Last week, Indianapolis hosted the annual NFL Combine. While it may not be the first event of the draft cycle, it often is the entry point for a large portion of NFL fans. Now that prospects have been measured and put their raw athleticism on display, we could think of no better time than to introduce Behind the Steel Curtain’s first Big Board for the 2026 Class.
Below, you will see BTSC’s ranking of our top 100 prospects. The rankings were compiled by combining the ranks of BTSC’s own Ryland Bickley,
Joey Bray, and Ryan Parish, and then calculating and sorting by the average score. Take a look at our ranks, and then stick around for more discussion from our panel of experts. Of note, these ranks are not explicitly given with a Steelers focus. While we might rank a player higher than another, that doesn’t guarantee they’d fit better with Pittsburgh. However, because we all cover the Steelers, that bias is sure to creep in occasionally.
After ranking all these prospects, what are some trends or themes you notice with this draft class?
RP: I think the most obvious thing I can point to has to do with the overall talent. We’ve heard there are fewer blue-chip talents in the first round this year, and that this class will quickly devolve into a “choose your flavor” style draft. I think nothing could illustrate this more than looking at our top 21 players — who are all relatively tightly clustered in our individual ranks — and then how quickly we swing to much wider differences in opinion on them. The number of players whose ranks are separated by 20 slots or more in our rankings is quite telling.
RB: I’ll echo Ryan by saying that the list gets very subjective after the first 10-15 names, although this will clear up as a stronger consensus forms with more tape watched later in the draft process. However, it does feel like the late first-round group of names runs into the Day 2 talent pool a bit more than usual this year. That’s to say, I think a lot of teams — the Steelers included — may not love the way the board breaks for them picking in the 20s in Round 1.
JB: A lot of the best players in this draft play positions that aren’t viewed as “premium positions” by the NFL. Two perfect examples of this are Ohio State safety Caleb Downs and Notre Dame running back Jeremiyah Love. Both players are unquestionably top 5 talents in this draft to me, but positional value may affect their draft position. I think it will be incredibly interesting to see how different organizations attack this draft on night one. I think Ryland said it perfectly; some teams may not like the way the board falls for them. Will teams go best player available and choose the talent? Or will they shoot for someone at a premium position who may not be as impressive of a prospect?
Which position group has the most talent?
RB: I’ll cheat and say the defensive back group as a whole, especially as the lines between safety and slot cornerback continue to blur in modern defenses. There’s plenty of first-round talent such as Caleb Downs and Jermod McCoy, but a great mix of Day 2 names as well. I also like the wide range of skill sets, from slot demons such as D’Angelo Ponds to long, boundary types such as Davison Igbinosun. I think it’s a great year to find secondary help, even if it’s scheme-specific. I think it’s a great year to find secondary help, even if it’s scheme-specific. I also think this inside linebacker class is one of the most exciting ones we’ve had in recent memory.
JB: This is going to be a defense-heavy draft, and the talent in the corner and safety class is truly remarkable. There is such a wide range of guys who can make an impact for a team instantly that won’t go on Day 1 of the draft. The second and third rounds are going to produce guys like Emmanuel McNeil-Warren and Bud Clark, guys with productive college careers and who have chances to be impact starters in year one. I know Ryan and I are always shocked that Kansas State’s VJ Payne is available in the 7th round of pretty much any PFF mock draft sim you do thus far. The point is, you can wait and grab a corner and safety late and likely walk away with a starter or two.
RP: It’s a tight race between edge rushers, cornerbacks, and safeties. I think I have to give the nod to the edge class, not only because they have the most players represented (16), but because they are more densely clustered near the top of the board as well. During this exercise, whenever they were players in those three position groups ranked similarly for me, I more often than not would lean towards the pass rushers. That’s a good shout on VJ Payne, though, a player I put in my top-100.
Which position group was the hardest to rank?
JB: I think the wide receiver class is very subjective this year. There seems to be a consensus first tier of receiver prospects in Makai Lemon, Jordyn Tyson, and Carnell Tate. However, even ranking those guys is still widely debated after the Combine and Senior Bowl. Omar Cooper Jr. has been a riser since December and was all the buzz in Indianapolis last week. A phenomenal workout seemingly catapulted him into first-round considerations. I’m not sure how many receivers end up going night one, but there seem to be about five or six that someone may be way higher on than you think.
RP: Not to sound like a broken record, but I’m gonna say the edge class again. There are a lot of talented players, with a wide array of body types and playstyles. It’s clear who the top guys are, but there’s a whole cluster of players, particularly the fringe first-rounders and second-round talents, that are not separated by much.
RB: I’ll agree with Ryan again — there are a lot of intriguing edge rushers in this top 100, and I could see that order changing later in the draft cycle. Other positions that came to mind for me were running back and tight end. Neither are heavily represented in the top 100 besides the two blue-chippers (Kenyon Sadiq and Jerimiyah Love), but there’s a glut of late Day 2/early Day 3 guys at both positions still vying for places in the next tier.
Which of your player ranks are you questioning most after seeing how the others ranked them?
RB: Weirdly enough, it’s Georgia tackle Monroe Freeling, whom I haven’t been the highest on this draft cycle. However, Ryan ranked him at No. 34, Joey at No. 17, and I had at No. 24. But now Freeling seems to be a consensus top-10 pick in a number of national mock drafts. His upside is out of this world, but his technique gives me some pause — and maybe some buyer beware after what happened with another promising Bulldog O-lineman in Broderick Jones. I’m still forming an opinion on Freeling.
RP: For me, I think it has to be Darrell Jackson Jr. I thought 59 was about right for him, but with Ryland barely having him make the cut (89) and Joey not ranking him at all, I’m wondering if I’m overvaluing the traits of a physically gifted, but flawed player. Jackson has a lot of the similarities to a guy like Joshua Farmer from last year — same school, long arms, up and down production — that I tend to fall for.
JB: Admittedly, I have been a huge fan of Texas Tech linebacker Jacob Rodriguez for quite some time now. I have him ranked as the number 25 overall player on my board, 20 spots higher than anyone else. While he is a bit undersized, I do believe that whoever takes Rodriguez is getting the perfect mix of intelligence and college production to stick right in the middle of their defense. I do see where Ryan and Ryland have their questions about Rodriguez, especially given the depth of the linebacker class. Rodriguez is not nearly the athlete that someone like Sonny Styles may be, but I am now questioning if I value Rodriguez a bit too much.
Which ranking are you standing by most despite the gap in our opinions?
RP: Y’all are sleeping on UCF edge Malachi Lawrence. Insane twitch, highly productive — 68 pressures, 12 sacks, 29 stops, 3 forced fumbles over the past two seasons — with length on top of it. He had a 34.7% pass rush win rate in 2025 against true pass sets per PFF. For those wondering, true pass sets exclude screens, play action, designed rollouts, and throws under two seconds. I debated with myself whether I had Lawrence too low (66), and Ryland and Joey’s ranks won’t sway me from that.
JB: Ryan and Ryland are sleeping on one of the biggest combine risers in Georgia tackle Monroe Freeling. Freeling had the second-highest relative athletic score by any offensive lineman since 1987. While measurements don’t mean everything, Freeling has impressive size at 6’7 and 315 pounds with 343/4” arms. Freeling plays a premium position in a class that is very subjective after the first 15 names. If teams want to prioritize addressing a premium position like left tackle early, we could see Freeling, who only allowed six pressures last season, to go much earlier than expected.
RB: I continue to think George Tech’s Keylan Rutledge will be a riser as the draft cycle moves forward. Sure, his balance and anchor are still a bit inconsistent, but he tested incredibly well at the Combine, and that athleticism is all over his tape. Plus, I love his mentality and versatility as an interior O-lineman. He has great pop as a blocker as well.
Each of you had a handful of players you excluded from your board who were ranked by at least one other panelist: Joey (8), Ryland (6), Ryan (8). Which prospect do you just not get the hype for?
JB: I was interested to see that Ryan had Florida State’s Darrell Jackson ranked as the 59th best player on his board. While these are only preliminary rankings, I am not on board with Jackson. He has done nothing in my eyes to improve his stock thus far during the draft process. I was not impressed with Jackson at all this past season with the Seminoles. He often looked slow and relied on being bigger than the person in front of him rather than utilizing any kind of rush move. Perhaps I need to watch more of Jackson, but I like several potential Day 2 defensive line prospects over him.
RB: To me, these preliminary rankings are the equivalent of preseason college football standings. They’re useful as a landmark to gauge risers and fallers from later in the process, but I’m not deep enough into my draft preparation to be doing much flag-planting yet. That said, I still don’t entirely see it yet with Derrick Moore. He certainly has some intriguing traits, but lacks the ideal burst and bend I like to see from early-round edges — which is especially concerning as his calling card is not run defense.
RP: He might end up being a productive player for some team, but I have zero interest in Zachariah Branch. I heard a podcast joke that he was an industry plant, and I have to agree. Yes, he’s insanely twitchy, but at his size — 5’9, 177 pounds, sub-30” arms — I don’t know how much his athleticism will translate into actual football. He ran such a limited route tree in college; Branch only caught 14 balls that traveled more than 10 yards downfield in 2025. That means 77.4% of his targets came on screens or passes of less than 10 air yards. His ceiling is a Zay Flowers type of player, but his floor is so much lower.
Likewise, you each had two players ranked that neither of your fellow panelists ranked. Make a case for those prospects.
RB: See my blurb about flag-planting earlier. I certainly wouldn’t say Zachariah Branch or Deion Burks are “my guys” in this draft cycle, and I’d agree they both fit the “middling Chiefs draft pick” archetype that understandably comes across as a negative. But both have encouraging production against SEC defenses, as well as more compact frames (versus being straight-up tiny) than they’re often given credit for. Plus, both have speed and quickness that jump off the screen. I, too, am wary of their manufactured touches in college, but I certainly see how their athleticism could translate into solid roles in the pros as well.
RP: McAlister is a dynamic threat at receiver with size, speed, and wiggle. An off-the-field confrontation in 2024 led to an arrest and might take him off some boards, but he managed to keep his nose clean in 2025. The Steelers need players who can create yards after the catch, and McAlister brings that in spades. Plus, he would be an immediate upgrade as a return man in special teams.
As for Neal, he’s a long-limbed press corner with a track record of being a disruptor in coverage. That includes two interceptions and eight PBUs in 2025. He’s allowed just a 52% completion rate against 98 targets over the past two seasons. I’m not sure what more he needs to do to get into the top-100.
JB: Gracen Halton is a disruptive defensive tackle from Oklahoma with a quick get-off. The big issue with Halton is his size. Halton also played a role with the Sooners that played to his strengths, allowing him to utilize his get off to rush rather than be an impact run stopper. These things will keep him out of a lot of top-100 boards, but if Halton goes to a team that has defensive tackle depth (whispers “Steelers”), he could be a great rotational piece for a team early in his career with plenty of tools to develop.
Dani Dennis-Sutton is also someone I think people are sleeping on in this cycle for a lot of the same reasons people are sleeping on most Penn State prospects in this class. I get that the team did not meet their expectations entering the season, but Dennis-Sutton was one of the bright spots on that team. Dennis-Sutton did not miss a game his entire career with the Nittany Lions, and saw an increase in production every year. He earned 1st-Team All-Big 10 honors with 8.5 sacks and 11.5 TFL’s. No player this productive in college football’s best conference from this past season should be getting left out of the top 100.
What do you think of BTSC’s initial rankings? Who is our panel too low on? Too high? Get in the comments and let us know! Stay tuned for our next updated Big Board near the end of March.
