The 2026 NFL Combine runs February 27 through March 3 at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. Sixty-three prospects have been through our film evaluation process. We have grades on everyone from the top of the board to the back end of Day 2. Before a single 40 is run, before a single vertical is measured, our board is already built on what prospects did between the lines — not what they looked like in shorts.
That said, the combine matters. Not because it overrides film, but because it answers specific questions that film raises. A corner who plays with stiff hips needs a 40 with good 10-yard split and a fluid short shuttle. A tackle who loses his pass set under speed rush needs a kickslide test. The combine doesn't make prospects — but it can break them, or surprise you.
Here's our full breakdown: who can coast, who needs to perform, and who could blow the doors off their current projection with a career day.
COMBINE LOCKS
These are the prospects whose film grades are essentially bulletproof. They can show up, go through the process, and their first-round stock is secure regardless of testing numbers.
Caleb Downs, S, Ohio State — #1 Overall (94.0)
The best player in this draft class. Downs spent 2025 in multiple alignments at Ohio State and excelled in every one — box safety, deep center field, slot coverage, blitz specialist. His range, instincts, and closing speed on film are elite. There are legitimate questions about his weight (205 lbs) and whether that translates to a traditional strong safety role at the next level, but the film answers every talent question already. He can bench press 185 reps in a row or pull a hamstring jogging to the 40 start line — he's going top-10.
Fernando Mendoza, QB, Indiana — #2 Overall (91.0)
Quarterbacks are graded differently at the combine and Mendoza doesn't need to prove athleticism — he needs to stand in and throw. Indiana's 14-0 regular season was built around his pre-snap processing, ball placement on intermediate routes, and poise in the pocket. He completed 72% of his passes with a 41:6 TD-to-INT ratio. The combine arm workout will be examined for velocity, but no number coming out of Indianapolis changes the reality that he's the top quarterback in the class.
Francis Mauigoa, OT, Miami (FL) — #3 Overall (90.0)
Offensive linemen are always combine stories in some ways, but Mauigoa's film speaks loudly enough that he's immune to a bad number. He's a physically dominant right tackle who plays with elite nastiness, anchor strength, and pass-pro polish. The minor question in his reports — shorter arms, occasional high pad level — won't be resolved by combine drills. He's a top-10 pick on film.
Jeremiyah Love, RB, Notre Dame — #4 Overall (88.5)
Love is a former collegiate sprinter. The 100m and 200m background is in his report and on film in every long-run explosion — the guy goes from contact to full speed in a step and a half. He doesn't need to prove he can run. He ran 6.9 yards per carry for Notre Dame. His combine will confirm what we already know: he is one of the fastest running backs in this draft class. Expect sub-4.45 range.
David Bailey, EDGE, Texas Tech — #5 Overall (88.0)
The most productive edge rusher in the draft with 14.5 sacks and 19.5 TFL in 2025. His film shows a complete package — power, bend, and motor. There are no specific athletic flags in his reports. He's an absolute lock regardless of what he posts.
Caleb Banks, DL, Florida — #12 Overall (85.0)
The 6'6", 325-pound wrecking ball with natural athleticism for his size. Banks plays with genuine explosion off the snap and has shown enough movement on film that combine testing will confirm, not surprise. He runs well for a true nose tackle and his broad jump numbers should be elite for the position. A first-round lock.
NEEDS TO WIN
These players have real questions raised by film — specifically around athleticism, movement quality, or athletic profile. They need a strong showing to hold or improve their current board position.
Rueben Bain Jr., EDGE, Miami (FL) — #11 Overall (85.0)
The one word that appears in both scout evaluations is *stiff*. Bain is a compact, explosive rusher with incredible motor and burst in a straight line, but his lateral agility and bend around the corner are inconsistent. Interior counters are his best path to the quarterback at the next level. He needs to post elite numbers in the three-cone and short shuttle — sub-6.9 three-cone would change the conversation about whether he can be a true wide nine on the outside or is best as an interior-exterior tweener.
Kadyn Proctor, OT, Alabama — #21 Overall (82.5)
At 6'7" and 368 pounds, Proctor's film at Alabama shows a pancake-happy road grader who can drive defenders off the ball in the run game. The consistent flag in his evaluations is a plodding kickslide and stiff hips in pass protection — which against NFL speed rushers is a legitimate scheme-fit concern. His agility drills at the combine are the test: if he can show a fluid kickslide and acceptable lateral movement in the OL drills, he stays a day-one pick. If he looks as immovable laterally as some of his worst tape, he becomes a guard in the NFL.
T.J. Parker, EDGE, Clemson — #27 Overall (80.5)
Parker is a power rusher at heart — bull-rush, push-pull, spin counters — and his hip flexibility is a documented flag. He's not a pure bend-the-edge threat and his pass-rush repertoire is narrower than most Day 1 EDGE prospects. The three-cone and 40 matter for him. He needs to test in the low-to-mid 4.6s and show better change-of-direction than his film suggests, or he firms up as a situational sub-package rusher rather than a feature EDGE.
C.J. Allen, LB, Georgia — #28 Overall (80.5)
The film grade on Allen is excellent against the run — violent, instinctive, physical — but coverage has been a persistent concern and his estimated 40 time (4.68) from camp evaluations would put him in the bottom quartile of NFL linebackers. He needs to run sub-4.60 to prove he can cover running backs in space. If he posts 4.55 or below, he becomes a three-down linebacker conversation. If he runs 4.72, he's a two-down thumper being asked to stay off the field on third down.
Jermod McCoy, CB, Tennessee — #13 Overall (84.5)
Elite ball production in the SEC and good press-man technique — but both evaluations flag hip stiffness and injury history as concerns. A corner with stiff hips who can't run a sub-4.44 has a significant ceiling problem in man coverage at the next level. His short shuttle and 40 time are the most critical numbers coming out of Indianapolis for his first-round consideration.
Dani Dennis-Sutton, EDGE, Penn State — #26 Overall (80.5)
Dennis-Sutton is a physical specimen with legitimate pop off the snap, but both of our reports question his motor consistency and describe his pass-rush move set as limited. He needs to test at the high end for his position — 40 time in the 4.55-4.60 range, strong three-cone — to validate the five-star recruit talent that the film only partially delivers on.
Deontae Lawson, LB, Alabama — #16 Overall (83.0)
Lawson is a downhill linebacker — fast, decisive, excellent against the run. The question is always the same for downhill LBs: can he cover? The combine's linebacker workout will give teams their first real movement read. He needs to flash in coverage drills, especially in space, or he becomes a two-down player in the modern NFL, which caps his draft value below his film grade.
COULD ROCKET
These players have already impressed on film. But something about their profile — position, frame, athleticism questions on tape — means a truly elite combine performance could push them into earlier-round conversation than they currently occupy.
Sonny Styles, LB, Ohio State — #7 Overall (86.0)
Styles is described as "twitched-up" and a genuine athlete in his evaluations — Ohio State used him everywhere, and his ability to line up in multiple spots is a selling point. If he runs 4.48 or faster at linebacker, he immediately enters the conversation as a top-10 candidate. That kind of speed from a 6'3" off-ball linebacker is generational for the position. The film already has him as a top-10 talent. A freakish 40 makes him undeniable.
Brandon Cisse, CB, South Carolina — #22 Overall (82.5)
"Elite straight-line speed" is in his scouting profile. Cisse is a press-man corner with the twitchiness and physicality to play on the boundary. If his straight-line speed shows up as a sub-4.38 at the combine, he immediately becomes a top-15 conversation. That's the jump that elite corner speed makes — teams will move up for it.
Jordyn Tyson, WR, Arizona State — #18 Overall (83.0)
Tyson's film shows an explosive first step and functional deep speed on verticals — his report grades his speed a 7.5/10 based on tape, but grades are based on what you see in pads. If he tests at 4.38 or faster, that changes his entire draft profile from "contested-catch machine" to "contested-catch machine who can also beat you over the top," which is an entirely different price tag.
Davison Igbinosun, CB, Ohio State — #17 Overall (83.0)
His first evaluation calls out "elite athleticism" and "rare frame dimensions." His second report flags stiff hips and middling recovery speed. That's a real split. The combine answers the question directly — if his athletic testing matches the first report, he's a top-20 pick. If it aligns with the second, he's a day-two zone corner.
Carnell Tate, WR, Ohio State — #6 Overall (87.5)
Tate's film grade is already locked in at 87.5 — he's going in the first round. But if he tests in the 4.38-4.42 range, the "elite separation plus speed" combo makes him a top-10 receiver conversation instead of a mid-first. He's a long strider whose true speed has always been underrated on tape. The combine strip mines that number out.
THE BOTTOM LINE
Film is the foundation. Combine testing is confirmation — or contradiction. For most of these prospects, Indianapolis is a formality with upside. For a handful, it's genuinely high-stakes. Bain needs to answer the bend question. Proctor needs to show fluid lateral movement. C.J. Allen needs to run faster than his film suggests.
Watch the three-cone drill on February 28 and March 1 especially closely. That's where edge rushers either confirm or destroy their first-round projections. And pay attention to the linebacker group on Saturday — if Sonny Styles runs 4.48, the entire top-10 conversation reshuffles.
We'll have every number updated in real time as they're confirmed.