Hello friends, it's your buddy Lou Pickney with you here with the DKDB update.
March 15th, 2026 The calm before the storm.
Free agency is underway in the NFL.
A lot of players have changed teams over the past several days.
I anticipate that on Monday on the 16th of March, we're going to have a lot of new mock drafts that will come out.
I posted my latest on Saturday.
I'm going to go through that here in just a moment.
The DKDB is my personally curated, expert curated, 2026 NFL mock draft database.
I put the best of the best in the DKDB.
Urged to go through and read these various mock drafts.
The people with proven track records who are connected with publications, broadcasting outlets, independents.
Let's go through my latest.
Now, this is a older look right here.
So, this don't don't watch this for the beauty of the way the mock draft looks here on screen.
It just It was not cooperating with me on mobile.
And I tried that redesign, so went back to the old form because at least I know that's going to show up properly on mobile.
Kind of important.
People can't read your mock draft, there's not much value.
So, this is my latest.
Posted this on Saturday.
At one, Fernando Mendoza, quarterback, Indiana to the Raiders.
That is all but a lock at this point.
It would be a colossal shock if anything else but that happened at one.
But, by rule, the team with the number one pick is not allowed to say who they're going to draft until they do it.
So, we'll have to wait until draft night to hear it officially, but it's all but a lock the Raiders will get Mendoza at one.
At two, I've got Arvelle Reese, linebacker/edge from Ohio State.
Tremendous athlete, very versatile, a linebacker that can play edge rusher effectively.
Make a big difference coming off the edge.
The Jets didn't have a single interception the entire season last year as a team in 17 games, which has never happened before in the NFL.
So, there have been wholesale changes with the Jets on defense.
This is the first of two first-round picks they have in this draft.
And remember, the Jets have three first-round picks in next year's draft.
I think they're going to wait until next year to take a quarterback.
We'll see.
But here they go with Reese, linebacker, Ohio State.
At three, Arizona Cardinals, Francis Mauigoa, offensive tackle, Miami.
This is a possible trade-back spot.
I think if a team out there wants Jeremiah Love, this might be the last chance.
The Cardinals have variety of needs, but they've got a particular one at right offensive tackle.
Plenty of talk that the Cards like Mauigoa.
And even if they stick here at three, that could be the move here.
Arizona with Francis Mauigoa from Miami.
Four, Tennessee Titans.
My hometown Titans get Jeremiah Love, running back, Notre Dame.
What you have to remember with Jeremiah Love is that he is very talented as a receiver out of the backfield.
Of course, he's a great running back.
You can look at his production at Notre Dame as evidence, consistent, strong player.
Some evaluators think he's the top prospect in the draft.
At least have him top three.
So for the Titans who have been some spenders in free agency, running back might not seem like an immediate major need, but Love is not just any running back, and he would give the Titans tremendous versatility.
I think any running back any running back that's going to go in the top five of the NFL draft is going to have to be a great receiver the way the game is today.
Love fits the bill for that in here.
The Titans go with Jeremiah Love, running back Notre Dame.
At five, Sunny Styles, linebacker Ohio State.
Safety-linebacker hybrid.
And a tremendous showing at the NFL Combine.
He's been slowly but surely rising during this whole pre-draft process.
And going back to last season.
So here Sunny Styles goes to the Giants at number five.
At six, the Cleveland Browns, Monroe Freeling, offensive tackle, Georgia.
There are several key indicators that changed practically all at the same time connecting Freeling to the Browns and not down at number 24.
Now it'd be nice for the Browns if they could get him there, but Freeling had a tremendous showing at the NFL Combine.
And if you're looking for that traditional blind side offensive tackle, with that left side, Freeling is it.
So the Browns who had a couple of big moves in free agency trying to stem the tide losing several free agents from their O-line all at the same time.
A Freeling would make a lot of sense here to the Browns at six.
It's my latest mock draft on mockdraftnfl.com.
If you can go to the DKDB, you should have bookmarked this page.
I update it daily basis.
The best of the best in there.
With my latest mock draft here at seven, Washington Commanders, Caleb Downs, safety from Ohio State.
The Commanders have spent considerable amount of money in free agency targeting edge rushers.
And that does not preclude them taking one here at seven, but certain indicators have suggested that the Commanders might go with Downs or Sonny Styles maybe if he's there.
Or maybe Jeremiah Love, who knows?
There's always those surprises during the draft, the X-factors.
But Downs would be the This would be the first time for a safety to go in the top 10 of the NFL draft in 10 years.
So if it happens, it would be notable.
And Downs would be an excellent addition to that Commanders defense.
At eight, the New Orleans Saints, Jordan Addison, wide receiver Arizona State.
So here in this scenario, the Saints have their pick as far as the entire wide receiver class goes.
And so while of course it's important to look at evaluator boards and see what people are talking about those top receivers, it could come down if that's the move here for the Saints, who do they like best at the wide receiver position?
There's also the possibility that they could go with an edge rusher, number of different moves, but you got to think for that Saints offense, if they like one of those wide receivers here, Addison, when he's healthy, he's electric.
And that's what I have as the move here for the New Orleans Saints at eight.
At nine, Kansas City Chiefs.
What great fortune here for the Chiefs getting David Bailey, edge rusher from Texas Tech.
Some have Bailey as a top five prospect.
I detected a slight fade on him.
But, that's just maybe not in the top five, but perhaps here more number nine going to the Chiefs.
And he could very well end up going much higher than this.
He might not be on the board.
So, there might be some value to it even at a a relatively high position here for the Chiefs who have not picked in the top 10 of the NFL draft in several years.
He'll be back on the board at 29.
At 10, Cincinnati Bengals, T.J.
Parker, edge rusher, Clemson.
So, I've got Parker going ahead of Ruben Bain Jr.
for Miami.
If you watch much of my content at all, you know I'm a big fan personally of Ruben Bain Jr.
Just going off certain indicators, this is the direction I can see things going.
Are the Bengals clearly with Trey Hendrickson gone?
They've got a need for somebody with some size at edge, but also an effective pass rusher.
And even prior to the start of free agency, there were talk about what the Bengals might do, different thoughts.
There's a lot of talk that T.J.
Parker could be a legitimate target.
He was seen as the top 10 prospect going into the last college season.
He didn't have the sky-high stats of 2024 or 2023.
But, look, he proved himself at the Senior Bowl practices, really stood out amidst a group of solid players.
And he's one of the best edge rusher prospects in the draft and here the Bengals go with T.J.
Parker at 10.
At 11, Miami Dolphins, Mansour Delane, corner from LSU.
Now, it's interesting with the Dolphins, they could consider a wide receiver here.
Depends how they feel about Cardell Tate.
On who might be on the board here.
I think if Delane's there quarterback is such a big need for the Dolphins.
I think the match up makes a lot of sense if he's there at 11.
At 12, Jermaine McCoy, Dallas Cowboys.
Cowboys you figure at some point would consider going with an edge rusher.
I'm going to hear with McCoy.
Waiting to see how things are going to go with final medical evaluations and all of it.
People who know things seem to be pretty optimistic about him as his chances go.
He had the torn ACL in January of last year.
Didn't play at all last season for the Tennessee Vols to recover from that injury.
I'm going to presume all goes well with his workouts and meetings.
He's expected to be one of the first corners taken in the draft and here Dallas gets him at 12.
Number 13, mention Carnell Tate, Los Angeles Rams.
The Rams have traded the number 29 pick to Kansas City.
So this is the only first round pick that the Rams have as of right now in the 2026 NFL draft and here they'll need a receiver with Carnell Tate, Ohio State receiver, tremendous hands, catches practically anything you throw his way, has an uncanny ability of getting open in 3 seconds or less, a crucial talent in the modern NFL.
Here the Rams get Carnell Tate at 13.
At 14, Mekhi Wingo, Baltimore Ravens.
The pick that was going to be part of the trade to get edge rusher Max Crosby from the Las Vegas Raiders.
And that next trade is going to go down in NFL history.
It's going to be one of those things they're going to talk about this years from now.
And so it's interesting and to think that the Ravens lost a top interior offensive lineman in free agency to Las Vegas.
Then the Crosby trade doesn't go through.
They get Hendrickson from Cincinnati, so they get an edge rusher.
They didn't give up any first-round picks doing it.
They keep the pick here at 14.
There's been some There've been hints.
And maybe there are people just trying to say, "Hey, we think highly of him overall." But there are some that make me think he might go top 10.
There's certain indicators.
I we'll see.
He might be a backup plan for a few teams.
You know, if players A, B, C, and D are all gone, well, we like Vaeaga and that worst-case we can go with him.
And maybe that's a misread.
I don't know, but people are pretty sold on him.
Or as the pure interior offensive line prospects, not counting somebody like Caeden Proctor who has an entirely different skill set in some ways.
Other than that, both of them can can both play or are expected to be able to play guard effectively.
And here it's Vaeaga going to the Ravens at 14.
15, Reuben Bain Jr.
A nice pickup here for the Buccaneers if it happens this way.
What I have not understood is why there's been a certain fade on Bain that I've perceived as due to arm length.
Cuz he has shorter than 31-in arms.
But that was not a surprise when that when they did the measurement at the combine.
It surprised me that not just the way it played out, but then you also have the sometimes scouts that exchange notes to kind of get, "Okay, well, maybe some teams aren't quite as high on them because they're If you're going to spend a premium pick on somebody, they can be very particular.
But Bain's got a great motor.
He's just going to give full effort on every play.
A great edge rusher.
He'd fill a big need for the Buccaneers at 15.
16, Makai Lemon.
Wonder if this would be a stopper for us, the Jets getting one of perhaps the top three wide receiver prospects.
Got to get it here thrown around between Jordan Addison, Carnell Tate, and Makai Lemon.
I think the Rams might consider Lemon at 13 as well in this scenario.
Although I've got them taking Tate here.
The Jets get Lemon who very short-handed, had a great season last year for the Trojans.
Big playability.
Be a good pick up for the Jets at 16.
I just think that's so much more likely than the Jets taking Ty Simpson here.
Maybe they'll surprise me.
We'll see, but the Jets have three first-round picks in next year's draft, which is expected to be historically strong at quarterback.
So here you get a top prospect at receiver in Lemon.
Perhaps in 2027, the Jets use their first-rounder on one of three perhaps on a quarterback.
We'll see.
17, here's Spencer Fano still on the board.
And a nice pick up for the Detroit Lions.
Some people think Fano might go top three.
They think that Arizona might take him.
Others think that Fano They look, he's a good talent, but maybe more mid-first-round range, like right here.
So there've been certain hints that that would be a logical pairing for the Lions.
You know they'll be considering a lot of different spots, a lot of different players there in that mid-first range, but in some ways, on some boards, if the Lions see it the way some do, with Fano as one of the top offensive tackle prospects, be a nice pick up here at 17 for the Detroit Lions.
18, Minnesota Vikings.
You probably see this a lot and rightly so.
Dylan Dinerman, safety, Oregon.
That 4.35 40-yard dash he ran at the NFL combine.
I mean it was eye-opening.
I knew he was fast, but I didn't realize he was that fast.
Now you might say, "Well, Lou, last year Nik Needham-Worrie ran a 4.39 40.
Yet he didn't go in the first round." I said, "Okay, yeah, but look what happened to the team that traded up to get him.
They won the Super Bowl.
And what do you know about the NFL?
It is a copycat league.
>> [laughter] >> It's the way it goes.
And so the Vikings are going to have a need at safety with Harrison Smith expected to say that's it for for a career.
You get to the other side of 35, 36, maybe 37.
You get up there age-wise, it is so tough to maintain.
The The NFL season is a very much a physical grind.
Anyway, so for the Vikings, you get Dinerman who's a hard hitter, but also super fast, nice instincts.
>> >> Good player at Purdue, a good player at Oregon.
Be a good pick up here at 18 for the Vikings.
At 19, here's Kenyon Seddik.
I don't know if Seddik will actually be on the board at 19.
He had just a tremendous showing at the combine.
Guy his size running a 4.39 40-yard dash.
I think because he didn't have just spectacular stats last season for Oregon that some may question that, but I tell you, he's got so much potential.
And there's nothing that NFL teams value quite like ultra-high-end speed.
You're looking for that tight end, Seddik's the answer.
He'd be a big boost to that Carolina Panthers offense at 19.
At 20, Dallas Cowboys.
Tomorrow, I've got your Mond McCoy going at 12 to the Cowboys.
Here at 20, you get Kedrick Forest.
You fill the needed edge rusher.
What they call it, three-down defensive end.
Got the size to be strong enough to handle the run.
I'll be a liability.
Very much noted presence as an edge rusher.
Here he goes to the Cowboys at 20.
21, Pittsburgh Steelers.
Omar Cooper Jr.
Receiver from Indiana.
Now, I've heard some mention Denzel Boston.
Receiver from Washington here.
But I've heard I've heard mixed things from Pittsburgh as far as what they think of Boston.
It's hard to know what to believe at this point.
You hear a lot of things from a lot of people.
Like with any organization, you're going to have different people and different opinions.
In this whole process, they wouldn't be flying around the country going to all these pro days and all this if it if they had already made up their mind.
They wouldn't go through all this extra travel.
Especially trying to handle free agency.
I think there's such a deep level of stuff that goes on that the public doesn't really see or know about because most teams keep it very quiet.
The analytics, keeping track of free agency.
I know some of these teams watch things very, very closely, which is interesting.
Different teams, different approaches.
Anyway, Pittsburgh got some options, but Cooper, he's such an effective route runner.
I think if you're going to bring in a a rookie receiver, if you're going to be able to get Aaron Rodgers to come back for one more season, and you you're going to be able to trust that Cooper's where he's supposed to be, which you can't always trust with the cuz that's part of the learning curve With the NFL, I think that part of why Indiana was so effective in their championship run is that their receivers were very very much crisp route runners.
And Mendoza is so accurate.
You would need like a very well-run route and the throw on the money.
Reading the defense to set it up.
And you had that mix there and I think it played out well.
But without the receiver, if they had a bunch of guys dropping the ball, I mean Mendoza would not have looked nearly as impressive.
And that includes Omar Cooper Jr.
who I've got going to Pittsburgh at 21.
I like a small craft at 22.
The LA Chargers get Caden Proctor.
One of the most interesting offensive lineman in the draft.
6'7 goes at 350 lbs and yet so athletic that he could legitimately play guard at the NFL level.
Which is highly unusual for somebody with that size.
And of course Proctor could play tackle as well.
But those NFL rosters there's not like just a ton of extra room for guys, so versatility is a positive.
Sometimes it gets confusing for teams like, "Well, we don't know where to play him." But I think it works best for offensive lineman because when you can play multiple spots, that makes you more valuable.
And if you get the right system and get Proctor dialed in, I think he could be dominant.
He's got the size to be absolutely dominant.
It's got to be the right fit.
And perhaps it'll be 22 to the Los Angeles Chargers.
At 23, Blake Miller, offensive tackle, Clemson.
Going to the Philadelphia Eagles.
More and more talk about Miller is not just late first round, even mid-late.
And rising up a bit.
And here it's Miller to the Eagles.
An excellent addition.
Browns back on the board here at 24.
Missing the dot for the 24.
I got to fix that.
We'll fix that in post, pal.
But I've got the Browns going with Denzel Boston, receiver from Washington.
6'4".
A great height for the position.
So, with this scenario, the Browns get offensive tackle Monroe Freeling up at six and then back at 24.
Browns get Denzel Boston.
25, Chicago Bears, Tuli Tuipulotu.
Defensive tackle, Ohio State.
Eight and a half tackles for loss last season.
Despite lining up quite often in a nose guard type spot right up against the center the opposing team or it's tough to get tackles for loss from that position.
Tuipulotu's able to do so.
The Bears need to boost their defensive line.
And Tuipulotu will be an excellent pick there for the Bears if he's on the board at 25.
At 26, Buffalo Bills, Adetomiwa Adebawore.
Edge from Miami.
Adebawore's going to turn 25 years old early next month.
It's interesting going through the last broadcast I did talking about some of the top free agent signings that have happened.
Noting some of the players in free agency are close to the same age as Adebawore.
Look, everybody takes a different path to get their way through college.
And for Adebawore, he had a tremendous 2025 season for Miami.
And here we are on the other side of the combine and there hasn't been that fade on him.
I've been waiting to hear, "Okay, when some of my indicators are going to show him slide maybe." But that hasn't happened yet.
With the right team, and clearly Buffalo, based on what they've done since the end of the past season, they want to win now and win big.
And Adebawore's not a player you have to wait to have to ramp up.
He should be near his peak athletically.
Had a great season for the Hurricanes playing opposite Ruben Bain Jr.
last year.
What a one-two combo they made for the Hurricanes.
Here he goes to Buffalo at 26.
Number 27.
San Francisco 49ers, Max Eichenberg.
Offensive tackle, Arizona State.
Extremely athletic.
As I've noted before, he's a relative newcomer to the sport.
He didn't start playing until after the pandemic.
2021.
But he has performed well.
His off-season drills and all the the testing they put these players through.
And if any players are watching this, any flaming members, just remember you're being everything's a test, even if they don't tell you it's a test.
They make some major investments with these players.
They want to know as much as possible about them.
Anyway, so Eichenberg certainly a lot of potential.
A lot of talk he's going to be a late first round or here he's going to the 49ers at 27.
At 28.
Caleb Lomax.
In a run of offensive lineman here, but that's the way it's trending right now.
OL for offensive lineman.
Left tackle for Utah.
You could play him at a guard position if you needed to.
Play him at right offensive tackle if you needed to.
You can find a spot for Lomax.
Look at the Texans have made some moves as far as trying to boost up that offensive line.
If they get Lomax here 28, he'd be a nice pick up.
29.
Chiefs back on the board.
And while I would think maybe Kansas City after having their corners And now for LA they might consider a corner here, but looking at the way things trending right now, put the Chiefs taking Jermaine Burton, receiver from Alabama.
It worked out very well for Jermaine Burton that he came back to college for the 2025 season at Alabama.
Had a really strong season, a breakout year for him.
He was able to still earn money, but develop as a player, and now looks like a potential legitimate first round perhaps late first round option.
And here the Chiefs take Jermaine Burton at 29.
At 30, Denver Broncos, C.J. Allen, linebacker, Georgia.
Off-ball linebacker, Allen's one of the best prospects in the class.
That position tends to be relatively devalued because those premium positions teams tend to look for or those first-round picks go.
But Allen's one of the best linebackers in the draft.
Can fill a need spot there for Denver at 30.
31, New England, Casey Conception, wide receiver, Texas A&M.
A lot of options here for the Patriots.
If there's a team wanting to draft Ty Simpson, there'd be sufficient motivation.
And it's not just the status of being a first-round pick actually means something because if you're a first-round pick, that means the team that selected you has that option for a fifth year on the contract.
Now, of course, the question would be, who's going to make that trade to move up?
We'll see.
But here, the Patriots keep the pick, and they take Casey Conception, really talented receiver from Texas A&M.
And finally at 32, A.J. Terrell, corner from Clemson.
Went to the Seattle Seahawks.
They also going to need a corner.
Terrell, solid player from Clemson.
A nice pick up for Seattle at 32.
So, that's my latest 2026 NFL mock draft.
Be sure to bookmark the DKDB.
Check frequently.
I put the best of the best in here.
I anticipate on Monday there'll be a bunch of new mock drafts.
We'll see.
I would imagine so, though.
Once some of that dust settle after that absolute deluge of signings and trades and Knicks trades and all that.
