 5 seasons. Teaming Mendoza with veteran Kirk Cousins provides the Silver and Black a promising (and arguably the nicest) within the NFL quarterback room.

Motion at three?

With the New York Jets anticipated to improve their stagnant cross rush with the second choice, the actual enjoyable will start at three the place the Arizona Cardinals will try to persuade the soccer world they will choose Notre Dame operating again Jeremiyah Love.

The Cardinals do have workable operating backs led by the newly-signed Tyler Allgeier and plenty of extra wants together with quarterback, but when they will get a staff to commerce up forward of the Tennessee Titans at 4; they might add picks that can be utilized at different positions.

Love is being dubbed as a generational expertise who’s unlikely to fall out of the highest 5. He has the explosive capability to attain from anyplace on the sector and has been in comparison with Saquon Barkley. Love scored 40 touchdowns over his last two seasons of faculty soccer, which means the Cardinals themselves may be tempted at three. Love is predicted to be so good that any variety of groups could possibly be prepared to come back up and seize him forward of the Titans.

The multiple-pick groups

There are six groups in place to seize expertise early on Thursday evening as they every have two picks within the first spherical. These golf equipment are the New York Jets, New York Giants, Cleveland Browns, Kansas Metropolis Chiefs, Miami Dolphins and Dallas Cowboys.

Whereas these groups are in an enviable place, they may also be feeling stress to make these further picks depend. To be able to get further picks, these groups traded away some seriously-good expertise within the type of Sauce Gardner (NY Jets), Dexter Lawrence (NY Giants), Trent McDuffie (Kansas Metropolis), Jaylen Waddle (Miami) and Micah Parsons (Dallas). Cleveland gave up the possibility to pick out Travis Hunter with their choose final 12 months.

Miami will particularly be feeling the necessity to have Draft so watch them carefully as they appear to rebuild beneath the rookie pairing of common supervisor Jon-Eric Sullivan and head coach Jeff Hafley. The Dolphins off-loaded veterans comparable to quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, receivers Waddle and Tyreek Hill, and cross rusher Bradley Chubb earlier this offseason. So, they want as many football-playing our bodies as potential and have 11 picks (second-most within the NFL).

Importantly, the Dolphins have seven picks within the first three rounds and have to seek out impression gamers to start their climb again to competitiveness.

Will a second QB go in spherical one?

This model of the annual choice course of is to not be confused with 2024 when six quarterbacks – led by Chicago taking Caleb Williams first total – had been chosen within the first 12 picks. There may be nowhere close to that stage of expertise on this Class of 2026.

If a second quarterback is to be taken it will likely be late in spherical one and sure with a needy staff buying and selling again in to safe the fifth-year choice on a participant taken within the first 32 picks. And it will likely be extra in regards to the worth of the place fairly than the sure-fire expertise of the participant being chosen.

That’s as a result of the heavy favorite to be the second quarterback off the board is Alabama’s Ty Simpson and he has solely began 15 video games in his school profession. There are all the time going to be nerves with such a restricted physique of labor. Anthony Richardson began simply 13 school video games earlier than being chosen fourth total by Indianapolis in 2023. It did not work out and the Colts have already moved on at that place. Simpson seems to be NFL prepared, however do we actually know given his restricted school soccer expertise?

Veteran trades

Kansas Metropolis Chiefs common supervisor Brett Veach stated this otherwise-ordinary Draft would seemingly be spiced up by trades. The buying and selling of picks but in addition of veteran gamers. That specific enjoyable started over the weekend when the New York Giants traded Professional Bowl defensive sort out Dexter Lawrence to the Cincinnati Bengals for his or her quantity 10 choose in spherical one.

Subsequent on the transfer is prone to be perennial 1,000-yard receiver AJ Brown, who’s reportedly going to go from the Philadelphia Eagles to the New England Patriots. Who else could possibly be on the buying and selling block?

The Colts will likely be eager to ship out the aforementioned Richardson and the New Orleans Saints may also offload a quarterback in Spencer Rattler. Productive slot cornerback Kenny Moore is one other who seems to need out of Indianapolis and pass-rusher Kayvon Thibodeaux could possibly be traded by the Giants. He’s a warning to not get too excited as quickly as a participant’s title known as on Thursday evening. The highly-touted defender was chosen fifth total by New York in 2022, however he has solely damaged 10 sacks as soon as in a season and is already on the verge of being yesterday’s information.

Bonus choose… British curiosity

We might see a British tight finish chosen in some unspecified time in the future on day three of the Draft as London’s Seydou Traore completes his journey from the NFL Academy to the Nationwide Soccer League.

Traore – who performed youth soccer as a large receiver for the London Warriors – was a member of the preliminary class of gamers within the NFL Academy when the highschool program launched in 2019. He went on to play school soccer at Arkansas State and Mississippi State (the place he scored 5 touchdowns within the 2025 season).

Traore has been making ready for the Draft as a member of the Worldwide Participant Pathway program and his private success – when it comes on Saturday – needs to be celebrated throughout the globe. However particularly by these on the NFL Academy. Traore resides proof that teenage expertise may be discovered hundreds of miles from America and honed into skilled athletes able to make their mark on the highest stage of the game.

Watch all three days of the 2026 NFL Draft reside on Sky Sports activities, with Day One beneath manner from 1am within the early hours of Friday morning.