Sports

There Are 8 NFL Teams That Haven't Made 2026 Draft Pick Yet

The 2026 NFL Draft didn't see a whole lot of big trades in the top-10 and none at all in the top five unlike last year. But a few teams traded out of the round entirely by the end of the night.

Going into the draft, several teams had already conceded that they wouldn't be drafting in the first round through pre-draft trades, some of which go all the way back to last year. But by the end of the night, only 24 teams wound up picking anyone with the top 32 selections.

Here are the eight that won't be picking until tonight at the very earliest and when they're slated to pick as of writing:

 January 7, 2026; The 2026 NFL Draft logo is displayed atop the NFL Draft countdown clock.
January 7, 2026; The 2026 NFL Draft logo is displayed atop the NFL Draft countdown clock. © Ethan Morrison / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The 49ers and Bills are fairly new to this list, having traded back out of the first round on draft night in order to stockpile more draft picks. The others all gave up their first-round picks as part of trades that took place anywhere from one week to one year ago.

It is also worth noting that five of the eight teams made the playoffs last year. NFL teams that have already made the playoffs and are looking for a combination of short-term depth and long-term prospects with the highest upside can afford to make sacrifices now that can benefit the future.

Teams like the Bengals, Colts and Falcons that didn't make the playoffs might actually be in better shape thanks to the players they've acquired through those pre-draft trades. The Bengals got Pro Bowl DL Dexter Lawrence and the Colts got Pro Bowl CB Sauce Gardner.

Only the Falcons seem to be worse for wear, mostly because they traded that pick to land James Pearce Jr. in last year's draft. And Pearce seems far more likely to be unemployed before the end of the 2026 season than playing in the Pro Bowl.

Will any of the teams that didn't have a first-round pick this year regret not taking a player last night?

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This story was originally published April 24, 2026 at 12:07 PM.

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