NFL Draft volatility

The 2026 National Football League draft opens Thursday night in Pittsburgh with no clear consensus on how the first five picks will fall. (nfl.com) (espn.com) Round 1 starts at 8 p.m. Eastern on Thursday, April 23, and the full draft runs through April 25 at Point State Park and Acrisure Stadium in Pittsburgh. The National Football League says this is the 91st draft and the first one Pittsburgh has hosted since 1948. (nfl.com) (operations.nfl.com) The Las Vegas Raiders hold the No. 1 pick, and ESPN’s Peter Schrager wrote Wednesday that his main takeaway from the final hours before the draft was that “this year is particularly wide open.” ESPN’s draft coverage also lists Fernando Mendoza among the quarterbacks at the center of first-round projections. (espn.com 1) (espn.com 2) That uncertainty has spread beyond the top quarterback spot. ESPN and CBS Sports mock drafts this month have pushed Notre Dame running back Jeremiyah Love into the top five, while Ohio State defender Sonny Styles has stayed in the upper tier of prospect rankings. (cbssports.com) (espn.com) Arvell Reese has become part of the trade conversation rather than just the player rankings. In ESPN’s final mock draft, Schrager highlighted a choice between David Bailey and Reese for the New York Jets and projected Bailey, while separate ESPN draft buzz pointed to potential trades around the top of the board. (espn.com 1) (espn.com 2) The volatility starts with the order itself. The Raiders pick first, and the National Football League’s published first round begins with Las Vegas at No. 1 before the rest of the board, giving teams behind them a narrow window to decide whether to stay put or move up. (nfl.com) Draft analysts have been updating those projections almost daily. ESPN published one first-round mock draft two weeks ago, a roundup of staff mocks two days ago, and two more first-round prediction packages on Wednesday alone. (espn.com 1) (espn.com 2) (espn.com 3) Prospect boards show the same late movement. Daniel Jeremiah released his final top 150 on April 20, and ESPN’s Scouts Inc. updated its full board on April 17, with both outlets framing the last week as a period of final reshuffling before teams lock in grades. (nfl.com) (espn.com) By Thursday night, the draft clock will force that uncertainty into actual picks. Until the Raiders turn in the first card, the clearest fact about Round 1 is that several of its biggest names are still being mocked in different places. (nfl.com) (espn.com)