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How many players from our 2026 roster will be drafted in the next NFL Draft?

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CanesNation26

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Offseason thought I’ve been kicking around and think could be a fun debate: can the 2026 roster match the 2025 roster in both number and quality of draft picks? To me, the answer to this question will determine whether we can make a deep playoff run again.

The 2025 team was loaded with experienced NFL talent. That was the primary reason we exceeded expectations and made it to the CFB championship. We had 9 guys drafted, including 6 in Days 1-2 (3 OL, 2 DL, 2 DBs, 1 QB, and 1 WR).

For 2026, I have 6 guys I’d currently put in the “likely draft pick” bucket:

- Mark Fletcher

- Samson Okunlola

- Cooper Barkate

- Ahmad Moten

- Justin Scott

- Damon Wilson

To match or beat the 2025 total, we probably need a few juniors, senior LBs, or OL to make a jump and/or declare early. The names I’m watching:

- Darien Mensah (does he declare early?)

- Matthew McCoy (is he as good or better than Anez Cooper, who got drafted in the 6th round?)

- Mohamed Toure / Chase Smith (seems unlikely either will be drafted, but I’m eyeing Toure here given his production and physical traits)

- The junior DBs: OJ Frederique, Xavier Lucas, Omar Thornton, Ethan O’Connor, Zech Poyser, Damari Brown

Certainly doable. Before the 2025 season, I didn’t have Keionte Scott, Jakobe Thomas, or CJ Daniels penciled in as NFL draft picks, and didn’t have Mesidor as a first-rounder.
 
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NYCCaneadian said:
I think 6 is reasonable.

I’d like to see Miami players scattered across NFL teams like the good old days. To do that, we need to have 4-5 players on average drafted every year to account for attrition, NFL cuts etc.
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6 isn’t bad. I’m just not sure we make it to the CFB championship with that number.
 
CanesNation26 said:
NYCCaneadian said:
I think 6 is reasonable.

I’d like to see Miami players scattered across NFL teams like the good old days. To do that, we need to have 4-5 players on average drafted every year to account for attrition, NFL cuts etc.
Click to expand...
6 isn’t bad. I’m just not sure we make it to the CFB championship with that number.
Click to expand...
But this is just who is eligible this year. Some of our best players are still young. This doesn’t take into consideration a Toney or Fitz, for example. I also think guys like Lightfoot and Blount will be on that list if they were to declare. Ideally mid round evals come back in 2027.
 
CreativeCane said:
CanesNation26 said:
NYCCaneadian said:
I think 6 is reasonable.

I’d like to see Miami players scattered across NFL teams like the good old days. To do that, we need to have 4-5 players on average drafted every year to account for attrition, NFL cuts etc.
Click to expand...
6 isn’t bad. I’m just not sure we make it to the CFB championship with that number.
Click to expand...
But this is just who is eligible this year. Some of our best players are still young. This doesn’t take into consideration a Toney or Fitz, for example. I also think guys like Lightfoot and Blount will be on that list if they were to declare. Ideally mid round evals come back in 2027.
Click to expand...
No doubt. But my guess, without verifying, is that no recent CFB championship winner had 6 or less NFL draft picks.

Most recent winners probably had 8-9+ NFL draft picks AND young talent. We probably need both to win it all.
 
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