NFL Draft No.1 chatter
- What happened: Mock drafts project uncertainty at the top of Round 1, with multiple quarterback scenarios. - The key specific: ESPN and Yahoo project the Raiders taking Fernando Mendoza at No. 1, with the Jets possibly picking David Bailey at No. 2. - Context: Analysts expect volatility early in the draft, including surprise top‑10 picks and questions about how many quarterbacks go in Round 1. ( )
Fernando Mendoza has emerged as the clearest projection at No. 1 in the 2026 National Football League draft, but the rest of the top of Round 1 still looks unsettled. (espn.com) ESPN’s NFL Nation mock draft published April 22 has the Las Vegas Raiders taking Mendoza, the Indiana quarterback, with the first pick on Thursday night in Pittsburgh. Yahoo Sports’ final mock draft, published April 21, also sends Mendoza to Las Vegas. (espn.com, sports.yahoo.com) The early disagreement starts at No. 2. Yahoo projects the New York Jets to take Texas Tech edge rusher David Bailey, while NFL.com’s Chad Reuter projected the Jets taking Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson in his seven-round mock published April 17. (sports.yahoo.com, nfl.com) That split reflects the shape of this class. ESPN framed the top pick as relatively straightforward, then described the rest of the first round as the part “NFL fans have been waiting for,” especially after a weekend trade sent the No. 10 pick from Cincinnati to the New York Giants for defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence II. (espn.com) The draft begins Thursday, April 23, at 8 p.m. Eastern in Pittsburgh, with Rounds 2 and 3 on April 24 and Rounds 4 through 7 on April 25. NFL.com’s updated order lists the Raiders at No. 1, and ESPN’s draft guide says the event will run 257 picks deep. (nfl.com, espn.com) Quarterback is the position driving most of the uncertainty. ESPN asked in its mock whether Mendoza is “the only first-round QB,” while CBS Sports said this week that “the debate begins after Fernando Mendoza” in a class it called unpredictable at the position. (espn.com, cbssports.com) That uncertainty has widened the range of plausible top-10 outcomes. Yahoo’s final mock sends Bailey to the Jets at No. 2 and says the Kansas City Chiefs make a “top-3 splash,” while NFL.com and CBS Sports have both published recent mocks built around multiple first-round trades. (sports.yahoo.com, nfl.com, cbssports.com) Mendoza is the one name that keeps surviving the churn. Peter Schrager wrote in ESPN’s mock two weeks ago that Mendoza to the Raiders was “all but a done deal,” and Yahoo’s Nate Tice and Charles McDonald called the pick “set it and forget it” in their final projection. (espn.com, sports.yahoo.com) By Thursday night, the question may be less about whether Mendoza goes first than how fast the board breaks after him. The first answer comes with the Raiders on the clock; the real drama starts with the next card. (espn.com, nfl.com)
