The 'On The Clock' crew of Matt Williamson, Mike Prisuta and Max Starks take a look at the top prospects in the upcoming 2026 NFL Draft, which will be held in Pittsburgh in April. Today, they take a second look at the wide receiver position.
Note: The opinions expressed here are their own and not those of the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Matt's First Look
1. Carnell Tate, Ohio State, 6-2, 192 lbs.
2. Denzel Boston, Washington, 6-4, 212 lbs.
3. Makai Lemon, USC, 5-11, 192 lbs.
4. Jordyn Tyson, Arizona State, 6-2, 203 lbs.
5. KC Concepcion, Texas A&M, 6-0, 196 lbs.
Matt's Thoughts
My final wide receiver top five is certainly different than my original. Now, I would go: Tate, Concepcion, Lemon, Tyson, and then Boston at number five quickly followed by Indiana's Omar Cooper Jr. (6-0, 199 lbs.). While that might sound drastic, the reality is that Tate is clearly the first guy on this list and the others are rather jumbled together. And much of said rankings is very much in the eye of the beholder and greatly dependent on what type of wide receiver you are after and which one fits your scheme best…While all six of the players mentioned are fine prospects and should go on to do good things at the NFL level, there are three wide outs that we might look back on as the best player at this position when it is all said and done. Those three are Tennessee's Chris Brazzell (6-4, 198 lbs.), Louisville's Chris Bell (6-2, 222 lbs.), and Ted Hurst (6-3, 206 lbs.) from Georgia State. All three are physically impressive/overwhelming, but each has a legitimate concern. Brazzell ran an extremely limited route tree in an offense at Tennessee that doesn't immediately translate to the NFL level. Bell is coming off a major injury (torn ACL) that occurred late in the regular season. Hurst obviously comes from a very small school and hasn't proven that he can dominate against top competition. That being said, the best bet might be investing in one of these three-who have every bit the upside of the top six-at a discounted price…Overall, this is a wide receiver draft class that lacks an elite prospect-although that isn't a slight on Tate. The deeper we get into the process, I suspect that wide receivers will fall a bit, especially in the first round. If that is truly the case, the second day of the NFL Draft will be loaded with high quality players at this position. There are about 15 receiver prospects that should warrant consideration within the top 75 picks, and they come in all shapes and sizes with varied skill sets and attributes. As is usually the case in a year after year basis, the NFL should once again be inundated with a quality group of wide receivers entering in the league in 2026.
Mike's First Look
1. Carnell Tate, Ohio State, 6-2, 192 lbs.
2. Makai Lemon, USC, 5-11, 192 lbs.
3. Jordyn Tyson, Arizona State, 6-2, 203 lbs.
4. Denzel Boston, Washington, 6-4, 212 lbs.
5. Malachi Fields, Notre Dame, 6-41/2, 218 lbs.
Mike's Thoughts
Not many if any rankings have Fields in the top five but this is a position group with plenty of options and they'll come off the board as the eyes of the beholders see fit based on need and the specifics of what they're seeking. And I remain bullish on the ability of Iowa sleeper Kaden Wetjen (5-9, 193) to provide many happy returns. Georgia's Dillon Bell (6-03/4, 209) is one of three players in Bulldogs history to have 10-plus career receiving touchdowns and five-plus career rushing touchdowns. Brock Bowers and Hines Ward are the other two. Connecticut's Skyler Bell (5-115/8) can play inside or outside and bring explosive athletic ability to whatever role is assigned. He earned Associated Press First-Team All-America honors and was a finalist for the Biletnikoff Award, along with Lemon (the winner) and Ohio State's Jeremiah Smith. Georgia's Zachariah Branch (5-10, 180) won the Jet Award (nation's top returner) at USC in 2023, when he took a punt and a kickoff return to the house. He has a track background and 4.35-speed, which he uses to turn little plays into big ones. Tennessee's Chris Brazzell II (6-5, 200) inspires reminders of Martavis Bryant as an inviting vertical target. Oklahoma's Deion Burks (5-93/4, 188) was an athletic testing sensation at the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis and can excel providing yards after the catch and on jet sweeps. Texas A&M's KC Concepcion (5-115/8, 196) is considered a potential first-round selection by many based on his inside/outside capabilities and his ability to catch short and run long. He acknowledged to NFL Network reporter Stacey Dales at the Combine that he needs to work to clean up drops Concepcion attributed to lapses in concentration. Indiana's Omar Cooper Jr. (6-01/8, 199) is another potential first-round selection based on productivity that includes finishing fourth in FBS in 2024 with a 21.2-yard average per catch and tied for third in FBS in 2025 with 13 receiving touchdowns. Georgia State's Ted Hurst (6-37/8, 206) is one of four FBS players with 950-plus yards receiving in each of the last two seasons. He excelled at the Senior Bowl and again at the Combine … North Dakota State's Bryce Lance, brother of Trey Lance, is a freakish athlete and the first NDSU player with multiple 1,000-yards receiving seasons. Indiana's Elijah Sarratt (6-2, 213) started at St. Francis (Pa.) and moved on to James Madison before eventually landing in Indiana and leading FBS in 2025 with 15 receiving TDs on the way to winning the national championship. Mississippi's De'Zhaun Stribling is a big guy that can fly (4.36), and one that can show up big in big games (seven catches for 122 yards against Georgia in the College Football Playoff). LSU's Zavion Thomas (5-103/8, 190) drew cheers in Indy when he ran a 4.28 40-yard dash. He has two career touchdowns on kickoff returns and one on a punt return on his resume. Clemson'a Antonio Williams (5-111/2, 187) got NFL Network analyst Daniel Jeremiah's attention because Williams kept showing up making plays as Jeremiah was evaluating cornerbacks. "He's a tough cover," Jeremiah assessed. "Williams is an ideal slot receiver with the upside to be a high-volume pass catcher at the next level."
Max's First Look
1. Carnell Tate, Ohio State, 6-2, 192 lbs.
2. Makai Lemon, USC, 5-11, 192 lbs.
3. Jordyn Tyson, Arizona State, 6-2, 203 lbs.
4. Denzel Boston, Washington, 6-4, 212 lbs.
5. Malachi Fields, Notre Dame, 6-41/2, 218 lbs.
Max's Thoughts
Taking a second look at my initial alignment of receivers and I think that I have a good group in here. I think we could probably change the slotting a little bit based on information, pro days, and as we lead up to the draft hearing a little bit of rumblings from everybody around the league. I would say that Carnell Tate still is the number one receiver in this group and Makai lemon slots now in at the second spot just because the slot receiver does so many things to coverages and the creative ways to him the football makes him a higher priority for a lot of teams. Jordyn Tyson is still the most intriguing receiver, if the health concern is not an issue. He might have the most elite skills of all of the receivers. Denzel Boston is losing a little bit of steam as a big body receiver. They question whether he could separate. I watched his film and I think he's still a solid receiver for 50-50 balls and a guy who has enough straight line speed, and route running to really make himself available to any quarterback. KC Concepcion is kind of a mixed bag of emotions, because the elite speed does not match the ball skills necessarily at all times. But, there's no doubt when the ball is in his hands, however you get it to him, he is going to be a playmaker. One guy who's been gathering steam and I think who cracks into this top five second time around is Omar Cooper Jr. from Indiana. If you watched the playoffs at all, you know who Omar Cooper Jr is! He made Fernando Mendoza's life a lot easier and is an excellent receiver. He can run the entire route tree, has excellent ball skills and When the ball is contested, can snatch in out of the air. Plus he has shifty breakaway speed, so I think if I'm changing this I'm probably moving him into the top five and bump Concepcion on out. I'll move Denzel Boston down to round out my new top five. That doesn't mean to say this class of wide receivers isn't exceptionally deep and a lot of them will go in this year's draft. There's just way too many to name, but I really like where I'm at in the top of this list for Day 1. We can discuss semantics Later.
