NFL Draft 2026 rankings: Top-10 EDGE rushers from a loaded class

With the college football season coming up quickly, it’s time for NFL fans to get acquainted with the next NFL draft class coming up. What the 2025 class lacked in depth at the top of the class, the 2026 group has so much flash and pop at the front of the class at premium positions. The QB class gets the most acclaim, as does the tackle class, but we’re not focusing on those guys yet. Let’s talk about the big guys up front, starting with an EDGE class that I think has a lot of promise. The star power is tantalizing at the top, but throughout the entire group there are guys with the potential to rise up the chart. In fact, some of my favorite players in this class at this early portion in the cycle are in the EDGE class.

So, let’s break down my top ten right now. Remember, this isn’t set in stone and will be fluid by the time we come back around during the college football season.

1 . Keldric Faulk, Junior, Auburn

Faulk is very similar to the freakish prospects who went at the top of last year’s draft like Mykel Williams and Shemar Stewart. Faulk has the size, length and strength to dislodge linemen at the point of attack in the run and passing game. He’s got a good feel for blocking on the inside as a 4i, and as a pass rusher he has the versatility to win from multiple alignments. I would love to see him work more of a pass rush plan going into next season, but for now he’s my top EDGE in the class.

2. TJ Parker, Junior, Clemson

If we’re just talking collection of tools, Parker is in consideration for one of the best prospects in the class overall. He’s a solid 6’3 and 265 pounds, and his ability to convert speed to power as a pass rusher and use a variety of ways to get around the corner is awesome at his size. He’s also a part of a monstrous front at Clemson with another top prospect for 2026, DT Peter Woods. I want Parker to be a bit stronger at the point of attack in the run game in 2025, but he’s on track for the top half of the NFL Draft.

3. David Bailey, Senior, Texas Tech

One of the premier transfers of the offseason, Bailey is in the top five because when he converts speed to power it puts offensive linemen on skates. He’s got good hand placement on his bull rushes that allows him to get a good grip on opponents before pulling past them. He also has a nice counter that, going full speed around the corner. Stanford played him in a lot of…weird places so at Texas Tech I’m hoping just to get more volume reps on the field as an edge, but what he’s shown makes him an easy top five EDGE for me.

4. LT Overton, Senior, Alabama

I was a little surprised Overton went back to school, because if there’s a definition of “grown ass man” in the dictionary, it would be Overton. He’s a MASSIVE edge prospect at 6’5 and 283 pounds, and plays with power up front. He’s got heavy hands and long arms that he uses to displace tackles at the line of scrimmage in the run game and shows off a nice club-rip move in the pass rush game. The reason Overton isn’t higher is because I truly don’t know where he plays in the NFL. He’s a good pass rusher, but most of his best traits are highlighted when lined up over guards. He doesn’t have the lateral quickness or hip fluidity to flatten the corner on the edge, which may limit his ceiling outside. But as a chess piece for a smart DC, he could be very fun in the NFL.

5. R Mason Thomas, Senior, Oklahoma

R Mason Thomas has one thing in his bag that not many others have in this class: blinding speed off the edge. His ability to get vertical then flatten around the corner against tackles is unfair, and he showcases a nice ghost move that leaves a lot of guys frozen on the edge. He’s a lighter prospect at 6’2 and 249 pounds, and doesn’t have the power profile yet to overwhelm guys in the run game, but he gives effort there. Going to be very intrigued by how he produces this season.

Notes on the rest

• Florida EDGE Tyreak Sapp plays with a HOT motor. Lot of urgency and violence to his game. I want to see him expand on his primary pass rush plan lined up on the edge, but he’s a good senior prospect in a draft with a lot of those.
• Oregon’s Matayo Uiagalelei and Miami’s Rueben Bain Jr both have my attention, for differing reasons. Uiagalelei has a lot of acclaim to his name, and for good reason. He plays with a lot of effort and has a good feel for blocking schemes. However, he has no juice to his game. I’m not expecting him to have a lot of speed at 270+ pounds, but you can see that he doesn’t have that second gear to win with explosion, which helps with power players like himself. If he can get more burst when he rushes with power it would help him a lot. Bain Jr struggled with injuries in 2024 after an outstanding freshman campaign, and you could tell he didn’t have that burst he used to. He’s got wrecking ball energy, and if there’s anyone outside the top five who can jump in with a strong season, it’s him.
• Penn State’s Dani Dennis-Sutton is fascinating. He looks like he’s cut out of granite at 6’5 and 272 pounds, but is also a speed only player. If he can’t win within the first three steps he gets going forward the rep is over. I also want to see him improve his feel as a run defender, but with Jim Knowles coming over to call the defense for Penn State, that should improve. He’s a guy I bet teams take a swing on Day 2 for because of his athleticism.
• Rounding out my top 10 is Texas A&M’s Cashius Howell. He’s another guy who wins with speed around the corner first, but also has some nice chops in coverage. He’s undersized and doesn’t really have much power to his game right now, but I love what he can bring as a designated pass rusher.
• Michigan’s Derrick Moore just missed the cut for the top ten. Impressive power player at 256, but I worry sometimes about his angles as a pass rusher and his ability to finish reps.
• Guys I didn’t get to by the time of writing, but I’m intrigued by: Northwestern’s Anto Saka, Texas’ Trey Moore, Illinois’ Gabe Jacas, LSU’s Patrick Payton, Ohio State’s Kenyatta Jackson, Missouri’s Zion Young