{"id":799990,"date":"2026-03-08T08:03:23","date_gmt":"2026-03-08T08:03:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/799990\/"},"modified":"2026-03-08T08:03:23","modified_gmt":"2026-03-08T08:03:23","slug":"2026-nfl-draft-mel-kiper-makes-sweeping-changes-to-top-25-big-board-player-rankings-after-nfl-combine","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/799990\/","title":{"rendered":"2026 NFL Draft: Mel Kiper makes sweeping changes to Top 25 Big Board player rankings after NFL Combine"},"content":{"rendered":"

As usual, last month\u2019s NFL Combine was an eye-opening experience for some of the top prospects in the 2026 NFL Draft. As a result, longtime NFL Draft analyst Mel Kiper Jr. has overhauled his Top 25 Big Board<\/a>. <\/p>\n

Six college programs have multiple players on this list \u2014 including Ohio State, which occupies five slots. Four of them are expected to be top-10 picks, and are ranked accordingly by Kiper Jr.<\/p>\n

With the 2026 NFL Draft less than seven weeks away, find out where the ESPN analyst shook up his rankings following the combine. Of course, the first overall prospect should come as no surprise.<\/p>\n

Following two seasons at Cal, Fernando Mendoza transferred to Indiana and will leave Bloomington a Hoosiers legend. The undefeated, national championship-winning Heisman Trophy winner will look to add another feather in his cap as the expected No. 1 overall pick to the Las Vegas Raiders.<\/p>\n

On the field, Mendoza passes for 3,535 yards, 41 passing TD (48 overall) and six interceptions. He finished the season with a 72.0% completion percentage.<\/p>\n

\"NotreNotre Dame running back Jeremiyah Love. (Michael Caterina-Imagn Images)<\/p>\n

Jeremiyah Love reminds Kiper Jr. of Reggie Bush. His vision, ability to burst outside and break tackles, speed \u2014 all are reasons why Love is RB1 in the 2026 NFL Draft.<\/p>\n

He proved that on the field this past season. In 12 games, Love was tasked with 199 carries, where he rushed for 1,372 yards and 18 rushing touchdowns. He added 27 catches for 280 receiving yards and three touchdowns through the air as well.<\/p>\n

Kiper Jr. believes Reese is a \u201ccomplete football player\u201d who immediately jumps out to him when watching tape. Reese rose up draft boards all season, and his production on the field over the past two seasons is an indication of that. <\/p>\n

Since 2024, Reese has combined for 112 tackles for the Buckeyes. He finished 2025 with 69 combined tackles, 10 tackles for loss and 6.5 sacks. As a result, he earned All-American status in 2025 and was also a key piece to the Buckeyes\u2019 national championship squad the year before.<\/p>\n

Bailey transferred into Texas Tech from Stanford as a part of the Red Raiders\u2019 stellar portal class last offseason. He played three seasons for the Cardinal, where he amassed 14.5 sacks over that span. Bailey matched that total in his lone season in Lubbock.<\/p>\n

He further impressed scouts when he ran a 4.5 40-yard-dash to go with a 10-foot-9 broad jump, 1.62-second 10-yard split and recorded a 35-inch vertical. He ranked first among EDGE rushers at the NFL Combine with a 98 production score.<\/p>\n

\"CalebCaleb Downs (Mick Walker\/Lettermen Row)<\/p>\n

Caleb Downs won a national championship at Ohio State. However, Kiper Jr. said his ability to pick up Nick Saban\u2019s system so quickly in 2023 as a true freshman was the most impressive feat of his college career.<\/p>\n

This past season, Downs finished the 2025 season with 68 combined tackles, a PBU, one sack and a pair of interceptions. He could very well be the first defensive back selected in the draft overall.<\/p>\n

Sonny Styles was a safety at one point in his career, and it shows with his blazing 4.46 40-yard-dash time. He also impressed scouts with a freakish 43.5-inch vertical jump, not to mention recording an 11-foot-2 broad jump. <\/p>\n

On the field, the former Ohio State star was a sure tackler this past season with 83 stops (43 solo) with three pass breakups, a sack, a forced fumble and an interception. He also recorded a career-best 100-tackle season during Ohio State\u2019s national title-winning season two years ago.<\/p>\n

Carnell Tate shone during a year where all eyes were on Buckeyes sophomore Jeremiah Smith. He finished the season having caught 51 passes for 875 yards and nine receiving touchdowns.<\/p>\n

His 17.2 yards per catch gained him the reputation as an explosive playmaker downfield, and many expect that to continue in the NFL. He\u2019s the latest product from Ohio State\u2019s receiving corps, which Kiper Jr. has now deemed \u201cWide Receiver U.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Miami(Jeff Romance | Imagn Images)<\/p>\n

Francis Mauigoa most recently helped block for a Miami Hurricanes offense that made it all the way to the national championship game. They then, ultimately, fell to Fernando Mendoza and the Indiana Hoosiers.<\/p>\n

Mauigoa finished the 2025 season with 826 offensive snaps. He allowed just two sacks and 10 pressures across 440 pass block snaps. He played 814 snaps at right tackle in 16 games. Kiper Jr. called him a \u201ctrue mauler.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jordyn Tyson caught 61 passes for 711 yards and eight touchdowns for the Sun Devils during the 2025-26 season. This followed a 1,000-yard season in 2024 during his first season with the program.<\/p>\n

In his career, Tyson has caught 158 passes for 2,282 yards and 22 touchdowns. He began his career playing for Deion Sanders at\u00a0Colorado<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Across 822 snaps in 2025, Fano didn\u2019t allow a single sack or hit on his quarterback. Notably, only 382 of those were pass block snaps. He also finished fifth among offensive tackles with just five pressures allowed on the year.<\/p>\n

He started 12 games at left tackle in 2023 before starting 24 games at the right tackle position over the next two seasons. The 6-foot-6, 311-pounder also ran at 4.91 40-yard-dash, so he can shed a block and move into the second level of the defense if necessary. <\/p>\n

11. WR Makai Lemon<\/a>, USC<\/a>
12. OL Vega Ioane<\/a>, Penn State<\/a>
13. TE Kenyon Sadiq<\/a>, Oregon<\/a>
14. CB Jermod McCoy<\/a>, Tennessee<\/a>
15. CB Mansoor Delane<\/a>, LSU<\/a>
16. DE Rueben Bain Jr.<\/a>, Miami
17. OT Monroe Freeling<\/a>, Georgia<\/a>
18. OT Kadyn Proctor<\/a>, Alabama<\/a>
19. DE Zion Young<\/a>, Missouri<\/a>
20. S Dillon Thieneman<\/a>, Oregon
21. DT Kayden McDonald<\/a>, Ohio State
22. DE Keldric Faulk<\/a>, Auburn<\/a>
23. OT Max Iheanachor<\/a>, Arizona State
24. DE Akheem Mesidor<\/a>, Miami
25. QB Ty Simpson<\/a>, Alabama<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"As usual, last month\u2019s NFL Combine was an eye-opening experience for some of the top prospects in the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":799991,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[40550,40956,5782,5784,9387,5791,26735,7,5795,9391,5798,20645,5799,84482,5800,26737,11876,32679,107993,99465,6,15,5808,34445,5809,15529,34447,105269],"class_list":["post-799990","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-nfl-draft","tag-akheem-mesidor-20-clearwater-academy-international","tag-arvell-reese-23-glenville","tag-caleb-downs-23-mill-creek","tag-carnell-tate-23-img-academy","tag-david-bailey-22-mater-dei","tag-dillon-thieneman-23-westfield","tag-fernando-mendoza-22-columbus","tag-football","tag-francis-mauigoa-23-img-academy","tag-jeremiyah-love-23-christian-brothers-college","tag-jermod-mccoy-23-whitehouse","tag-jordyn-tyson-22-independence","tag-kadyn-proctor-23-southeast-polk","tag-kayden-mcdonald-23-north-gwinnett","tag-keldric-faulk-23-highland-home","tag-kenyon-sadiq-23-skyline-senior","tag-makai-lemon-23-los-alamitos","tag-mansoor-delane-22-archbishop-spalding","tag-max-iheanachor-22-king-drew-medical-magnet","tag-monroe-freeling-23-oceanside-collegiate-academy","tag-nfl","tag-nfl-draft","tag-rueben-bain-23-miami-central","tag-sonny-styles-22-pickerington-central","tag-spencer-fano-23-timpview","tag-ty-simpson-22-westview","tag-vega-ioane-22-graham-kapowsin","tag-zion-young-22-westlake"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/799990","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=799990"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/799990\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/799991"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=799990"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=799990"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=799990"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}