Rueben Bain Jr.· Feb 25, 2026
The Miami prospect said he showed he is the best defensive player in the draft and agreed he'd be a top-10, even top-five, pick.
“That I'm the best defensive player in the the draft, the best in the country.”
said on air, transcribed by us · The Rich Eisen Show (podcast) · read the original →
One checkable claim, graded on its own against what actually happened.
The call scored 64.8 out of 100, against 50 for a naive guess at the same calls.
Their call against what happened
overall picktop five (picks 1–5)They said
15What happened
Their call against what actually happened.
Where do you stand? Pick this and every open claim on Picks →
Who this take is about
1 checkable claim in this take
Each one is scored on its own against the published methodology. A pundit naming several outcomes is graded on each, not on all-or-nothing.
- Mock Draft PicksRueben BainFeb 25, 2026
Rueben Bain to be picked “top five” (picks 1–5)
“So you're gonna be a top 10 pick in this draft? God willing, hopefully. Top five? God willing, hopefully.”
Close · 65Scored 64.84a naive guess scored 50How this was scored
- draft:
- 2026
- naive:
- a shuffled mock scores 50
- player:
- Rueben Bain
- season:
- 2025
- zero at:
- 32
- accuracy:
- 64.84
- baseline:
- 50
- actual pick:
- 15
- difficulty:
- 1
- weeks in the season:
- 18
- pick accuracy:
- 64.84
- predicted pick:
- top five (picks 1–5)
- weeks left when called:
- 0
- mock ordering score:
- only one pick — no order to score
What others said about the same people
- Pat FitzmauriceMock Draft Picks · Rueben BainClose · 59Making a third of the mock's picks, he gave Reuben Bain to Arizona at 3, Francis Mauinoa to Cleveland at 6, Jeremiah Love to Kansas City at 9, Mansoor Delane to Dallas at 12, Cassius Howell to Tampa Bay at 15, Avieon Terrell to Minnesota at 18, Makai Lemon to Pittsburgh at 21, KC Concepcion to Cleveland at 24, Kadyn Proctor to San Francisco at 27 and TJ Parker to New England at 30.
- Daniel JeremiahCombine Measurements · Rueben BainClose · 47Jeremiah previewed the combine with a series of draft projections: Ty Simpson ranked around 40th on his board with first-round upside, Garrett Nussmeier landing on Day 2 (more likely third round than second), Jeremiyah Love as a top-10 pick, Jeneian Price as a second-round pick, and Jermal McCoy potentially the first cornerback drafted.
- Matt MillerCombine Measurements · Rueben BainHit · 83Miller expects a consequential Chiefs offseason with Chris Jones potentially traded, predicts Kyler Murray gets traded, and offers draft-board opinions: Jeremiah Love as his top overall player, Makai Lemon as his top receiver ranked eighth overall with a ceiling around pick five, Keldrick Faulk around 20th on his board, plus combine expectations for Reuben Bain's and David Bailey's weights and Malik Muhammad's 40 time.
- Mike RennerCombine Measurements · Rueben BainClose · 64Renner names five favorites, calling Reuben Bain Jr. the best non-quarterback in the class, Caden Proctor a top-five prospect and potentially the best OT in the class, Omar Cooper Jr. a possible first-rounder, Jadarian Price a second-round pick and the class's second-best running back, and Josiah Trotter a top-50 selection.
- Dylan SandersMock Draft Picks · Rueben BainClose · 74Sanders also had Ruben Bain as the most likely Saints selection at No. 8, and projected LSU's Harold Perkins Jr. to be drafted at the end of Day 2.
- Chris ClarkMock Draft Picks · Rueben BainHit · 96Clark expects Delaine to be a high-quality week-one starter at cornerback for Kansas City, and said he wouldn't be surprised if the Ravens took Ruben Bain at No. 14.
More mock draft picks
The same kind of call, about other players and teams.
- Ryan WilsonMock Draft Picks · J.J. McCarthyMiss · 37Recalling his pre-draft evaluation, Wilson notes he had ranked J.J. McCarthy as the fifth quarterback in the 2024 class and given him a second-round grade rather than a first-round one, citing the gap between Michigan's system and NFL demands.
- Lance ZierleinMock Draft Picks · Jeremiyah LoveHit · 100Zierlein laid out his final mock draft: Jeremiah Love at No. 3 to Arizona, Sonny Styles at No. 4 to Robert Saleh's team, and Caleb Downs to the Giants at No. 5. He also called Styles the only first-round linebacker in the class and said Ty Simpson is a lock to be a first-round pick, most likely to Arizona.
- Nick ShookMock Draft Picks · Max IheanachorHit · 88Shook walks through his 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.
- Gregg RosenthalMock Draft Picks · K.C. ConcepcionClose · 68Rosenthal disagrees most with Casey Concepcion being left out of the first round, arguing he could go as high as the top 15 and certainly won't last past receiver-needy teams in the late twenties.
- Daniel JeremiahMock Draft Picks · Keyron CrawfordHit · 81In discussing teams without first-round picks, Jeremiah projected specific Day 2 picks: Clemson WR Antonio Williams to the Falcons at 48, Texas Tech LB Jacob Rodriguez to the Colts in the second round, Oklahoma edge R Mason Thomas to the Packers at 52, and Auburn edge Keiroon Crawford to the Broncos at 62. He also expects Riley Leonard to open as the Colts' starting QB and Travis Hunter to play cornerback full time in Jacksonville.
- Daniel JeremiahMock Draft Picks · Carnell TateHit · 92Jeremiah says Denver, not Kansas City, will be the clear favorite in the AFC West this season; he also puts Carnell Tate sixth and Monroe Freeling twentieth on his prospect board, mocks Tate to Cleveland at No. 6, and expects Georgia receiver Branch to be a Day 2 pick after a strong pro day.