Mauigoa was once considered a top-five pick and Styles still is by many, but both could be on the board longer than expected
By R.J. White
• 1 min read

We've finally made it to Draft Day 2026 in the NFL, with the first round only hours away from kicking off. While I'm pretty happy with my previous 2026 NFL mock draft on Monday, which included two trade-ups for the Chiefs, I wanted to put together one final mock draft exercise with no trades, since it's impossible to know how strongly teams feel about the prospects on their unique draft boards from an outsider's perspective.
While Sonny Styles is picking up steam to be the No. 4 overall pick, I'm going to stick to my guns and keep him outside of the top five. In fact, I'm banking that positional value will be enough to push him down further than anyone expects and have him available to be selected by the Saints at No. 8. This looks to be a good draft for linebackers, so I expect the teams at the top will ultimately decide to attack the position on Day 2, with the thinking that the gap between Styles and some of other options won't be as wide as the one between potential top picks at edge rusher, running back, receiver and offensive lineman.
The other player I have suffering a slide is Francis Mauigoa, who reportedly is dealing with a herniated disk that could eventually require surgery and cause him to miss time, potentially into his rookie season. That could make him less of an option for a team that needs immediate help, but I have him landing in a spot where he's more needed for 2027 and beyond.
Let's get into the full mock draft below.
The 2026 NFL Draft will take place April 23-25 in Pittsburgh. You can find more draft coverage at CBSSports.com, including weekly mock drafts and regular evaluations of the top prospects.
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