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With the 2026 NFL Draft now in the books, fans are combing through information to see just how good or bad their teams did over the course of the three-day event.
Of course, it’s hard to fully judge just how good or bad teams did because we haven’t seen any of the 257 players drafted from Thursday through Saturday take the field for an NFL practice, let alone a game.
But we can at least somewhat make a determination about how good or bad a team did by looking at a draft class to see if needs were addressed and if there was good value in its selections based on pre-draft projections.
Here’s the three teams that scored the worst grades.
Sep 8, 2025; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Chicago Bears general manager Ryan Poles before the game at Soldier Field. Mandatory Credit: David Banks-Imagn Images
The Bears were off to a great start with the selection of Oregon safety Dillon Thieneman in Round 1. Not only did they get great value, but the Bears filled a big need, also.
But then things went off the rails on Day 2.
The Bears drafted center Logan Jones, who was a projected mid-round pick, in Round 2. He may not even see the field in 2026 with Garrett Bradbury on the roster.
Then, in Round 3, Chicago drafted a potential Cole Kmet replacement for 2027 and No. 3 tight end for Ben Johnson’s “13 personnel” in 2026 in Sam Roush.
In the same round, Chicago took a wide receiver in Zavion Thomas who was a projected late-round pick.
Chicago rebounded on Day 3 with cornerback Malik Muhammad, linebacker Keyshaun Elliott and defensive lineman Jordan van den Berg, but Muhammad is really the only player we’re excited about.
In the end, the Bears didn’t address their biggest need at all, which was edge rusher, and waited until the sixth round to address their second-biggest need, interior defensive line.
For a team with Super Bowl aspirations that needed immediate impact players, it was not a good draft for Chicago.
Arizona Cardinals general manager Monti Ossenfort and head coach Mike LaFleur (right) introduce their first-round draft pick running back Jeremiyah Love during a news conference at the Cardinals Dignity Health training facility on April 24, 2026, in Tempe, Ariz.
The Cardinals might have gotten the best player in the draft in running back Jeremiyah Love, but this team is so far off from contending that it just wasn’t the right pick there.
Ossenfort rebounded with guard Chase Bisontis in Round 2, and we didn’t hate or love the selection of quarterback Carson Beck in Round 3 with Arizona’s uncertainty at the position.
But then Monti took an undersized D-lineman in Kaleb Proctor and massively reached for wide receiver Reggie Virgil, who was projected to go late Day 3.
The sixth- and seventh-round picks of linebacker Karson Sharar and offensive tackle Jayden Williams are whatever.
The bottom line is this: Ossenfort needed to nail this draft to improve the Cardinals’ future and save his job and we believe he fell well short of doing that.
Sep 28, 2025; Santa Clara, California, USA; Jacksonville Jaguars head coach Liam Coen looks on during warmups before the game against the San Francisco 49ers at Levi’s Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-Imagn Images
Taking a blocking tight end in Nate Boerkircher in the second round is a terrible decision, no matter how you slice it.
And that’s especially true when you consider Jacksonville had much bigger needs at other positions on both sides of the ball.
The Jags then reached a bit for defensive lineman Albert Regis, although he at least has a chance to help in run defense if he can make his way through a crowded room.
We did like their pick of guard Emmanuel Pregnon quite a bit, so there’s that.
After that, the Jaguars doubled-dipped at two different positions, including linebacker and wide receiver, and then they took yet another tight end!
As if all that wasn’t bad enough, there was no edge rusher pick until Round 7, which is pretty much like not picking one at all.
Just a bad two days for head coach Liam Coen and general manager James Gladstone.
We’d like to say we wish the Jags had their first-round pick they gave up for Travis Hunter, but they likely wouldn’t have done much with it, anyway.
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Of course, it’s hard to fully judge just how good or bad teams did because we haven’t seen any of the 257 players drafted from Thursday through Saturday take the field for an NFL practice, let alone a game.
But we can at least somewhat make a determination about how good or bad a team did by looking at a draft class to see if needs were addressed and if there was good value in its selections based on pre-draft projections.
Here’s the three teams that scored the worst grades.
Chicago Bears: C-
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Sep 8, 2025; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Chicago Bears general manager Ryan Poles before the game at Soldier Field. Mandatory Credit: David Banks-Imagn Images
The Bears were off to a great start with the selection of Oregon safety Dillon Thieneman in Round 1. Not only did they get great value, but the Bears filled a big need, also.
But then things went off the rails on Day 2.
The Bears drafted center Logan Jones, who was a projected mid-round pick, in Round 2. He may not even see the field in 2026 with Garrett Bradbury on the roster.
Then, in Round 3, Chicago drafted a potential Cole Kmet replacement for 2027 and No. 3 tight end for Ben Johnson’s “13 personnel” in 2026 in Sam Roush.
In the same round, Chicago took a wide receiver in Zavion Thomas who was a projected late-round pick.
Chicago rebounded on Day 3 with cornerback Malik Muhammad, linebacker Keyshaun Elliott and defensive lineman Jordan van den Berg, but Muhammad is really the only player we’re excited about.
In the end, the Bears didn’t address their biggest need at all, which was edge rusher, and waited until the sixth round to address their second-biggest need, interior defensive line.
For a team with Super Bowl aspirations that needed immediate impact players, it was not a good draft for Chicago.
Arizona Cardinals: C-
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Arizona Cardinals general manager Monti Ossenfort and head coach Mike LaFleur (right) introduce their first-round draft pick running back Jeremiyah Love during a news conference at the Cardinals Dignity Health training facility on April 24, 2026, in Tempe, Ariz.
The Cardinals might have gotten the best player in the draft in running back Jeremiyah Love, but this team is so far off from contending that it just wasn’t the right pick there.
Ossenfort rebounded with guard Chase Bisontis in Round 2, and we didn’t hate or love the selection of quarterback Carson Beck in Round 3 with Arizona’s uncertainty at the position.
But then Monti took an undersized D-lineman in Kaleb Proctor and massively reached for wide receiver Reggie Virgil, who was projected to go late Day 3.
The sixth- and seventh-round picks of linebacker Karson Sharar and offensive tackle Jayden Williams are whatever.
The bottom line is this: Ossenfort needed to nail this draft to improve the Cardinals’ future and save his job and we believe he fell well short of doing that.
Jacksonville Jaguars: D
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Sep 28, 2025; Santa Clara, California, USA; Jacksonville Jaguars head coach Liam Coen looks on during warmups before the game against the San Francisco 49ers at Levi’s Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-Imagn Images
Taking a blocking tight end in Nate Boerkircher in the second round is a terrible decision, no matter how you slice it.
And that’s especially true when you consider Jacksonville had much bigger needs at other positions on both sides of the ball.
The Jags then reached a bit for defensive lineman Albert Regis, although he at least has a chance to help in run defense if he can make his way through a crowded room.
We did like their pick of guard Emmanuel Pregnon quite a bit, so there’s that.
After that, the Jaguars doubled-dipped at two different positions, including linebacker and wide receiver, and then they took yet another tight end!
As if all that wasn’t bad enough, there was no edge rusher pick until Round 7, which is pretty much like not picking one at all.
Just a bad two days for head coach Liam Coen and general manager James Gladstone.
We’d like to say we wish the Jags had their first-round pick they gave up for Travis Hunter, but they likely wouldn’t have done much with it, anyway.
Continue reading...
