# Dan Patrick: Patrick says Ohio State's Sonny Styles will be a top-ten pick and may have moved even higher after their combine testing. They also argue Fernando Mendoza is the only legitimate first-round quarterback in the class while Ty Simpson will get a surge of pre-draft hype. **Claimed:** Feb 27, 2026 **Pundit:** Dan Patrick — https://missedtakes.co/pundits/dan-patrick **Outlet:** The Dan Patrick Show (podcast) — https://missedtakes.co/outlets/the-dan-patrick-show-podcast **How it reached us:** said on air or in an interview **Original:** https://omny.fm/shows/the-dan-patrick-show/hour-1-the-nfl-combine-is-a-guilty-pleasure-chet-vs-wemby 2 checkable claims — 1 mock draft pick and 1 position order call — each graded on its own rather than as one all-or-nothing call. It names 2 players and teams, each linked to their own record. All 2 have settled, averaging 100 out of 100, against 41.5 for a naive guess at the same calls. > that player is Sonny Styles, who is going to be a top ten pick, but he may have moved up even a little bit higher than that *(their words, quoted for attribution)* ## The claims - **Sonny Styles to be picked “top ten pick” (picks 1–10)** - Kind: Mock Draft Picks · About: Sonny Styles - Verdict: scored 100 out of 100, against 50 for a naive guess - **Fernando Mendoza to be 1st quarterback off the board** - Kind: Position Order Calls · About: Fernando Mendoza - Verdict: scored 100 out of 100, against 33.08 for a naive guess ## Who this take is about - Sonny Styles — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/players/sonny-styles - Fernando Mendoza — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/players/fernando-mendoza ## What others said about the same people - Walt on Fernando Mendoza: In a running series of coach/GM hiring and firing grades, Walt projects Fernando Mendoza as the No. 1 overall pick of the Raiders in the 2026 draft and has LSU's Garrett Nussmeier going No. 2 overall in their 2026 mock draft. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/29bb2d31-fbe3-40db-b378-be5ba5d990b0 (scored 100) - Lance Zierlein on Sonny Styles: Zuerlein describes their mock draft 3.0: Carnell Tate to the Giants at No. 5, Sonny Styles falling to the Cowboys at No. 12, and Colton Hood to Dallas at No. 20. They also expect runs on linebackers from the late twenties to about pick 45, defensive tackles from the early-mid twenties into the 40s, and says Ahvion Terrell's 4.65 forty knocks them out of first-round contention. They call Kenyon Saddiq and Mansoor Delaine the safest picks for Dallas, and thinks Delaine's tape is top-four caliber, while Jeremiah Smith could be a generational, Megatron-type receiver. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/3f8e6478-8ee7-441e-b2d1-d0a10233c34a (scored 80.52) - Nick Wright on Sonny Styles: Nick Wright unveiled their full 32-pick 2026 NFL mock draft 4.0, starting with Fernando Mendoza to the Raiders at No. 1 and ending with Avion Terrell to the Seahawks at 32. They also called Carnell Tate the best/safest receiver in the class, projected Ty Simpson inside the top 45, said Mendoza profiles as a low-end top-15 NFL quarterback, and expected the Dolphins to lose 15 games. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/3c5ad8a4-034f-4abb-8806-20dd9e44b5c6 (scored 91.7) - Danny Parkins on Fernando Mendoza: Danny Parkins presented their one-and-only 2026 mock draft, including trades: Mendoza at 1 to the Raiders, David Bailey second to the Jets, the Cowboys trading up to No. 3 for Arvell Reese, the Bears trading up to 16 for Kadyn Proctor, and Ty Simpson going to Arizona at 32 at the end of round one. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/d98bca2f-5fc3-4f68-8389-30f9a2cb906f (scored 100) - David Harrison on Sonny Styles: Harrison delivers their only first-round mock draft for the 2026 NFL Draft, projecting all 32 first-round picks (including several trades) plus the rest of Washington's projected class, while noting it is an exercise in what could happen rather than a firm forecast. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/5cc44fc1-4ff9-447a-9c32-5f715fa6e9ba (scored 91.7) - Daniel Jeremiah on Fernando Mendoza: Daniel Jeremiah's final 2026 NFL mock draft, projecting the first round pick by pick (including mock trades), starting with Fernando Mendoza to the Raiders at No. 1 and ending with Peter Woods to the Ravens via a trade with Seattle. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/0fbc7597-86ee-4037-a1e6-4b062ff9f12c (scored 100) ## More position order calls The same kind of call, about other players and teams. - Joe Marino on Arvell Reese: Marino stacks 14 inside linebackers in the 2026 NFL draft class and assigns each a round-value grade, with Sonny Styles first (top-10 grade) and Anthony Hill third; they say Hill would be their preferred pick if Buffalo takes a linebacker at No. 26. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/fa349c5e-12c5-4b82-84ad-aff5d3bba78b (scored 100) - Ian Rapoport on Tetairoa McMillan: Rapoport said Travis Hunter is likely the pick at No. 2 for the Browns, that Shedeur Sanders is in play at No. 3, and predicted Tetairoa McMillan would be the first receiver drafted. They also expected Brock Purdy's next deal to land around $50 million per year with Dak Prescott remaining the only quarterback above $60 million. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/ab1b5fb3-d399-4b59-87fa-3e683b3cad77 (scored 70.71) - Peter Schrager on Tetairoa McMillan: Schrager laid out their top 10 prospects entering the 2025 combine, with Travis Hunter first, Abdul Carter second and Tyler Warren third, and attached draft-range calls to several of them — Will Johnson in the first round, Mason Graham a top-five pick, Ashton Jeanty a first-rounder, Tyler Warren not escaping the top ten, and Cam Ward a top-five to top-ten pick who will start as a rookie. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/6346ea38-e7e1-45a3-a146-5231338dd001 (scored 70.71) - Matty Lane on Spencer Fano: Maddie Lane said Spencer Fano is clearly the first tackle off the board, that the top four players in their mock will be four of the first five picks, that Malik Mohammed goes ahead of Igbunosin, and that Blake Miller would beat out Jalen Moore for the Chiefs' starting job. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/61fb26a0-be21-4ad0-bc4f-de49db439f63 (scored 100) - Nick Shook on Francis Mauigoa: Shook walks through their full first-round mock draft, assigning a prospect to every pick from No. 1 to No. 32, headlined by Fernando Mendoza to the Raiders, David Bailey to the Jets and Jeremiah Love to the Cardinals in the top three. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/7d4209aa-2e2d-47a2-b6e5-791d16d209cb (scored 70.71) - Daniel Jeremiah on Spencer Fano: Jeremiah's Mock Draft 3.0, discussed pick by pick: Mendoza first overall, Arvell Reese to the Jets at 2, Francis Mauigoa to the Cardinals at 3, Jeremiyah Love to the Titans at 4, Sonny Styles to the Giants at 5, and on through the first round. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/81b98180-a971-4b4f-a610-5aa2906a1ea5 (scored 70.71) --- Accuracy is 0-100 against what actually happened. The naive guess is what a strategy requiring no knowledge would have scored on the same call — the difference is the skill, and it is what the MissedTakes Score averages. Full method: https://missedtakes.co/methodology We summarize what a pundit said and quote a short span for attribution; we never republish their article. If this is wrong, tell us: https://missedtakes.co/corrections?pundit=dan-patrick