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

clskinsfan said:
I put as much stock in BR as PFF. Which is very little. But I do agree with their grading of Bailey. He is too small to be an every down edge. And he lacks the bone structure to get bigger. I want to see what he weighs at the combine. IMO there is no way he is carrying 250 pounds. Chop Robinson is a really good comp from them imo.


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Oregon State v Texas Tech

John E. Moore III/Getty Images
- Slightly undersized to be a full-time edge defender in the NFL, Stanford had Bailey listed at 238 pounds in 2024 and Texas Tech's listing at 250 looks generous.
- Lacks the strength to be an effective run defender; he struggles to get extension on blocks and has skinny legs, which makes setting the edge against offensive linemen difficult.
- Not very physical at the point of attack.
- Has a habit of working around blocks, even against tight ends, often vacating his gap.
- Doesn't have the mass and strength to effectively turn speed to power against good competition.
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All your trashing of David Bailey is going to speak it into existence. Trust me I can think of three examples of me going to war with a player in three different drafts and that's who they ended up taking. :p It's good on my end. But lol, on your end you might be jinxing yourself.


Payne. It's not that I disliked him. But I didn't feel like he was going to be a great player albiet he had some rabid fans on the ES draft thread. To me he screamed a good player and nothing more. Wanted Vea, Fitzpatrick, Derwin James big time. Didn't happen for me.

Forbes. All the rumors closer to the draft they were looking at him in the first. Hated it, said he was a 2nd rounder. When they took him some on ES, mocked me as to whether I'll be OK after them taking him.

Haskins (RIP). I wrote tomes about why I thought he would be a bust.
 
skinsinparadise said:
All your trashing of David Bailey is going to speak it into existenc
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I really wouldnt hate it if Faulk and Bain are both gone somehow. Bailey is a disrupter in passing situations. No doubting that. My issue is using a top ten pick on someone who isnt an every down player. I would much rather draft one of the WR's or Love than Bailey. Just my opinion but they will impact the game far more than Bailey. Simply off of the number of plays they will be on the field. Maybe Quinn finds a way to hide Bailey in early downs. Maybe rushing him from the middle or dropping him into short zone. But again in my opinion Bailey is a major liability in the run game. So much so that I wouldnt count on him to secure an edge at all.
 
Manning has been absolutely incredible in this game. I get why people are excited about him. He has had A LOT of plays called back by penalties. And dropped passes. But the guy is far more athletic than people think. And he is FAST as a runner. Has an arm very similar to Peyton. Not elite. But very good. Goes through progressions on time and correctly. Has the size and body makeup you want from a a franchise QB. If he declares next year he is going to be a top 3 pick. And I dont see any reason he wont declare.
 
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clskinsfan said:
I really wouldnt hate it if Faulk and Bain are both gone somehow. Bailey is a disrupter in passing situations. No doubting that. My issue is using a top ten pick on someone who isnt an every down player. I would much rather draft one of the WR's or Love than Bailey. Just my opinion but they will impact the game far more than Bailey. Simply off of the number of plays they will be on the field. Maybe Quinn finds a way to hide Bailey in early downs. Maybe rushing him from the middle or dropping him into short zone. But again in my opinion Bailey is a major liability in the run game. So much so that I wouldnt count on him to secure an edge at all.
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The irony is the thing that bothers you about Bailey is you see him as a wildcard because of his weight -- even though there are a number of good pass rushers at that weight in the NFL.

But bottom line is your macro point seems to be Bailey is too much of a wildcard for you. The irony from my perspective is I see him as the safest by a mile of those three prospects

Bain -- he would be a unicorn to be a great pass rusher with 30 inch arms

Faulk -- you are betting on traits not production -- he's also raw as to pass rushing moves. Doesn't have much bend. You are hoping it comes together for him even though it hasn't happened yet.

To me Bain and Faulk are flier types in the late first, they don't feel to me top 10 prospects. I can be talked into Bain though easier than Fauk. I noticed Faulk is dropping in multiple mocks but boy does he have a friend in Dane Brugler.
 
skinsinparadise said:
Faulk -- you are betting on traits not production
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Very true. But a far better piece of clay to work with as a pass rusher who can already absolutely dominate an edge. The guy is an anchor on the edge. An unstoppable wall. I guess my design of defense is different. I want DE's that can secure the edge while athletic LB's make tackles. The ability to collapse the edge on passing downs is a bonus. Which Faulk also does well. He just needs to be coached up on pass rushing moves. His DC is DJ Durkin. He loves the 3-3-5. So Faulk has not really been asked to be a true DE in that system. Of course drafting is all about projection. I would much prefer to pick a player with elite NFL size and strength over a smaller tweener. Although Quinn seems to love tweeners himself.
 
There are other pass rushers other than Bain with shorter arms. R Mason Thomas is 31.75 inches and Romelo Height is 32.25 inches. The difference is they have speed rush ability to get the edge where arm length is fairly meaningless. Micah Parsons is arguably the second best pass rusher in the NFL with 31.5 arms, but his threat to the edge is primary move without a bunch of counters if the OT oversets outside.

I do think Bain's arm length limits his upside as a pass rusher. Of the four ways to win, arm length matters in my opinion

Bull Rush: Extremely important
Outside shoulder/speed to power: Medium important
Inside/Counters: Depends, if you are setting up counters to a Tackle that oversets like a spin move, its not important, if the counters are more set up by speed to power rushing, its medium important
Speed/Capturing the Edge: Not Important

Bain was a really good college player using speed to power and inside counters. He lacks the speed and flexibility to capture the edge and even at the college level bullrushing really wasn't on the table with 30.75 inch arms. He'll still be effective in the NFL with speed to power and inside counters, but I think he'll be more of a Montez Sweat caliber player.

David Bailey is my top edge. Depending on what scheme we end up running, he could be anywhere from a home run where he is an every down player to maybe more of a double in a system where he is off the field for run downs. Scheme fits matter. Good players will be good no matter what, but a player can be good in one scheme and great in another.
 
Holy shit what a throw from Manning!

Just ripped off a 60 yard rushing TD. Manning is going into next year as the clear #1 pick imo.
 
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clskinsfan said:
Very true. But a far better piece of clay to work with as a pass rusher who can already absolutely dominate an edge. The guy is an anchor on the edge. An unstoppable wall. I guess my design of defense is different. I want DE's that can secure the edge while athletic LB's make tackles. The ability to collapse the edge on passing downs is a bonus. Which Faulk also does well. He just needs to be coached up on pass rushing moves. His DC is DJ Durkin. He loves the 3-3-5. So Faulk has not really been asked to be a true DE in that system. Of course drafting is all about projection. I would much prefer to pick a player with elite NFL size and strength over a smaller tweener. Although Quinn seems to love tweeners himself.
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How often does the “raw ball of clay” become a plus pass rusher? It is rare. He fits to a tee the archetype of edge rushers who end up busting.

I like Bailey very early in this process and it is for the same reason as SIP. I view him as the safest edge rusher in this class. We obviously wouldn’t want him to be Will McDonald level bad as a run defender but I am totally fine if they can get him to average or slightly below average
 
method man said:
How often does the “raw ball of clay” become a plus pass rusher?
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James harrison, Charles Haley, Chris Doleman, Brian Cox come to mind. Playing right now would be Nik Bonito, Danielle Hunter,

Gonna edit this and add Dexter Manley to that list.
 
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Faulk reminds me of Mykel Williams from last year's draft who ended up going number 11 to the 49'ers. A solid run defenderr day 1, but a limited pass rusher who you are hoping can develop into something more. If Faulk disappoints for reasons other than injury I think he still ends up a guy who plays 9 or 10 years in the league and is an solid run defender, but never becomes a dynamic pass rusher. Maybe like a Deatrich Wise (this was his 9th year, but as a 4th rounder that is impressive). If Bailey disappoints for reasons other than injuries I think he ends up like a Donte Fowler or Yannick Ngakoue. A guy who was a solid pass rusher (but not more) who is not an every down player in an ideal situation. I definitely like Bailey more than Faulk, though scheme fit will matter.
 
www.wideleft.football

Keldric Faulk Scouting Report: Does Auburn Edge live up to Top-15 Hype?

Keldric Faulk declared for the 2026 NFL Draft this week. James Foster breaks down his game in-depth.
www.wideleft.football www.wideleft.football

Faulk played multiple positions on Auburn’s defensive front, lining up at 2-4 Tech on 30.3% of snaps this year. This hybrid deployment was not conducive to pass-rushing success and is important context when comparing Faulk statistically to other edge prospects.

It’s so much easier to win off the edge than from the interior, so it would be unfair to hold Faulk to the same standard as someone like Rueben Bain Jr., who played 95.2% of his snaps at 5-9 Tech.

Last year, Faulk’s pass-rushing efficiency was directly related to his alignment width. His pressure rate was just 2.6% from the interior and 4.1% when aligned over the tackle (4-Tech). But on 179 pass rush snaps from outside the tackle, he had a 15.1% pressure rate, which ranked in the 73rd percentile for qualifying edge rushers.

Faulk has ranked near the top of the league in most run defense metrics since becoming a starter. During the last three years, he has led FBS edge defenders with 62 run stops.
 
should we open up the chat for this game? I know many are partying right now. But I am dealing with the flu and watching football. Will stay up to ring in the New Year though. By the way. Avoid this fucking flu this year. It is horrific. I am day 5 and still feel like ass.
 
clskinsfan said:
www.wideleft.football

Keldric Faulk Scouting Report: Does Auburn Edge live up to Top-15 Hype?

Keldric Faulk declared for the 2026 NFL Draft this week. James Foster breaks down his game in-depth.
www.wideleft.football www.wideleft.football

Faulk played multiple positions on Auburn’s defensive front, lining up at 2-4 Tech on 30.3% of snaps this year. This hybrid deployment was not conducive to pass-rushing success and is important context when comparing Faulk statistically to other edge prospects.

It’s so much easier to win off the edge than from the interior, so it would be unfair to hold Faulk to the same standard as someone like Rueben Bain Jr., who played 95.2% of his snaps at 5-9 Tech.

Last year, Faulk’s pass-rushing efficiency was directly related to his alignment width. His pressure rate was just 2.6% from the interior and 4.1% when aligned over the tackle (4-Tech). But on 179 pass rush snaps from outside the tackle, he had a 15.1% pressure rate, which ranked in the 73rd percentile for qualifying edge rushers.

Faulk has ranked near the top of the league in most run defense metrics since becoming a starter. During the last three years, he has led FBS edge defenders with 62 run stops.
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That article is from James Foster who is one of the two co-hosts of the Daft on Draft podcast (which is a really good draft podcast--better in my opinion than the NFL stock exchange) and from listening to the podcast I can tell you he likes Faulk a lot as a run defender, but he does not see him as a dynamic pass rusher...hence this quote... "Faulk has an effective long-arm, which could improve from good to great with more consistent pad level. While his power profile gives him a solid floor as a pocket-pusher, I’m much more skeptical of his ability to win the outside track in the NFL. With a mediocre first step and below-average bend and arc speed, he lacks the juice to threaten the corner vs. more athletic tackles. He showed encouraging technical development from 2024 to 2025, but must continue to improve his hand-fighting skills."
 
philibusters said:
That article is from James Foster who is one of the two co-hosts of the Daft on Draft podcast (which is a really good draft podcast--better in my opinion than the NFL stock exchange) and from listening to the podcast I can tell you he likes Faulk a lot as a run defender, but he does not see him as a dynamic pass rusher...hence this quote... "Faulk has an effective long-arm, which could improve from good to great with more consistent pad level. While his power profile gives him a solid floor as a pocket-pusher, I’m much more skeptical of his ability to win the outside track in the NFL. With a mediocre first step and below-average bend and arc speed, he lacks the juice to threaten the corner vs. more athletic tackles. He showed encouraging technical development from 2024 to 2025, but must continue to improve his hand-fighting skills."
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That is a fair assessment. And I agree with him a lot. My issue with Bailey is that IF HE is not an elite pass rusher at the NFL level he is a complete bust. He cannot set and edge at all. At least Faulk is going to give you high end running game defense. He will secure the edge. I think Faulk can be coached up to be a better pass rusher. Elite? I dont know. But I would rather take the guy that has the NFL body and work with that. It is the one thing I absolutely hate about this draft. The prospects are not special. Literally not one of them makes me say we have to draft that guy. The two I think are elite (Tyson and McCoy have serious health issues) Next year though????
 
Bain and Mesidor looking like first rounders so far. Bain a top 10 guy.
 
Styles and Reese looking overpowered by that Miami OL. Alex Mirabel is the most important coach on that staff and it’s not close. The guy develops NFL linemen.

Bain and Mesidor looking great.

Fletcher has pro potential.

Downs is unreal. He’s the only one really sticking out on that Ohio State D so far. But it’s early. They have to wake up and likely will.
 
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