With the NFL Conference Championships kicking off to finish up the NFL playoffs, the completed 2026 NFL Draft order is finally starting to take shape as the 2025 season comes to a close.
Here’s a look at the draft order and which teams will be picking No. 1 overall this year.
What Does the 2026 NFL Draft Order Look Like After the AFC Championship?
With the New England Patriots taking down the Denver Broncos in a gritty, defensive, and snowy matchup, they punched a ticket to make their 12th Super Bowl appearance in franchise history and locked themselves into either the 31st or 32nd pick in the 2026 NFL Draft.
With the Seattle Seahawks taking down the Los Angeles Rams in the NFC Championship game, not only is the Super Bowl 60 matchup set, but the 2026 NFL Draft order is also set through pick 30. Here is the current draft order after the conclusion of the AFC Championship game.
- Las Vegas Raiders (3-14)
- New York Jets (3-14)
- Arizona Cardinals (3-14)
- Tennessee Titans (3-14)
- New York Giants (4-13)
- Cleveland Browns (5-12)
- Washington Commanders (5-12)
- New Orleans Saints (6-11)
- Kansas City Chiefs (6-11)
- Cincinnati Bengals (6-11)
- Miami Dolphins (7-10)
- Dallas Cowboys (7-9-1)
- Los Angeles Rams (via Atlanta Falcons)
- Baltimore Ravens (8-9)
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers (8-9)
- New York Jets (via Indianapolis Colts)
- Detroit Lions (9-8)
- Minnesota Vikings (9-8)
- Carolina Panthers (8-9)
- Dallas Cowboys (via Green Bay Packers)
- Pittsburgh Steelers (10-7)
- Los Angeles Chargers (11-6)
- Philadelphia Eagles (11-6)
- Cleveland Browns (via Jacksonville Jaguars)
- Chicago Bears (11-6)
- Buffalo Bills (12-5)
- San Francisco 49ers (12-5)
- Houston Texans (12-5)
- Los Angeles Rams (12-5)
- Denver Broncos (14-3)
- New England Patriots (14-3)
- Seattle Seahawks (14-3)
Top Prospects in the 2026 NFL Draft
Rueben Bain Jr., EDGE, Miami (FL)
Rueben Bain Jr. has been a disruptive defender for as long as he’s been on the college football circuit. After joining the Hurricanes as a four-star recruit, Bain racked up 7.5 sacks, 13 tackles for loss, and three forced fumbles in his true freshman campaign. Bain’s sophomore season was less productive, but he was nursing a calf injury, and he has a chance to bounce back as a junior.
MORE: 2026 7-Round NFL Mock Draft
At 275 pounds, Bain has a rare body type for the position, with elite compact mass and natural leverage, and he’s an easy accelerator with awesome raw hand power. While power is his primary mode, he has a deep pass-rush bag and smooth upper-lower synergy, superb strength, IQ, and pursuit range in run defense, and surprising flexibility as a finisher.
Fernando Mendoza, QB, Indiana
Fernando Mendoza could be a potential first overall pick in waiting, and the leap could be coming at Indiana. At 6’5″, 225 pounds, Mendoza has the ideal prototypical frame, along with quick feet, nimble pocket mobility, and understated creation capacity and off-script feel. He’s a crisp rotational and consistent aerial thrower who flashes high-end situational precision and layering ability.
Arvell Reese, LB, Ohio Stater
Arvell Reese is a first-year starter for the Ohio State Buckeyes, who could be at the start of an early-round ascent in 2025. He was the Buckeyes’ best player in their season-opening win against the top-ranked Texas Longhorns, with nine total tackles and a sack. Along the way, Reese put translatable reps on tape as a pass-rusher, a run defender, and a coverage presence.
At 6’4″, 243 pounds, Reese has a tantalizing blend of explosive athleticism, length, and forklifting strength. He used that strength to stack-and-shed in the run game, plaster solo blockers into the turf as a blitzer, and make solo stops in gap invasion. Meanwhile, his range and fluidity make him dangerous as a rusher, as well as a dropper and matcher in zone coverage. Reese is on the rise; the only question is how high he goes.
Caleb Downs, S, Ohio State
Caleb Downs has received first-round premonitions from the general consensus ever since he set foot on Georgia’s campus as a five-star recruit. An instant producer at the CFB level, Downs was a star for the Bulldogs’ vaunted defense in 2023, and then for Ohio State’s Championship-level unit in 2024. Now Downs is eligible, and he’s already in the conversation as one of the best safety prospects in recent memory.
A fluid, explosive, and energized mover at 6’0″, 205 pounds, Downs is special in the box with his combined mobility, play pace, angle IQ, and physicality on blocks. And on top of his alley-running skills, he’s an instinctive cover man who can manage route relationships, transition, and clamp down on stems from different alignments. In short, he’s a game-changer.
Carnell Tate, WR, Ohio State
Carnell Tate first showed promise with a 52-733-4 receiving line last season, producing in spite of his place as the Buckeyes’ third option alongside Jeremiah Smith and first-round NFL Draft pick Emeka Egbuka. But in 2024, Tate’s technical feel was still underdeveloped. He was primarily a vertical threat for Ohio State, which lacked polish. That hasn’t been the case in 2025.
Tate has reinvented his game and has become a true route-running expert with rare sink, throttle control, and stem IQ for his size. He still has the long-strider range, body control, and catch-point focus that make him so potent in 50-50 situations, but he’s a true multi-level separator who can win 1-on-1, convert on clutch downs, and generate big plays. A complete X or movement-Z, Tate will assuredly keep Ohio State’s first-round streak at WR alive, and he has impact starter ability.
