It is officially the first day of the 2026 NFL draft. The complete Round 1 will be broadcast from Pittsburgh beginning at 8:00 p.m. (Eastern) and can be viewed on ABC, ESPN, NFL Network, and Fubo. Additionally, CBS Sports HQ’s 24/7 streaming network will provide real-time analysis of the draft.
The full schedule of the draft is as follows: Thursday: Round 1, Friday: Rounds 2-3, and Saturday: Rounds 4-7.
RELATED: TRADE MARKET MAY FORCE CARDINALS TO MAKE A PICK
The amount of time for each round has changed
this year. For Round 1, each club will have eight minutes (down from 10 minutes), Round 2 will be seven minutes, rounds 3-6 are again five minutes, while Round 7 has been dropped to four minutes. The shorter amount of time per selection is aimed at speeding up the pace, especially with the first round.
Every draft has its share of trades. This year, it will be no different. Here are the trade scenarios we have heard about so far that will affect the first round.
ARIZONA – DALLAS
- Cowboys get: #3 pick (Rd 1), #104 pick (Rd 4)
- Cardinals get: #12 pick (Rd 1), #20 pick (Rd 1), #114 pick (Rd 4)
The Cardinals own the #3 pick. The Cowboys have two first-round draft picks, but don’t select until the #12 spot. Dallas owner/GM Jerry Jones is 83 years old and doesn’t want his legacy to be three Super Bowl wins over 30 years ago. He wants another championship now and has the offense to get him there. Last year, the Cowboys ranked #2 on offense, and almost every player returns.
But Jones doesn’t have that stud running back. Plus, his quarterback is beginning to age out as Dak Prescott will turn 33 this summer. Three really good receivers, his tight end just made his second Pro Bowl, and an offensive line that doesn’t have a player over 30 years old.
Notre Dame RB Jeremyiah Love is the player that Jones covets, and realizes that this one player could put his offense over the top. However, the Tennessee Titans are in the #4 spot and also need a good running back. The trade with the Cardinals would put Dallas one spot over the Titans and get their man.
CLEVELAND – DALLAS
- Cowboys get: #6 pick (Rd 1), #39 (Rd 2)
- Browns get: #12 pick (Rd 1), #20 pick (Rd 1)
Another trade possibility in the upper portion of the first round involves the Browns instead of Arizona. Dallas also needs a stud pass rusher. If Jones decides to pass on Love as his new running back, he won’t need to move up past Tennessee at #4, but will need to move up to get one of the beast pass rushers in this year’s draft.
Jones would love to snag David Bailey out of Texas Tech and realizes that Ohio State’s Arvell Reese will most likely be gone. But also available should be Sonny Styles of Ohio State or Miami’s Rueben Bain, Jr. By going to pick #6, he leapfrogs division foe Washington, who are also hoping to nab a top pass rusher. Jones would be able to grab one of the elite pass rushers instead of waiting to grab a second-tier guy on Day 2 and stop a division competitor from getting him instead.
This trade would give Cleveland three first-round picks this year.
WASHINGTON – KANSAS CITY
- Chiefs get: #7 pick (Rd 1)
- Commanders get: #9 pick (Rd 1), #109 pick (Rd 4), #148 pick (Rd 5)
The Chiefs want to come out of this draft with a top receiver and an elite pass rusher. Washington owns the #7 pick while KC has the #9 selection. Cleveland at #6 and New Orleans at #8 are both in the market for a receiver. Getting the seventh pick would hop over at least one known clubs who should grab a receiver. This would give the Chiefs their pick of one of the top four elite pass catchers, like Makai Lemon of USC or Arizona State’s Jordyn Tyson.
ARIZONA – KANSAS CITY
- Chiefs get: #3 pick (Rd 1), #65 pick (Rd 3), #104 pick (Rd 4)
- Cardinals get: #9 pick (Rd 1), #29 pick (Rd 1)
The Chiefs want to come out of this year’s draft with just one thing: a beast of a pass rusher. They have the #9 in the first round, and depending on how the top half falls, they may see that the elite pass rushers will be all gobbled up. If the top half begins to see a bunch of offensive linemen go, then KC may be all right at #9 and can stand pat.
Right now, it appears that all four elite pass rushers will be taken. If Arizona takes a tackle, and the Giants select S Caleb Downs from Ohio State, at least one pass rusher should fall to #9. If not, the Chiefs will need to trade with the Cardinals. That would give them their choice of three out of the four, assuming the New York Jets take either Bailey or Reese.
CHICAGO – PITTSBURGH
- Bears get: #21 pick (Rd 1), #121 pick (Rd 4)
- Steelers get: #25 pick (Rd 1), #89 pick (Rd 3)
Like a lot of teams, the Bears have a really good defense but lack a key pass rusher. Chicago owns the #25 pick in Round 1 and realizes the likes of Bailey, Reese, Styles, and Bain will be gone. But the second wave of pass rushers at the bottom of the first round begins another trade scenario. Most of the bottom third of Round 1 revolves around receivers and offensive linemen.
The Bears could trade up to spot #21, which Pittsburgh owns, and grab either EDGE T.J. Parker of Clemson, Auburn’s Keldrick Faulk, or Akheem Mesidor out of Miami. The Los Angeles Chargers (#22), Philadelphia Eagles (#23), and Browns (#24) are all in the market for a second-level pass rusher, so Chicago will have to get above all three clubs and then would have their pick of the three.
BALTIMORE – MIAMI
- Ravens get: #11 pick (Rd 1), #151 pick (Rd 5)
- Dolphins get: #14 pick (Rd 1), #80 pick (Rd 3)
The Ravens are a team looking to bag one of the first-round elite receivers. It depends on what happens early, especially with the Browns, but Baltimore just might lose patience to believe one will fall to them at #14. They are in love with Makai Lemon out of USC, and if Cleveland takes Carnell Tate at pick #6, Lemon is considered the second-best pass catcher in this draft class. The Cowboys at pick #12 aren’t in the market for a receiver, but the Los Angeles Rams at #13 are. This allows the Ravens to leap over LA and snag Lemon.
PHILADELPHIA – NEW YORK JETS
- Eagles get: #16 pick (Rd 1)
- Jets get: #23 pick (Rd 1), #68 pick (Rd 3)
There is a problem brewing in the Eagles’ receiving room, and so they want one of the top four elite pass catchers in this class. Most likely, Tate and Lemon will be gone, but as the teens rolled off the board, both Jordyn Tyson from Arizona State and KC Concepcion of Texas A&M should be available. But by pick #23, where Philly selects, most likely both will be gone. This forces the Eagles to take a Day 2 receiver.
The Jets have two first-round draft picks in Round 1, so they have the flexibility to maneuver up and down the board.
ARIZONA – SEATTLE
- Seahawks get: #34 pick (Rd 2), #143 pick (Rd 5)
- Cardinals get: #32 pick (Rd 1)
The Cardinals may want to select Alabama QB Ty Simpson, but realize that they can’t wait until the second pick in Round 2 arrives at pick #34. The Jets have the first pick in the second round and in all likelihood, if Simpson wasn’t taken in the first round, New York will at the top of Round 2, one spot before the Cardinals.
This means that Arizona will need to find a willing trade partner in the bottom of the first round, similar to what the Giants did last year when they moved up to grab QB Jaxson Dart. This could be the Seahawks at the bottom of Round 1. All of this applies if the Cardinals keep the #3 pick; otherwise, they would have selections from either Dallas or Kansas City to get Simpson without having to move back up in the first round.
