Way too early Packers 2026 mock draft

Now that the 2025 NFL Draft is over with, now I have decided to make a waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay too early 2026 Packers mock. I am hopeful that the Packers solved their wide receiver room via this past draft, so I actually don’t one going there haha

 

1) Malik Muhammad, CB, Texas

Muhammad is stepping into the top cornerback role with the departure of many Texas defensive backs, including Jahdae Barron, who was drafted in the first round by the Broncos. In 27 games, he has 12 passes defensed, including eight last season, as well as one interception. On the Packers side of things, the Packers lost a pair of cornerbacks in free agency and signed Nate Hobbs, who will likely be in the slot. While Jaire Alexander could come back for one more season, they will need one regardless. If Alexander is back this year, it will likely be for one season, so the Packers will be in desperate need of cornerbacks next season.

 

2) Tyreak Sapp, EDGE, Florida

This season, the Packers did not take an EDGE in the first three rounds. While the sack numbers weren’t terrible, Green Bay took advantage of a few terrible offensive lines to record most of them. Rashan Gary needs to produce more like his contract suggests, while it is a big season upcoming for Lukas Van Ness since he needs to take a big leap in the second season in Jeff Hafley’s defense. Green Bay needs another pass rusher to help out Gary and create a strong rotation. Sapp could go higher than this, honestly, as he totaled seven sacks as a junior after two combined in his first two seasons.

 

3) Jaydn Ott, RB. Oklahoma

Josh Jacobs has been a great pick-up for the Packers and they drafted MarShawn Lloyd last season, but running backs can break down at any moment. In 2026, his contract goes to more than $14 million. I would not be surprised at an extension, but Ott would be a solid backup plan to pair with Lloyd, who missed virtually the entire season last year. In Matt LaFleur’s offense, having three good running backs is extremely beneficial. Ott had a disappointing season last year, led by poor run blocking, so he transferred to Oklahoma. He has a chance to be one of the best running backs in next year’s draft.

 

4) Kyle Louis, LB, Pittsburgh

The Packers didn’t really take a linebacker in this year’s draft class. Collin Oliver could be, but he is much better suited to be a situational pass rusher. Now, with Quay Walker not receiving the fifth-year option (an extension does seem likely, though), the Packers could look at the position to fill in the draft. Green Bay did sign Isaiah Simmons and re-sign Isaiah McDuffie, but the former was to a prove-it deal and the latter to a two-year deal, so it would be surprising to see them go after a linebacker in the draft. He did everything for the Panthers last season, recording 100 tackles, seven sacks, four interceptions and a forced fumble.

 

5) J.C. Davis, OL, Illinois                

Death. Taxes. Packers taking offensive linemen in the NFL Draft. Green Bay has three major free agents in Zach Tom, Rasheed Walker and Sean Rhyan and Brian Gutekunst game planned for that with the signing of Aaron Banks and selection of Anthony Belton. I expect Tom to sign a big extension, but there is high probability the Packers let the other two free agents walk and roll with a starting lineup of Jordan Morgan, Banks, Elgton Jenkins, Belton and Tom in 2026. Green Bay needs depth and it has been able to find offensive line gems in the mid-rounds. He is the starting left tackle for the Illini, but he has played both tackle spots and could kick inside to guard as well.

 

6) Mark Gronowski, QB, Iowa

The Hawkeyes are hoping the transfer from South Dakota could be the answer to their QB issues—at least for one year. The four-year starting quarterback for FCS power South Dakota State, where he led the Jackrabbits to their first two national championships. On the Packers end, Malik Willis is a free agent at season’s end and he’ll likely go to a place where he can compete for the starting spot after having a successful season last year when Jordan Love was out. The Packers will look at a backup quarterback for when Willis moves on and Gronowski could be an option in the later rounds.

 

7) Edric Hill, DL, Alabama

The Packers always grab defensive linemen in the draft, at least one or two a draft. Green Bay has a bunch of decent players at the position, as Kenny Clark, Devonte Wyatt and Karl Brooks all have their moments, but they need a stud at the position, not to mention this very easily could be Clark’s last season in Titletown as his play isn’t worth his hefty contract. I am not sure if he would come in and play immediately a lot, but the Packers hope he hits his ceiling. The Packers drafted Warren Brinson and signed Nazir Stackhouse as a UDFA, so it will be interesting to see how they play. You can never have too many defensive linemen.

Top 20 current coaches who have yet to reach the Final Four

It is about that time again. We are about a month removed from the national championship game with Florida defeating Houston, so now it is time for my to release my new list of top current coaches who have not made the Final Four. From last year’s list, Jon Scheyer graduated since he made the Final Four this season and Leonard Hamilton retired, so here is my newest list:

 

Honorable Mentions:

Penny Hardaway, Memphis (162-68, three NCAA Tournament appearances)

Niko Medved, Minnesota (143-85, three NCAA Tournament appearances)

Kevin Willard, Villanova (335-249, seven NCAA Tournament appearances, one Sweet 16)

Andy Enfield, SMU (285-186, six NCAA Tournament appearances, one Sweet 16, one Elite 8)

Chris Holtmann, DePaul (265-191, seven NCAA Tournament appearances, one Sweet 16)

Steve Alford, Nevada (699-371, 13 NCAA Tournament appearances, four Sweet 16s)

Ben Jacobsen, Northern Iowa (374-246, four NCAA Tournament appearances, one Sweet 16)

Danny Sprinkle, Washington (122-68, three NCAA Tournament appearances)

Fran McCaffery, Penn (548-384, 12 NCAA Tournament appearances)

Mike Young, Virginia Tech (404-329, seven NCAA Tournament appearances)

 

20. Steve Pikiell, Rutgers (344-314, three NCAA Tournament appearances)

Even after a bad year—especially considering expectations—I decided not to move him off him the list. With two possible top five picks, the Scarlet Knights did not make the NCAA Tournament. While Pikiell is no doubt a solid coach, the Scarlet Knights have just recorded 20+ wins once in nine seasons and haven’t won more than 10 Big Ten games since 2021-22. However, Rutgers was a dumpster fire before he arrived in Piscataway. Rutgers had not made the Big Dance since 1991 prior to his arrival. Pikiell has turned around the program in a big way. In 2021, he led the Scarlet Knights to their first NCAA Tournament win since 1983 and nearly upset No. 2 seed Houston in the second round. He had three below .500 seasons with Rutgers to start his career, but then it all came together. Rutgers had only once made back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances (1975-76) before making it to two straight seasons in 2021 and 2022. Before going to New Jersey, he had a big turnaround at Stony Brook, winning just four games in his first year to a program that reached the postseason in six of his final seven seasons, culminating with an NCAA Tournament appearance in 2016.

 

19. Ed Cooley, Georgetown (361-261, seven NCAA Tournament appearances, one Sweet 16)

Cooley made a big improvement this season from year one to year two at Georgetown. After leading the Hoyas to two wins in league play in year one, Cooley led Georgetown to eight wins in Big East play, the most since 2018-19 when the Hoyas recorded nine league wins in Patrick Ewing’s second season at the helm. In his first five tournament appearances, his team only advanced past the first round once, but made it to the second weekend in 2022 and put a scare into eventual national champion Kansas and actually had the lead with under six minutes to play. Cooley will have the Hoyas as a perennial NCAA Tournament team shortly under Cooley.

 

18. Pat Kelsey, Louisville (288-130, five NCAA Tournament appearances)

There should be no surprise he is on the list. Most may argue that he should be higher, and I could definitely buy that. Kelsey turned around a Louisville team from eight wins in 2023-24 the year before he came to 27 in his first year, a trip to the ACC Tournament title game and an NCAA Tournament berth. For his efforts, he was named ACC Coach of the Year. He started his collegiate head coaching career at Winthrop, where he turned around a team that had 12 wins the season before he arrived to a 23-2 mark in his final season, which earned the Eagles a No. 12 seed in the NCAA Tournament. He took a job at College of Charleston in 2021-22 and all he did was lead the Cougars to a pair of conference titles and tournament berths, where it helped him earn the job at Louisville. The Cardinals have a good one in Kelsey, who could leave this list shortly with all the materials at his disposal with the Cardinals.

 

17. Mark Byington, Vanderbilt (239-146, two NCAA Tournament appearances)

In year one, Mark Byington had a sensational year one for Vanderbilt, leading the Commodores to 20 wins in his first season in Nashville and their first trip to the NCAA Tournament since 2017. During year one, Vanderbilt posted five victories against top 25 teams, including four against top 15 opponents. He took over a program that had only two winning seasons in five years under Jerry Stackhouse. Prior to coming over to Vanderbilt, he spent four seasons at James Madison, where he led the Dukes to 82 victories, including 32 in 2023-24, leading them to the second round of the NCAA Tournament. Before JMU, he led Georgia Southern to 131-97 in seven seasons, including three straight 20-win seasons to finish his tenure with the Eagles. It will be interesting to see how he does with Vanderbilt going forward in the brutal SEC.

 

16. Kevin Young, BYU (26-10, one NCAA Tournament appearance, one Sweet 16)

Young had some big shoes to fill, following the departure of Mark Pope to Kentucky. He did so in a big way, leading the Cougars to their first Sweet 16 appearance since 2011 before Alabama made approximately 700 3-pointers—at least it seemed that way, anyway—to send BYU home. In the brutal Big 12, he led BYU to a 14-6 record in league play. This is his first college head coaching job after spending more than a decade in the NBA and the NBA G-League. An interesting note on Wikipedia about him…he is the great-great-great-great-grandson of Lorenzo Young, the brother of BYU's founder and namesake, Brigham Young. It doesn’t mean anything, but I found it interesting. With the NIL money flowing into the school, it would not shock me to see Young reach the Final Four in the not-too-distant future.

 

15. Grant McCasland, Texas Tech (403-141, three NCAA Tournament appearances, one Elite 8)

Grant McCasland makes his debut on the list after leading Texas Tech to an appearance in the Elite 8, where they could not hold a nine-point lead in the final three minutes and lost to eventual national champion Florida. The Gators finished the contest on an 18-4 spurt to send them to the Final Four and leave the Red Raiders to think what could have been. Still, Texas Tech made major strides in year two under McCasland after falling in the first round of the NCAA Tournament in year one. He’ll have a heck of an opportunity this season with reigning Big 12 Player of the Year and All-American JT Toppin returning for the 2025-26 season. While with the Mean Green, he compiled a 135-65 mark, making the postseason four times, including one NCAA Tournament berth in which they upset Purdue in overtime and made the second round. In his final season in Denton, he guided UNT to the NIT title. He has things moving in the right direction in Lubbock.

 

14. Ben McCollum, Iowa (426-95, one NCAA Tournament appearance)

McCollum is making his first appearance on this list after a fantastic year in his only season at Drake after coming over from Northwest Missouri State (Division II), where he built a dynasty, compiling a 395-91 mark and four national championships in his last eight years and it could have been five if COVID hadn’t forced a cancellation of that season’s tournament. He brought over Bennett Stirtz and the Bulldogs rolled to a 31-4 record and upset of Missouri in the first round. Now he takes over a middling Iowa team that hasn’t reached the second weekend of the NCAA Tournament this millennium. If anyone can do it, McCollum can. It is a brutal Big Ten now with the additions of the four Pac 12 schools, but on the surface, the Hawkeyes made a home run hire this offseason,

 

13. Jamie Dixon, TCU (504-249, 14 NCAA Tournament appearances, two Sweet 16s, one Elite 8)

Dixon has been a great coach for a number of years, from Pittsburgh to TCU. After 328 wins at Pitt, he took his talents to his alma mater and has not skipped a beat. Before a down season this past year, he won at least 20 games in each of the prior three seasons, bringing relevance to a program that was a dumpster fire before he got there. Even in a down season, he still finished .500 and his ninth-place finish in the Big 12 is as good as Trent Johnson did. He took over a dormant program after Johnson couldn’t win in his four years with the program. TCU only had one winning season and was a combined 8-64 in conference play, never finishing higher than ninth in the conference. Prior to Dixon, TCU had not made either the NCAA Tournament or NIT since 2005, and not made the Big Dance this millennium. The one thing he needs to improve upon is his 69-93 mark in league play, never finishing above .500.

 

12. Will Wade, North Carolina State (246-105, seven NCAA Tournament appearances, one Sweet 16)

It was just a matter of time before Wade decided to move on to a bigger job. Not before he made his mark on McNeese, though, leading the Cowboys to an upset of Clemson in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. The marriage could not have gone much better for Wade and McNeese, as Wade repaired his image while leading McNeese to two of its best seasons in program history. Wade had a terrific stint with LSU prior to McNeese, leading the Tigers to 105 victories in not quite five full seasons, including an SEC championship and Sweet 16 appearance in 2019. Between McNeese and LSU, he would have led his teams to NCAA Tournament appearances in each of his last six seasons, as the Tigers would have made it in during the COVID season. I don’t doubt he’ll have the Wolfpack ready to go and compete for an ACC crown soon, especially if the league was as down as it was last season.

 

11. Randy Bennett, St. Mary’s (562-222, 11 NCAA Tournament appearances, one Sweet 16)

Bennett has been a mainstay in college basketball for years and has put together one of the most consistently good programs in the country. He is coming off leading the Gaels to one of their best seasons ever, winning 29 games and the West Coast Conference regular season title. The 29 victories are the second-most in program history. Unfortunately for him and St. Mary’s, it didn’t translate to as much NCAA Tournament success as it hoped for, as the Gaels lost to Alabama in the second round of the Big Dance. That has been a theme for Bennett. With the exception of the COVID-shortened season, SMC has won at least 20 games every year since 2007-08, including at least 25 wins on 14 occasions in that time period. However, the Gaels have reached the Sweet 16 just once in that time—in 2009-10. He has been a remarkable regular season coach, but will he be a coach who can’t win the big one or finally make a run and make the trip to the Final Four after so many misses Matt Painter, Tony Bennett or Bo Ryan. When Bennett arrived in 2001, he inherited a program that went 2-27 and has turned it into one of top mid-major programs in the country. It will be interesting to see if he can finally make that run.

 

10. Mark Pope, Kentucky (211-120, three NCAA Tournament appearances, one Sweet 16)

Pope took the job at his alma mater and ran with it, guiding Kentucky to a Sweet 16 appearance in his first season at the helm. After four 20-win seasons in five years, he led the Wildcats to 24 wins and a No. 3 seed in the NCAA Tournament. The Sweet 16 berth was amazingly the first appearance in the second weekend for the Wildcats since 2019. I think he will eventually get his Wildcats to the Final Four, but if he doesn’t, it won’t be for a lack of resources since it is rumored that Kentucky will have an NIL budget of more than $20 million.

9. Greg Gard, Wisconsin (212-117, seven NCAA Tournament appearances, two Sweet 16s)

It was a terrific coaching job by Gard this season. Gone were leading scorer AJ Storr and long-time starters Tyler Wahl and Chucky Hepburn. All Gard did was lead the Badgers to an even better season in 2024-25 behind All-American John Tonje, a guy who was originally transferring to New Mexico after getting injured and missing most of the previous season for Missouri. In addition to Tonje’s emergence, a group of Nolan Winter, John Blackwell, Carter Gilmore and Kamari McGee took major leaps under the new-and-improved offense, one that dropped 116 (!!!!) points in a 31-point beatdown of Iowa in January. However, the one monkey on his back is that he has not made the second weekend since 2017. This season, it was a two-point defeat at the hands of hot-shooting BYU. On paper, this looks like a better transfer group coming in, but it will be hard to replace three seniors, including Tonje, as well as most of the bench. But with his new offense, the arrow is pointed up for Gard and the Badgers.

 

8. Buzz Williams, Maryland (373-228, 11 NCAA Tournament appearances, three Sweet 16s, one Elite 8)

Buzz Williams spent five or six seasons in each of his last three stops: Marquette, Virginia Tech and Texas A&M. After six years with the Aggies and three NCAA Tournament appearances, he decided it was time to move on. With jobs in the Big East, ACC and SEC now complete, he chose to take a job in the Big Ten and is heading to Maryland. His Aggies recorded four consecutive seasons of at least 20 wins, but none of three NCAA Tournament teams made it past the first weekend. Before A&M, he had a strong season with Virginia Tech. With the Hokies, he led them to the Sweet 16 for the first time since 1966-67 and nearly knocked off Duke. Before Virginia Tech, he averaged more than 23 wins per season with Marquette and made the Sweet 16 twice and an Elite 8. The former Mike McConathy assistant has a good program and will keep Maryland toward the top of the Big Ten for years to come.

 

7. Brad Underwood, Illinois (274-128, nine NCAA Tournament appearances, one Elite 8)

Underwood has been a consistently good coach, leading the Illinois to one of the best records in the Big Ten every single year, but he struggles to make the second weekend, much less the Final Four. He and Wisconsin’s Greg Gard are in a similar boat. This past year, his team was bounced in the second round by Kentucky in a friendly home environment in Milwaukee. In 2024, he advanced to the Elite 8 for the first time before being blasted by UConn. This past season, his team dealt with sickness and injuries. It will be interesting to see how the team bounces back this year. After an incredible run at Stephen F. Austin in which he led the Lumberjacks to an 89-14 record and an incredible 53-1 conference record, he led the Oklahoma State Cowboys to the tournament in 2017. It feels like just a matter of time for Underwood to break through, although I say it with a lot of the coaches on this list.

 

6. Eric Musselman, USC (238-111, six NCAA Tournament appearances, two Sweet 16s, two Elite 8s)

After a down year in his first season at USC and the Big Ten, Musselman moves down a bit, but he is still well inside the top 10. However, Musselman has two straight seasons with below .500 records and three straight with under .500 records during conference play. Still, he showed up during NCAA Tournament berth, as he led the Arkansas Razorbacks to three straight seasons in the second weekend post-COVID, including two Elite 8 appearances. Even at 22-14, he led his No. 9 seed Razorbacks to the Sweet 16. Before landing in Fayetteville, he turned around a Nevada program that posted just nine wins in the season prior to his arrival. In his first season there, he led Nevada to a 15-win increase in 2015-16 and a CBI championship. In his next three seasons, he led them to three consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances and a berth in the Sweet 16 in 2018.

 

5. Greg McDermott, Creighton (630-366, 13 NCAA Tournament appearances, two Sweet 16s)

McDermott has turned Creighton into a true force. He has led the Blue Jays to at least 20 wins in all but one of his seasons in Omaha, including 25 in each of his past two seasons. In the five seasons since the COVID year, he has led the Blue Jays to an Elite 8 appearance and two berths in the Sweet 16. Last year, they were a No. 9 seed and dominated Louisville in the first round before giving Auburn all it could handle before falling. Ryan Kalkbrenner is gone, but Creighton will be back at it again. The future is bright for McDermott and he will continue to be in the upper echelon of the Big East.

 

4. Chris Mack, College of Charleston (302-142, eight NCAA Tournament appearances, three Sweet 16s, one Elite 8)

Chris Mack is back for another season at the College of Charleston after leading the Cougars to a 24-9 record, trying to build on what Pat Kelsey built before taking the Louisville job last offseason. His two best years at Xavier, in 2015-16 and 2017-18, were spoiled before the second weekend by Wisconsin and Florida State, respectively. He hasn’t made the second weekend since 2017 and probably won’t at Charleston. Despite his failure at Louisville, Mack is a heck of a coach who will be back with a power program soon.

 

3. T.J. Otzelberger, Iowa State (194-108, six NCAA Tournament appearances, two Sweet 16s)

After a so-so tenure at UNLV, his stock has only gone up since coming to Iowa State. He has won 95 games in his first three seasons in Ames, including 25 this past year. Otzelberger has led ISU to the NCAA Tournament in all four years with two appearances in the Sweet 16. The Cyclones were a juggernaut once again this season before injuries hit them and dropped them to a No. 3 seed and falling in the second round. Starting 17-2, Iowa State was hit the injury bug before going 8-8 the rest of the season. If the Cyclones were healthy all year, they could have made it to the Final Four this past season, but I think TJ will make it eventually.

 

2. Tommy Lloyd, Arizona (112-33, four NCAA Tournament appearances, three Sweet 16s)

All Tommy Lloyd has done with the Arizona Wildcats is win. He has not reached an Elite 8 like his predecessor at Arizona—and No. 1 on this list—Sean Miller did, but still, 112 wins in four years (28 per season) is impressive. After a sluggish start to the season, he rebounded the Wildcats to a No. 4 seed in the NCAA Tournament and a spot in the Sweet 16, not to mention a pair of conference regular season titles. He was looked at as a rising star in the coaching profession at Gonzaga and the possible heir apparent once Mark Few retired. There is still a lot of time before the start of the season, but Arizona looks to be in prime position to have another strong season. It just seems like it is a matter of time before he reaches the Final Four. I will say, though, I said that about Sean Miller a number of times, so we’ll see.

 

1. Sean Miller, Texas (487-196, 13 NCAA Tournament appearances, five Sweet 16s, four Elite 8s)

It did not take long for Sean Miller to be back in a power conference. After three years at Xavier with a pair of NCAA Tournament appearances, Miller was hired at Texas. He’ll have all the resources he needs to try to complete what he did at Arizona. Before being fired by Arizona, he was a monster there, going 302-109 in 12 seasons, winning at least 30 games four times. He led the Wildcats to the Elite 8 on four occasions. Arguably his two best teams ran into Frank Kaminsky in both 2014 and 2015. He has been so close before, leading his teams to nine trips to the second weekend and four to the Elite, but cannot make that final step. Sean Miller is too good of a coach to finish his career without a berth in the Final Four. He’ll step into a loaded conference, one in which boasts the national champion Florida Gators, so it will be interesting to see how her fares.