The 2026 NFL Draft is less than three weeks away, and the news is coming fast. Dane Brugler’s draft guide just dropped, the projected No. 1 pick, Fernando Mendoza, won’t be in Pittsburgh for the festivities, and the Houston Texans are locking up two cornerstones from their 2023 draft class.
Fernando Mendoza Won’t Be in Pittsburgh for the Draft
The projected No. 1 pick will be watching from somewhere else on April 23.
Fernando Mendoza is not planning to attend this month’s NFL Draft in Pittsburgh (via Alexa Belcastro of NBC’s local Las Vegas affiliate News 3), meaning if the Raiders take the Heisman Trophy winner with the top selection as expected, he’ll become the first No. 1 pick not in attendance since Travon Walker opted to watch from Atlanta in 2022. Trevor Lawrence also skipped the draft in 2021, so it’s not unprecedented at the top of the board, but it’s still notable given the circumstances.
Mandatory Credit: Aaron Doster-Imagn ImagesThe trend of prospects skipping the green room has accelerated since the COVID-19 pandemic forced a virtual draft in 2020. From 2010 to 2019, an average of 24 players attended in person each year. Since 2021, that number has dropped to 16 per year, with just 12 making the trip to Cleveland in 2021 and 13 in Detroit in 2024. For last year’s draft in Green Bay, 17 prospects attended. Factors such as draft projections, family logistics, marketing opportunities, and travel have contributed to the decline in numbers.
As for Mendoza, all signs point to him watching with the Raiders’ brass nearby, and the broadcast will almost certainly cut to a live reaction camera wherever he lands on draft night. Las Vegas made its intentions clear when roughly 10 members of the organization, including GM John Spytek and head coach Klint Kubiak, attended his pro day on April 2 and met with him afterward.
The Raiders also recently signed Kirk Cousins to add veteran depth to the quarterback room ahead of Mendoza’s expected arrival. Cousins said on Good Morning Football today, “I do think Fernando is going to be a great addition to our team,” all but confirming what we’ve already assumed for months.
"I do think Fernando is going to be a great addition to our team" ?@KirkCousins8 on the possibility of getting to work with @fernandomendoza on the @Raiders pic.twitter.com/S8zK7YzChs
— Good Morning Football (@gmfb) April 8, 2026Dane Brugler’s “The Beast” Is Out (It’s a Must-Read Before the Draft)
If you follow the NFL Draft at all, you already know the name. Dane Brugler’s annual draft guide — “The Beast” — is the gold standard of pre-draft resources, and the 2026 edition is now live over at The Athletic.
This year’s version comes loaded with new features. An explore page lets you filter and sort more than 2,700 prospects by position, school, draft grade, or combine measurement. There’s video and film analysis on dozens of top prospects in collaboration with The Athletic Football Show. And for the first time, Brugler is expanding the overall rankings to include the full Top 300 ahead of draft weekend. Oh, and if you’re the type who likes to print the whole thing out and spread it across your kitchen table, it’ll run you 600-plus pages, so good luck with that.
According to Brugler, The Beast is the product of thousands of hours of interviews, film study, and conversations with scouts, coaches, agents, and front office decision-makers. There’s nothing else quite like it, and with the draft just weeks away, now is the time to dig in.
You can find the full guide at The Athletic.
The Beast is here!The 2026 NFL Draft Guide is now available (interactive and PDF). t.co/G487PtkKFP
— Dane Brugler (@dpbrugler) April 8, 2026Texans Picking Up Fifth-Year Options on C.J. Stroud and Will Anderson Jr.
Houston is keeping its 2023 draft class cornerstones around for at least one more year, according to ESPN’s Field Yates.
The Texans are picking up the 2027 fifth-year options on both quarterback C.J. Stroud and edge rusher Will Anderson Jr. The two were taken back-to-back in the 2023 draft: Stroud at No. 2, Anderson at No. 3 after a trade up, and both won Rookie of the Year awards in their first season while helping Houston return to the playoffs for the first time in three years. The decision to exercise both options is not surprising, but the situations surrounding each player couldn’t be more different.
Anderson’s option is a no-brainer. The third-year pass rusher was a first-team All-Pro last season after setting career highs across the board with 12 sacks, 20 tackles for loss, and three forced fumbles, and has quietly established himself as one of the best edge rushers in football. At $21.5 million in 2027, he’ll almost certainly be extended well before that option year ever comes into play.
Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-Imagn ImagesStroud’s situation is more complicated. The numbers have trended in the wrong direction since his dazzling rookie campaign, when he threw for 4,108 yards, 23 touchdowns, and just five interceptions.
Over the last two seasons, he’s been less accurate and more turnover-prone, and he missed time with a concussion in 2025 before finishing with a career-low 3,041 yards, 19 touchdowns, and eight interceptions. season didn’t help his case, either; four of his five interceptions across Houston’s two playoff games came in a divisional-round loss to the Patriots.
Stroud’s option will cost $25.9 million in 2027, and while exercising it keeps the door open, it doesn’t resolve the longer-term question of whether he’s the franchise quarterback Houston needs him to be.
Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn ImagesExtra Points
The Giants are signing G Daniel Faalele on a one-year deal. Faalele played for the new Giants head coach, John Harbaugh, in Baltimore. Speaking of Baltimore:It’s official!We will debut a new uniform collection this year built for the next era of Ravens football. The Next Flight arrives April 16. pic.twitter.com/hKV8K8BT3G
— Baltimore Ravens (@Ravens) April 7, 2026 We’re also only a week away from the Washington Commanders unveiling their new threads, which will drop on April 15. Falcons offensive lineman Kaleb McGary announced his retirement from the NFL on Wednesday. McGary was the starting right tackle for the Falcons, creating a hole they’ll need to address, especially with two left-handed quarterbacks on the roster in Atlanta. ESPN insider Jeremy Fowler shared what he’s hearing around the league ahead of this month’s NFL Draft:Latest at ESPN: What NFL execs, scouts are saying about the NFL draft's most polarizing prospectsA pair of Alabama prospects, Ty Simpson an Kadyn Proctor, are on the list. t.co/JqeoaIUa1C
— Jeremy Fowler (@JFowlerESPN) April 8, 2026Hence then, the article about around the nfl fernando mendoza won t be at the nfl draft texans exercise options on stroud and anderson more was published today ( ) and is available on Bleacher Nation ( Middle East ) The editorial team at PressBee has edited and verified it, and it may have been modified, fully republished, or quoted. You can read and follow the updates of this news or article from its original source.
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