{"id":593619,"date":"2026-04-10T00:20:09","date_gmt":"2026-04-10T00:20:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/593619\/"},"modified":"2026-04-10T00:20:09","modified_gmt":"2026-04-10T00:20:09","slug":"nfl-announces-16-players-planning-to-attend-the-2026-draft","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/593619\/","title":{"rendered":"NFL Announces 16 Players Planning to Attend the 2026 Draft"},"content":{"rendered":"

Ranking the Top 250 Prospects in the NFL Draft Led By Fernando Mendoza<\/a>
| Revisiting Every 2025 NFL Draft Trade Involving a First-Round Pick: Who Won and Who Lost?<\/a><\/p>\n

In two weeks, several draft prospects will be in Pittsburgh, Pa. to see their professional football dreams come to fruition when they are selected in the 2026 NFL draft<\/a>.<\/p>\n

This year, there will be 16 players attending the draft in person. That\u2019s one fewer than last year, when 17 prospects went in person to the draft in Green Bay. The number is up from the 2024 NFL draft, when just 13 players attended the event live. <\/p>\n

Here is the list of prospects who will be in attendance for this year\u2019s draft, per Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network.<\/p>\n

Edge David Bailey, Texas TechDE Rueben Bain Jr., MiamiCB Mansoor Delane, LSUS Caleb Downs, Ohio StateEdge Keldric Faulk, AuburnCB Colton Hood, TennesseeWR Makai Lemon, USCRB Jeremiyah Love, Notre DameOT Francis Mauigoa, MiamiDT Kayden McDonald, Ohio StateOT Kadyn Proctor, AlabamaLB Arvell Reese, Ohio StateQB Ty Simpson, AlabamaLB Sonny Styles, Ohio StateWR Carnell Tate, Ohio StateWR Jordyn Tyson, Arizona State<\/p>\n

Here are the 16 prospects who will be at the NFL Draft in Pittsburgh. pic.twitter.com\/xo28ayTvad<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) April 9, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

Notably, presumed No. 1 pick Fernando Mendoza has informed the league that he will not be<\/a> attending the draft in person<\/a>, instead opting to take in the event with family and friends in Miami. Mendoza will be the first No. 1 pick since Travon Walker in 2022 that is not present at the draft. <\/p>\n

For the players that do opt to attend the draft, it\u2019s a once in a lifetime experience to celebrate one of the biggest milestones in their lives and professional careers. When drafted, the players are called to the stage to shake commissioner Roger Goodell\u2019s hand and pose with gear from their new team. There are a multitude of reasons players choose not to go to the draft, including because they prefer to watch from home or have too big of a group to bring with them to the event. <\/p>\n

While Mendoza will be watching the draft from elsewhere, many other potential top-10 picks\u2014including Bailey, Bain, Delane, Downs, Love, Mauigoa, Reese, Styles and Tate will be there in person.<\/p>\n

Not all the prospects attending the draft, however, are locks in the first round. Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson is viewed as a potential first-round pick, but there\u2019s also a good chance he\u2019s not taken until the second round. In the latest mock draft from Sports Illustrated\u2019s Gilberto Manzano<\/a>, he did not predict either McDonald or Faulk getting picked in the first round. Despite going to the draft last year, both Will Johnson and Jalen Milroe had to wait until Day 2 to hear their names called. Draft falls have created awkward scenarios in the past. Notably, the biggest storyline of the 2025 NFL draft was Shedeur Sanders\u2019s fall to the fifth round, though he was not there in person. <\/p>\n

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