The 2026 Draft Thread - 1st Round - 7th overall

[BayouBrave86]

The only offensive player worth drafting at 7 is Love. There is no WR worth that 7th pick imo. Going to be such a swing and a miss if they draft WR there. The more things change, the more they stay the same…

But not going to let myself get riled up about it haha, convinced they go defense at 7 for Daronte. A welcome present if you will.

 

[Conn]

 

[KDawg]

The only offensive player worth drafting at 7 is Love. There is no WR worth that 7th pick imo. Going to be such a swing and a miss if they draft WR there. The more things change, the more they stay the same…

But not going to let myself get riled up about it haha, convinced they go defense at 7 for Daronte. A welcome present if you will.

I agree.

The receivers are all solid but I don't think anyone changes a game offensively like Love.

 

[philibusters]

I just started watching Avieon Terrell so I searched this thread for any talk on him and found your post referencing that video...how are they so high on him, how is he mocked now as a consensus 1st rounder. The tape is not good. Only watched parts of 2 games, but consistently late reacting to WR moves. I question his play strength against bigger WR's. I would not say he's tough against the run, more so average CB. The guy who questioned his Zone IQ is right, he doesn't have a feel for what's happening around him and just guesses. He gives up a lot of completions, sometimes touchdowns, to do...I don't know what he's doing. He's off guarding the flat, when nobody is there and the closest WR who just caught it is 10 yards behind him. It's like he didn't realize the WR went there and he should have dropped back a little more. He appears to gamble on his responsibilities, leaving guys uncovered.

I haven't actually dove into his tape myself. Since we aren't likely to be in the market for him, I haven't prioritized a deep dive, so I can't give a definitive personal take on the DaftonDraft analysis.

Here are some guesses on what you described, but they are just guesses based off your description.
When you see two cornerbacks both jumping a quick out while a receiver catches a pass right behind them, it’s usually one of two things in a typical Clemson-style zone:

• If they are in a Cover 2 or "Cloud" look, the corner is supposed to stay in the flat. However, if the offense runs a "High-Low" concept (one guy short, one guy deep), and the corner doesn't get enough depth or "sink" to help the safety, he leaves a massive window. If two guys jumped the short route, someone definitely blew their assignment or panicked.
• Modern defenses often use "match" rules where they play zone until a route crosses a certain threshold, then it turns into man. If Terrell is "late reacting," he might be caught in that mental transition—trying to figure out if he should stay in his area or "lock on" to the receiver entering it.

 

[DWinzit]

The only offensive player worth drafting at 7 is Love. There is no WR worth that 7th pick imo. Going to be such a swing and a miss if they draft WR there. The more things change, the more they stay the same…

But not going to let myself get riled up about it haha, convinced they go defense at 7 for Daronte. A welcome present if you will.

I am hoping that some OL or WR starved teams will disagree

 

[Always Commander Never Captain]

I haven't actually dove into his full tape myself. Since we aren't likely to be in the market for him, I haven't prioritized a deep dive, so I can't give a definitive personal take on the DaftonDraft analysis.

Here are some guesses on what you described, but they are just guesses based off your description.
When you see two cornerbacks both jumping a quick out while a receiver catches a pass right behind them, it’s usually one of two things in a typical Clemson-style zone:

• If they are in a Cover 2 or "Cloud" look, the corner is supposed to stay in the flat. However, if the offense runs a "High-Low" concept (one guy short, one guy deep), and the corner doesn't get enough depth or "sink" to help the safety, he leaves a massive window. If two guys jumped the short route, someone definitely blew their assignment or panicked.
• Modern defenses often use "match" rules where they play zone until a route crosses a certain threshold, then it turns into man. If Terrell is "late reacting," he might be caught in that mental transition—trying to figure out if he should stay in his area or "lock on" to the receiver entering it.

It just happened often enough I was wondering if it was on purpose. That and the pick play issues just point to this corner often being part of miscommunication problems. We've had so much of that over the years that I'd rather not go there.

Doesn't matter for us unless we trade back, but I do like scouting corners.

 

[skinsinparadise]

 

[philibusters]

Jalen Farmer vs Florida – Thoughts
(Kentucky Guard)

Pass Blocking: I watched the full Florida game and came away thinking Farmer is a sturdy, dependable pass protector with some clear athletic limitations. The biggest concern is that he has heavy feet. He does not have the foot speed to consistently mirror an explosive interior rusher in space. If a twitchy defensive tackle gets room to work laterally, Farmer can get stressed. That said, he is not out of control. There were no true full-redirect reps in this game where he had to completely change direction after committing his weight, but on partial redirects (against stunts) he stayed balanced and under control. His balance helps compensate for the lack of elite foot speed.

Where he really shines is anchor. He does play a bit upright at times, but he has a massive lower half and a ton of natural core strength. Even when his pads are a little high, his center of gravity stays naturally low because of his build. It is hard to beat him through the chest. He absorbs power well and does not give up much ground. His hand placement is solid and his grip strength stands out. There was a run rep where a defender tried to long-arm him, but Farmer’s grip on the jersey was so strong that the defender could not get extension. That grip strength and hand control show up consistently. He never got beat on stunts, maintained good spacing, and did a good job finding work when uncovered.

Run Blocking: In the run game, he was pretty good overall, though lateral quickness is the main limitation. There were two, maybe three, snaps where a defender crossed his face. That raises some questions about how cleanly he fits in a heavy outside zone system. To be fair, there were also reps where he successfully prevented the cross-face, but it is not effortless for him. He does have an explosive first step when firing forward, though he sometimes dips his head on that initial step, which can affect his balance.

Farmer has real pop when he connects squarely. His hand placement and grip strength allow him to control defenders and prevent them from gaining leverage. He uses his outside hand well, particularly with lower placement to elevate the defender’s pads and raise their center of gravity. He shows good pacing in the run game, hits his landmark, and does not get over-eager. He had about six pulls in this game. The first one did not go well, as the defender slipped underneath him, but after that he connected on essentially all of them. Once he settled in, he looked comfortable moving in space.

Overall Thoughts: Farmer looks like a strong, technically sound guard with a dependable anchor, good awareness, and real functional strength. The athletic ceiling may not be elite because of the heavy feet and average lateral quickness, but he feels like a player who can start and be steady. His game reminds me a bit of Chris Paul in terms of strengths and weaknesses, though Farmer may have slightly better raw tools. I see him as a third- or fourth-round type. He would be good value in the fifth, but I think he probably goes in the third. If you took him at 71, you would be getting a solid player, just not necessarily great value relative to the board.

This is the first third of the video I watched:

 

[philibusters]

I would rather than go WR, Corner, or O-Line, just cause we are unlikely to take a guy there. I was kind of hoping that if we got a DE in free agency we could trade down with the Bengals (10) or Dolphins at (11) and still land a player like Caleb Downs or Jeremiah Love and pick up a third rounder (for example the Dolphins have three 3rd rounders I think have 3--75, 87, and 90)

 

[HTTR]

🤬🤬🤬 If they take Downs I’ll be joining you at the next Giants Haters Anonymous meeting.

 

[BayouBrave86]

Bring Haulcy to Washington, Jake!

 

[skinsinparadise]

 

[skinsinparadise]

Also maybe?

 

[BayouBrave86]

Easily the two best players on our defense last season. Well them and Whit Weeks. Would rather Bain/Haulcy but Mansoor and Amos would give us a filthy duo at CB.

 

[Always Commander Never Captain]

Well in that at least I'm in agreement with Harbaugh. Need is wonderful when it matches up with BPA. But a high pick, you have to go for Blue Chip (or HoF as he says) potential.

I wish our board shook out where Position Premium meets Need meets BPA. But we need someone transcendent.

Super dark horse Blue Chip is McCoy (if his knee comes back clean), and our fan base would riot. It would be so unpopular, but at least he'd be a Blue Chip for a premium position.

 

[KDawg]

I think I’ve refined my list of guys I want at seven by tier:

I’d be excited:

Bain
Love
Styles
Delane
Downs

I’d think we added high end talent:

Reese
Tate

Excited for their ceiling, but extremely nervous about floor:

Bailey
Tyson
Lemon

 

[skinsinparadise]

Free agency I think will dictate the draft more than usual IMO

A. Must win season for job suvivorship
B. Jayden's rookie contract window narrowing
C. The draft arguably in the top 10 is fairly tight as to who they can pick, you got arguably some better players over others but the premium spots aspect of that brings the prospects closer together.
D. With Jayden's contract looming closer -- paying premium spots will become a bigger factor soon

So FA can change from now and the start of it. But right now it looks strong at LB, RB. Decent at CB and edge. If Pierce gets resigned as many expect by the Colts -- WR looking pretty crappy if the idea is to sign a good #2. Doubs or bust? Maybe Jennings but he's pushing 30 and has had injuries.

WR was beyond bad last year. Terry will be 31 and is basically on a one year contract unless they want to grossly overpay him at 32. And as bad as WR was last year, imagine the same thing but without Deebo. Might be the worst WR situation in the league. The Giants for example talking about getting a #2 Wr is code red for them. Yet they have a true young #1 in Nabers, granted off injury. And if Wandale is back. And they got Slayton. They are in a better situation than Washington. So how is it code red for them but not Washington. I read about much NY wants to maximize Dart and give him weapons. This team seems to be the only one bent on proving that their young QB is so good he can make lemonade out of lemons and they are bent on proving it. I am hoping that this stops now.

That's why as we get closer to the draft, I am back thinking WR could be in play. I love J. Love. I was one of the first plugging him here. But I'd much rate have lets say Tate and Etienne or Hall then Love and lets say Wandale Robinson.

I've said probably too many times what Peters has done to help Jayden is borderline pathetic. Can you imagine the Bears who want to give Caleb so many toys they'd fill up Toys R Us and then some passing on a top 10 WR when they have Noah Brown as their Z? The Bears go top 10 for a WR in Caleb's first year. Then go borderline top 10 TE the next year with Loveland. then early 2nd they go WR again with Burden. When they already had Moore and Kmet. That's a team that wants to see their star young QB kill it. And no its not because their defense is already loaded so they have that luxury. It isn't. But making Caleb shine and develop is their #1 priority. It hasn't been for Jayden.

Then you pile on a new offensive coordinator to that mix. Jayden absolutely needs a better defense and running game but you can fix that in FA at least in theory. I don't think it will be easy to fix WR in FA. Also if you do lets say overpay for Jennings or someone like that in FA where they get 20 plus million and you don't draft a WR -- that dude is likely going to have to be your #1 in 2027 because no way you can overpay two wide receivers at that point.

That's my long winded way of saying if you think about the math and Jayden -- WR at #7 at a minimum should be heavy in consideration. And I do think there is a drop off after those top 3. Do I think Tate at 7 is a reach, not even a little, its the right area IMO for him. IMO, he's in that Drake London, Olave range. And coming from a dude who liked both London and Olave. If you forced me to take one of those three judging by their college tape, I'd go Tate but its close.

I can be talked into Tyson. There is something about him that makes me pause and I can't quite put my finger on it but it wouldn't surprise me at all if he's a good pro. M. Lemon I like a lot. But tougher for me to take a slot WR in the top 10 but I wouldn't hate it -- to me he has a high floor.

I am not saying take a WR. But in Peters' shoes it would be heavy in my consideration in the mix considering its a premium spot, what this roster lacks, what's in FA -- and can think team continue to be the joke of the 2024 QB class as to doing less for their young QB?

 

[skinsinparadise]

I think I’ve refined my list of guys I want at seven by tier:

I’d be excited:

Bain
Love
Styles
Delane
Downs

I’d think we added high end talent:

Reese
Tate

Excited for their ceiling, but extremely nervous about floor:

Bailey
Tyson
Lemon

I love these type of conversations good stuff. For me. Combine might shift it for me

I'd be excited

Bailey -- I've been sold on the Bonitto types in recent years, speedy dudes with get off, the forced fumbles, sacks, game wrecker
Love -- homerun hitter, great hands, J. Gibbs part 2. And I wanted Gibbs and I know you did, too
Delane -- I love his profile, want to see how he runs. But heck a low penalty shut down corner is rare in college considering so many of them mug the WRs at that level and can get away with it but can't in the pros
Downs -- best anticipation -- read and react of any safety I've watched doing this.
Tate -- to me he can easily be a Devonte Smith and maybe better in the league, and this coming from a dude who worshipped D. Smith in college

I think we added high end talent

Reese (I see the raw ability and the ceiling but I am not as blown away as the draft media about him)
Styles (I love the Indiana tape, he was everywhere, but he doesn't hit me the way Downs does as to going nonpremium spot where he's that level special and I like the depth at LB in this draft and Fa is stacked at LB
Lemon (I think he actually does have a high floor, and I'd bet on him becoming a very good slot WR, but do I want a slot WR top 10? I am unsure. But maybe.

Excited for their ceiling but very nervous about their floor

Bain (first short arm stud pass rusher, let alone power pass rusher, maybe, but I got no idea)
Tyson (I can see it when some compare him to Diggs, but something off to me about his personality and if you major in 1st level-2nd level catches, I want YAC and that's not his thing). But I am intrigued.

 

[philibusters]

Oscar Delp – Two Game Evaluation (Texas & Ole Miss)

Pass Game: I watched Delp against Texas and Ole Miss and came away thinking he fits into that large Day 3 tight end tier. That said, he’s one of the guys in that range I would prioritize because of his versatility. He is a good enough route runner to line up in the slot, but also a good enough blocker to function inline. A lot of the Day 3 tight ends might be slightly better pure receivers, but they don’t give you real Y flexibility. Delp does.

The production wasn’t eye-popping, but the film was better than the box score. The speed and athleticism looked solid — somewhere in the 4.65 to 4.70 range, similar to what Ben Sinnott ran coming out. He’s a fluid athlete. There’s not much hip stiffness, and he transitions upfield quickly after the catch. He doesn’t show a ton of elusiveness or broken tackles on tape, but he does a good job of turning and accelerating north-south. He can change direction and turn tight corners in space.

As a route runner, he’s relatively nuanced. He sells routes with his eyes and head fakes, uses rocker steps, and sinks his hips well on in- and out-breakers. It all looks smooth and controlled. Across the two games I watched, he had seven catches and no drops. There weren’t contested catch opportunities in those games, but on the season he was 2 for 11 in contested situations, which could be a concern. PFF charted most of his misses as missed contested catches rather than outright drops (only one credited drop this year). At 6'4 3/8” and 250 pounds, you’d expect a bigger catch radius, but his 31.5-inch arms limit that somewhat. There were two seam opportunities against Ole Miss — one blown coverage the quarterback didn’t see, and another where he was open for about 20 yards but the ball was thrown high. With longer arms, maybe that’s a catch. Maybe not. But the radius isn’t elite.

Run Blocking / Inline Work: As a blocker, he’s good enough to play inline. He will mix it up with defensive ends and doesn’t look out of place doing it. When pulling or working split zone, he’s a bit inconsistent initiating contact — sometimes he arrives square and under control, sometimes he’s late or a little off-balance. Across the two games, there were probably three or four snaps where he got stacked by defensive ends, but also three or four legitimate one-on-one reps (both run and pass) where he held up well and showed true Y ability. He didn’t have a ton of double-team reps in these games, but at least two stood out where he showed good pacing on the combo and climbed to the linebacker at the right time. That speaks to feel and timing more than raw power.

Overall Thoughts: Delp feels like solid early Day 3 value. His lack of proven production probably takes him off the board for me at 71, but at pick 145 he would make a lot of sense. The Y/F versatility is what pushes him up within that Day 3 cluster. If I’m choosing between tight ends in that range, I’d lean toward the one who can credibly align both inline and in the slot. Getting him in the early fifth would be good value. If he somehow lasted into the 180s, that would be excellent value. I like the player.

Here is the first third or so of the video I watched:

 

[0rder 0f 0ut]

If we can't address WR in FA then its 100% in play at #7. Jayden is the center of our solar system.

That's why I like the Aiyuk gambit. I like Tate if we do go WR.