The 2026 NFL Draft has finally arrived, with the Las Vegas Raiders on the clock with the first overall pick in this year’s draft.
Indiana quarterback prospect and reigning Heisman Trophy winner Fernando Mendoza is the presumed No. 1 pick, as the Raiders look to secure their signal-caller of the future. Mendoza will be sitting out this year’s draft festivities in Pittsburgh, opting instead to celebrate his selection with family and friends in his hometown of Miami.
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Plenty of other top prospects will be in attendance, however, including Notre Dame star running back Jeremiyah Love and Ohio State’s powerhouse quartet of Arvell Reese, Sonny Styles, Carnell Tate and Caleb Downs — all of whom were in the top 18 picks in Yahoo Sports’ final mock draft of the year.
Notably, the first round will look a little different this year with a shortened clock, as each team gets eight minutes to make its selection (as opposed to 10 minutes in years prior). Rounds 2 and 3 will take place on Friday, starting at 7 p.m. ET, with Rounds 4-7 closing out the action on Saturday, starting at noon.
NFL Draft Big Boards: Consensus Top 75 • Nate Tice • Charles McDonald | Draft guide
NFL draft start time: 8 p.m. ET
Location: Pittsburgh
TV channel: NFL Network, ESPN, ESPN Deportes
Streaming: NFL+, Disney+, DirecTV, ESPN Unlimited
Follow along with Yahoo Sports for the latest NFL news and results from Round 1 of the 2026 NFL Draft.
Live28 updatesThu, April 23, 2026 at 12:30 PM PDT
Yahoo Sports Staff
We’re all trying to figure out how the first round of the 2026 NFL Draft will play out. So we asked the computers.
We gave Claude the following inputs to compile a mock draft: the draft order by team, team needs per NFL IQ, and our own Yahoo Sports consensus big board.
It returned some interesting outcomes. For instance, Texas Tech edge rusher David Bailey is headed to New York alright … just not the Jets. The Lions may get the steal of the draft at No. 17, where they land arguably the best overall player this class. And wait till you see who falls all the way to the Super Bowl champion Seahawks at No. 32.
Check out Claude’s full mock draft here.
David Bailey is headed to New York in this mock draft. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
(Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
Thu, April 23, 2026 at 2:08 PM PDT
Jason Owens
As George Pickens moves forward without a long-term deal, the Cowboys have conducted “cordial” conversations with the wide receiver’s agent, David Mulugheta. For whatever that’s worth.
A day after the Cowboys announced that they don’t intend to negotiate a long-term contract with Pickens ahead of a July 15 deadline, NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reported Thursday that owner Jerry Jones and COO Stephen Jones had both reached out to Mulugheta regarding Pickens’ future.
Rapoport described the correspondence as an “olive branch” from the Cowboys and that the conversations were “professional and cordial.”
Stephen Jones had previously acknowledged that he and Jerry had conducted a “cordial” conversation with Mulugheta. He said on Wednesday that the conversation went “real well.”
What that means for Pickens’ future with the franchise is unclear. The Cowboys used the franchise tag on Pickens for the upcoming season and appear to have no intent of signing him to a long-term contract this offseason.
Thu, April 23, 2026 at 1:37 PM PDT
Jason Owens
Hours before the NFL Draft, the New England Patriots announced their support of head coach Mike Vrabel regarding the scandal involving him and reporter Dianna Russini.
Vrabel plans to be part of New England’s draft process on Thursday and Friday, but announced that he will skip Day 3 on Saturday to seek counseling.
The Patriots released the following statement Thursday afternoon, hours after newly surfaced photos reportedly show Russini and Vrabel in a bar together in 2020, six years before they were photographed holding hands, hugging and hanging poolside at a resort in Arizona:
“The New England Patriots fully support Mike Vrabel’s decision to prioritize his family first, as well as his own well-being. Mike has been open with us about his commitment to being the best version of himself for his family, this team and our fans, and we respect the steps he is taking to follow through on that commitment.
“We are confident in the leadership and communication Mike has established with our personnel staff throughout this pre-draft process. While he will not be present at the facility on Saturday, we know the draft evaluations are complete and Eliot Wolf and his personnel staff are prepared to execute our draft as planned this weekend.”
Thu, April 23, 2026 at 1:24 PM PDT
Yahoo Sports
Indiana QB Fernando Mendoza, the soon-to-be No. 1 NFL Draft pick, appears to be about business before the Las Vegas Raiders select him in Round 1.
Thu, April 23, 2026 at 1:00 PM PDT
Jack Baer, Tarohn Finley
Dexter Lawrence wasn’t happy with the New York Giants, and now he’s on the move.
The Giants traded the Pro Bowl defensive tackle to the Cincinnati Bengals in exchange for a package that includes the No. 10 overall pick of the 2026 NFL Draft, the Bengals announced on Sunday.
Lawrence reportedly passed his physical and signed a one-year, $28 million extension, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
The Giants will have both the Nos. 5 and 10 picks in the draft, which begins Thursday. If the Giants hold onto their first-round draft picks, it will make their 10th and 11th top-10 draft picks since 2015.
Thu, April 23, 2026 at 12:47 PM PDT
Yahoo Sports
The Jaguars don’t pick until Round 2 with the 56th overall selection. Their other scheduled picks for Friday night are three third-rounders (Nos. 81, 88 and 100 overall).
Thu, April 23, 2026 at 12:26 PM PDT
Tarohn Finley
New England Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel is expected to be present in the draft room on Thursday, according to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport.
Vrabel announced he would miss Day 3 of the 2026 NFL Draft to seek counseling following a photo scandal involving NFL reporter Dianna Russini. Page Six released additional images on Thursday, claiming they were taken at a New York City bar in 2020.
Vrabel is scheduled to speak to the media on Thursday if the Patriots make a pick per MassLive reporter Mark Daniels. If the Patriots trade out of the first round, Patriots Executive Vice President of Player Personnel Eliot Wolf will address the media on Friday.
Ryan Cowden will speak on Saturday, and if the Patriots continue to trade out of the first round, Vrabel’s next media availability would be on May 27.
Thu, April 23, 2026 at 12:00 PM PDT
Andrew Siciliano, Jori Epstein, Frank Schwab
Thu, April 23, 2026 at 11:26 AM PDT
Ben Fawkes
The over/under for wide receivers drafted in Round 1 is 5.5 at BetMGM (shaded -220 to the over), but it’s clearly a two-player race between Arizona State WR Tyson and Ohio State WR Carnell Tate to be the first WR off the board.
Tate had been the favorite the past few weeks, but Tyson (-125) recently overtook him as the first WR to be drafted, with Tate now at -105.
USC wideout Makai Lemon has the third-best odds at 150-1.
Thu, April 23, 2026 at 11:04 AM PDT
Yahoo Sports Staff
Thu, April 23, 2026 at 11:00 AM PDT
Frank Schwab
The Steelers go into the draft claiming they have no idea if Aaron Rodgers will play this season, which isn’t ideal. Whether that’s true or not, the Steelers are a team to watch. They could be the team to draft Ty Simpson, with an eye on the future at quarterback.
Perhaps they unload a veteran pass rusher like Alex Highsmith or Nick Herbig from a defense that was too expensive and average last season. It’s also possible the Steelers do nothing exciting and just take another lineman at No. 21, which they’ve done each of the past three drafts. A boring draft would be notable too, given how many options Pittsburgh should have in its first draft since hiring Mike McCarthy as head coach.
Read more on the other storylines shaping this year’s draft.
Thu, April 23, 2026 at 10:53 AM PDT
Ben Fawkes
Every 2026 NFL mock draft has Indiana QB Fernando Mendoza going No. 1 to the Las Vegas Raiders — and the betting markets agree.
Mendoza has been a prohibitive favorite to go No. 1 for months and currently sits at -10000 odds, which means a $100 bet would win $1.
No other player has better than 100-1 odds.
The intrigue of Round 1 of the NFL Draft will start at pick No. 2.
Thu, April 23, 2026 at 10:30 AM PDT
Yahoo Sports Staff
Thu, April 23, 2026 at 10:15 AM PDT
Yahoo Sports Staff
Thu, April 23, 2026 at 10:06 AM PDT
Yahoo Sports Staff
Less than a day after New England Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel announced that he’d miss Day 3 of the 2026 NFL Draft to seek counseling in the wake of a photo scandal with NFL reporter Dianna Russini, Page Six published additional images it says were taken at a New York City bar in 2020.
These photos show a man and a woman, identified by Page Six as Russini and Vrabel, interacting closely in a dimly lit bar. One photo shows the pair facing each other, their heads close together, suggesting an intimate exchange. At the time, Vrabel was head coach of the Tennessee Titans, while Russini worked as a reporter with ESPN.
Page Six stated that the outlet “contacted both Vrabel and Russini on Wednesday afternoon regarding the photos,” just hours before Vrabel made the announcement he’d be stepping away for counseling.
The Patriots hold the 31st overall pick in the draft Thursday night, and Vrabel is scheduled to meet with the media if New England makes a pick, per MassLive reporter Mark Daniels. The league already stated that Vrabel would not be subject to the NFL’s personal conduct policy in connection with the photos.
Russini resigned from her position with The Athletic on April 14 after the organization launched an investigation following the publication of images of Russini and Vrabel holding hands and sitting in a hot tub together at a luxury hotel in Arizona in March 2026.
Thu, April 23, 2026 at 10:00 AM PDT
Nate Tice
When Mendoza was tasked with operating Indiana’s well-designed and well-coached offense, he was constantly making the right decision, no matter the task. The ball was out and going to a correct read an overwhelming majority of the time.
Everything is tidy when Mendoza operates. His feet get into a good position to throw. His hitches are consistent and lead to a repeatable motion. That repeatable motion leads to repeatable results, too. Mendoza’s accuracy and ball placement are his winning traits.
He has plenty of zip to get the ball where he wants to, but he maximizes that zip with where he locates the football and how early he gets the ball out. A solid chunk of the time his receivers are just getting into their route breaks when Mendoza is releasing the football.
Check out the rest of Mendoza’s deep-dive prospect evaluation.
Thu, April 23, 2026 at 9:45 AM PDT
Ben Fawkes
“Bookmakers hate the draft,” Jeff Benson, Circa Sports director of operations, told Yahoo Sports via direct message on X. “It is tons of work for no gain, and we have zero chance to win. We torch five to six figures a year on [it].”
Why do bookmakers hate booking the NFL Draft and sharp bettors love it? Is the opportunity for sharp bettors now gone? And if it’s such a losing proposition, why do books offer it at all?
Betting on the NFL Draft had long been a part of the offshore world, but it was finally approved to be offered in Nevada in 2017 — the one state in the U.S. at that time with legal sports betting — and the number of bets available to be offered expanded in 2018.
It wasn’t until the unique 2020 NFL Draft, with the sports world shut down due to the COVID-19 pandemic, that sportsbooks fully utilized that expanded menu to offer bettors a wide variety of options, turning the draft into a true betting event. The draft came into focus on sports betting shows, podcasts and gambling X (then Twitter) because there wasn’t much handicapping of live sports to be done.
Read about what makes the NFL Draft is so difficult to book.
Thu, April 23, 2026 at 9:43 AM PDT
Ben Fawkes
The New York Jets currently hold the No. 2 pick in tonight’s NFL Draft, and defensive ends Arvell Reese and David Bailey have each been the favorite to go No. 2 at BetMGM in the past few days.
Seemingly daily, the odds have shifted between the two players. With less than eight hours before Round 1, Bailey is the -150 favorite to go No. 2 with Reese the second choice at +115.
No other player has better than 100-1 odds.
Thu, April 23, 2026 at 9:30 AM PDT
Nate Tice, Charles McDonald
The 2026 NFL Draft has arrived! Months of scouting evaluations, testing numbers, pro days, team visits, trades and more all come down to Thursday through Saturday in Pittsburgh, when 257 players will hear their names called as draft picks.
At No. 2, the Jets have been linked to both Texas Tech EDGE David Bailey and Ohio State LB/EDGE Arvell Reese. In our final mock draft of the year, we’ve got the New York Jets selecting …
David Bailey, Edge, Texas Tech
There’s been a lot of smoke recently linking the Jets and Bailey, so let’s follow suit and start the draft here. This might be a bit rich for Bailey considering the Jets have their pick of the litter, but one thing he has over the Ohio State trio is conventional positional value helping his cause.
Bailey’s appeal is all about his upside as a pass rusher, which is sky high. He has the athleticism, tenacity and a growing set of techniques to use to be a factor early in his career. He has a lot of room to grow as a run defender, but he’s shown upside there as well, albeit inconsistently. The addition of 365-pound nose tackle T’Vondre Sweat makes this pick more palatable and will let Bailey be aggressive without killing the structure of the Jets’ defense.
Check out the rest of our team’s final mock draft of the year.
Thu, April 23, 2026 at 9:09 AM PDT
Yahoo Sports Staff