NFL Draft instant grades for every 2026 first-round pick

Fernando Mendoza participates in Indiana University's Pro Day at Mellencamp Pavilion on Wednesday, April 1, 2026. | Rich Janzaruk/Herald-Times / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Enough with mock drafts. It is time for the real thing. The first-round of the 2026 NFL Draft is here, and you can follow every selection with our pick tracker. Refresh this post often for live grades on every pick.

Soon enough, the Las Vegas Raiders will officially be on the clock to begin the 2026 NFL Draft, and minutes later we all expect Fernando Mendoza to be the first player to come off the board. Once the pick start rolling in, we will be grading each selection live.

A quick word on the grading criteria. While our evaluations of each player are a factor, we are also grading the process used to make each pick. Let’s use an example: While Miami slot cornerback Keionte Scott is one of our top-50 players on our big board, if a team moves up to draft him in the first round and gives up significant future draft capital to do, that will factor into our grade.

Conversely, while we might not be high on Keldric Faulk, if a team sees him slide to. them in a good spot, that will also factor into our grade.

Of course, the ultimate grades will come from the players themselves, over the next few years, as they acclimate to life in the NFL. That is when a lot of the grades tonight will be a look into the process, as well as the player.

Now that you know how this will work, let’s start handing out some grades.