NFL execs, scouts on 2026 draft’s most polarizing players

This time of yr is among the many most optimistic for entrance places of work across the NFL.

The draft is lower than three weeks away. Teams are out of the free company haze and finalizing their draft boards. The promise of future stars on rookie-scale contracts becoming a member of the roster is inside attain.

Teams’ success or failure within the draft usually hinges on one variable: their threat evaluation when coping with polarizing prospects.

The fact is that many promising players merely will not pan out for a wide range of causes. Even the most savvy entrance places of work are topic to the whims of a projection.

Some of the most proficient prospects include the most questions. The extent to which a staff can handle these questions — and turn into comfy with the solutions — determines the route of their draft.

Whether it is attributable to damage, type of play, private chemistry or organizational match, players all through the draft draw differing opinions all through the league. ESPN requested executives, scouts and coaches in regards to the players who elicited the widest vary of projections. These 11 prospects got here up most usually.

Jump to:
Ty Simpson | Rueben Bain Jr.
Jermod McCoy | Micah Morris
Kadyn Proctor | Makai Lemon
Avieon Terrell | Lee Hunter
Cashius Howell | Drew Allar | Monroe Freeling

Simpson is polarizing attributable to circumstance greater than skill. His draft inventory is everywhere in the map. The participant loosely expects to go anyplace from 10 to 30 within the first spherical, however it’s exhausting to confidently challenge a house for him but. Positional wants might push him above his grade, however sufficient scouts have a second-round grade on him to make early Day 2 a risk.

Simpson’s lack of begins is the first concern. He began one yr in an period when many quarterback prospects have two to 4 years of manufacturing. He performed properly by the primary two months of the 2025 season and struggled late.

“I don’t think anything about him other than him being a one-year player is supremely polarizing,” an AFC government stated. “There’s not a good history of it, but I think you’ve got to take each guy as an individual case.

“I do not suppose anybody expects him to come back in immediately and be nice. If picked within the 20s, he’ll get expertise and reps and get legs underneath him. He’s an excellent child, a coach’s child, had numerous good manufacturing and success. Maybe not on the identical tier as prime guys, however he is nonetheless a participant.”

One veteran NFL scout called Simpson “a mixture between Jared Goff and Mac Jones.” What helps Simpson’s cause is what he was asked to do at Alabama.

“He made numerous NFL throws,” an NFL personnel evaluator said. “Some guys had been operating a glorified highschool offense in faculty, however [Simpson] was throwing deep in-breakers, corners, deep outs, seams, curls.”

Bain would not be on this list if his arms were a few inches longer. He’s powerful, productive and bendy off the edge. He’s an All-American coming off 15.5 tackles for loss last year. By all accounts, he loves the game.

But the 30⅞-inch arm length is still an issue, no matter how much teams wish it weren’t.

“It’s not nothing,” a personnel executive with an NFL team picking in the top 10 said. “It’s in between.

“The kid’s played his entire life that way and been pretty successful. But I think it will pose a challenge. He’s found a way to work around it, leaving blockers, using his squattines to his advantage. But you use your hands and arms on every play, trying to control the blocker who’s trying to control you, reaching and running 60 times a game. It’s an imperfect science, and you can’t say he can’t play football because he can. But he will have some issues.”

Bain additionally didn’t check or run at his professional day, relying on drill work. That’s a difficulty for some scouts as a result of “to completely dismiss it without knowing the physical talent that we measure is probably more of a risk than the actual player,” the exec stated.

Despite all of this, Bain would possibly simply be the draft’s finest edge rusher, an exquisite mix of physicality and savvy. The threat evaluation will likely be an element for groups choosing within the prime 10 to 12.

McCoy is on this record largely as a result of he did not play in 2025 attributable to an ACL tear. But he appeared each bit the a part of a excessive draft decide at Tennessee’s professional day final month, operating a 4.37-second 40-yard sprint and leaping 38 inches. And a number of coaches identified that the 6-foot-1 McCoy seems to be larger in particular person than they thought he would.

“Really fluid, poised and calm in coverage, never see him panicked or out of phase, doesn’t have to strain to make plays,” a veteran NFL defensive coach stated.

Evaluators should be comfy with the 2024 tape to draft him, and one AFC exec calls that tape “good, but I didn’t see a wow player … so if you have any concerns about lower extremity durability, too, then you might have a tough time taking him.”

McCoy has the profile to be picked early. But groups are doing homework on his knee and have to be comfy with it. McCoy is visiting Carolina, which picks No. 19 general, on Friday.

You will not discover Morris very excessive on many mock drafts or positional huge boards floating across the web proper now. That’s not due to skill.

“He’s probably a first-round talent who goes late Day 2 or early Day 3,” a veteran NFL scout stated. “He should be a first-rounder based on the flashes on tape. But he’s not.”

Morris, a multiyear starter at Georgia who weighs 334 kilos, ran a 5.09-second 40-yard sprint and posted a 9-foot-4 broad leap.

Some groups have questions on his work ethic.

“I’ll be curious where he goes because there are not many guards and he’s got a lot of ability,” the scout stated. “But people are afraid of him.”

One NFL staff government was blunt when assessing Proctor. “He should be a top-five pick,” the exec stated. “He can be so good if he wants to be.”

That final line implies Proctor hasn’t met his potential, which is difficult to entertain as a result of he was a three-year starter at Alabama and is a surefire first-rounder. He’s too good to fall far.

But a number of the questions surrounding Proctor should do along with his weight, which scouts say ballooned to round 390 kilos early within the season. He performed his manner into form. He’s round 350 kilos now and looked great at his pro day.

The weight dynamic, nonetheless, fuels issues about why Proctor’s efficiency did not all the time match his immense bodily expertise.

The historical past of Alabama offensive tackles shouldn’t be nice. Evan Neal and Alex Leatherwood didn’t pan out. JC Latham is promising however a piece in progress. It needs to be famous that Neal and Leatherwood performed a number of positions at Alabama, whereas Proctor performed one.

“He’s a clean left tackle with elite size and foot quickness,” an NFL personnel evaluator stated. “That will get him drafted high.”

Scouts say Lemon’s tape is great, however his measurables and predraft course of elevate questions.

“What are you getting?” a personnel government with an NFL staff requested. “I love that dude, watching him last year, but evaluating him through the spring, which version of this player will show up in my building? He didn’t test great, had a couple of rough interviews from what I’ve been told. Seems like something is missing, or maybe I’m missing something.”

Another NFL personnel supply stated Lemon’s recall and element of USC’s offense was not the strongest throughout a staff interview. If groups love his depth and aggressive demeanor, they might overlook that. Lemon’s strengths are route operating, operating after the catch and phone stability. And, to make certain, loads of star NFL players didn’t conduct nice predraft interviews.

Lemon’s 40-yard sprint time ranged from 4.46 to 4.53 seconds at USC’s professional day, in response to experiences. One AFC scout considers him “too small and too slow. Maybe he can overcome that, but it’s an issue.”

That scout stated his best-case situation is Amon-Ra St. Brown, who at 6-foot and 202 kilos has an analogous construct to Lemon (5-11, 192 kilos) and can be a former USC star.

Ohio State’s Carnell Tate is taken into account by some scouts because the most secure receiver prospect.

This one’s fairly easy. Becoming a productive nook within the NFL usually requires velocity, and Terrell’s 40-yard sprint time calls that into query.

Terrell is a fluid mover with good nook expertise, however the 4.64-second 40 he ran at his professional day is the very first thing scouts deliver up when discussing him. Terrell didn’t run on the scouting mix. Also problematic are Terrell’s arms, which measured out at 8⅝ inches.

“It’s hard to ask him to cover one-on-one on the outside with that time,” an AFC scout stated. “It’s an issue. I wish it wasn’t but it is. I think some teams will consider him more inside as a result.”

The context behind the professional day: Terrell aggravated his hamstring on his first run. A separate NFL personnel evaluator stated that Terrell is ‘quick sufficient’ on the sphere, significantly out and in of his breaks.

Last yr, cornerback Will Johnson additionally confronted questions on his velocity. He didn’t run the 40 predraft and was not thought-about a blazer. He additionally had knee points, falling to the second spherical. But the tape was first-round worthy and he confirmed that Year 1 in Arizona.

Terrell additionally has good qualities on tape, and his brother, A.J. Terrell Jr., has been the Atlanta Falcons‘ prime nook for six seasons.

Hunter had a banner season for Tech, serving to information the Red Raiders to a Big 12 championship on his approach to All-America honors at nostril sort out, full with 10.5 tackles for loss. But what some scouts noticed within the preseason nonetheless sticks with them a bit.

“He was around 346 pounds and wasn’t doing much,” an AFC scout stated. “If you evaluated him in person in November, you probably loved him. If you scouted him early and then turned in your eval, probably not as much.”

Hunter is listed at 330 kilos, so if he stays nearer to that weight on the NFL degree, he ought to stay nimble.

Evaluators see a disruptive nostril sort out who could make splash performs within the backfield however typically depends on that skill too usually as an alternative of staying strong and occupying blockers. He did not check very properly at his professional day, with a vertical leap of 21.5 inches.

Howell’s arm size is even shorter than Bain’s, at 30¼ inches. He’s extremely productive, profitable SEC defensive participant of the yr after recording 11.5 sacks in 2025. He’s solely 22 regardless of 5 collegiate seasons. And his 4.59-second 40-yard sprint is spectacular for his dimension (6-2½, 253 kilos).

“Bain can overcome his short arms with raw power. Howell doesn’t have that,” an AFC scout stated. “What he does have is an incredible motor. He goes hard all the time.”

NFL groups see a starting-caliber participant or, at worst, a subpackage rusher who should discover inventive methods to win on the surface attributable to his arms.

Howell ranks because the No. 4 exterior linebacker in Mel Kiper Jr.’s positional huge board, behind Ohio State’s Arvell Reese, Texas Tech’s David Bailey and Oklahoma’s R Mason Thomas.

This draft doesn’t function a star-studded quarterback class just like the one we noticed in 2024, when six passers went within the prime 12. Indiana’s Fernando Mendoza is on the prime, after which groups will decide their taste.

Where Allar sits in that equation is hard to challenge attributable to a tricky 2025. Allar struggled with accuracy and performed solely six video games due to a fractured left ankle.

But some NFL evaluators nonetheless see main upside in Allar, who as soon as garnered first-round buzz because of his 6-5 body and massive arm.

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Drew Allar throws 42-yard landing move vs. Florida International

Drew Allar airs it out for 42-yard landing move

“He’s my favorite quarterback in the draft outside of Mendoza,” an NFL coordinator stated. “In the right system, he can be great. He’s got everything as far as tools. His footwork is an absolute mess. But improve his footwork and he can take off. He deserved better than what he got at Penn State.”

The coordinator pressured that Allar must be in a Kubiak-style system — which basically half the NFL makes use of proper now — to study correct footwork.

Monroe Freeling, OT, Georgia

Freeling is a part of a bunch of 4 offensive tackles who may very well be drafted early, together with Proctor, Francis Mauigoa and Spencer Fano.

Evaluators are preaching persistence with Freeling, hoping the upside pays off in Year 2 and past.

“Super talented but play doesn’t match it,” an AFC government stated. “Six-foot-7, fast, long, but first year could be rough. If you stick with it and let him play through the growing pains, he can be really good. His film isn’t as good as some of the other guys right now.”

One comparability for Freeling: Colts left sort out Bernhard Raimann, who began slowly however finally performed his manner right into a four-year, $100-million extension with Indianapolis.

Others in consideration: Miami edge rusher Akheem Mesidor, Ohio State security Caleb Downs, Auburn edge rusher Keldric Faulk, Arkansas operating again Mike Washington Jr.