# Nick Baumgardner: The Athletic's draft analyst assessed several 2026 prospects: Ruben Bain as a top-15/20 rather than top-5/10 prospect, Kenyon Sadiq as a clear first-round tight end going anywhere from 15 into the 20s, Jeremiah Love as a top-five player on their board who fits the Chiefs in the top ten, Ty Simpson as a possible late-first-round pick, Fernando Mendoza as the class's only certain first-round QB, and Garrett Nussmeyer as QB3. **Claimed:** Feb 28, 2026 **Pundit:** Nick Baumgardner — https://missedtakes.co/pundits/nick-baumgardner **Outlet:** Fox Sports Radio (podcast) — https://missedtakes.co/outlets/fox-sports-radio-podcast **How it reached us:** said on air or in an interview **Original:** https://omny.fm/shows/fox-sports-radio-weekends/fna-with-kevin-figgers-adam-auslund-debate-luka-and-the-lakers-problem-the-nfl-draft-combine-nick-baumgardner-joins-the-show 9 checkable claims — 6 mock draft picks and 3 position order calls — each graded on its own rather than as one all-or-nothing call. It names 8 players and teams, each linked to their own record. All 9 have settled, averaging 78.8 out of 100, against 42.4 for a naive guess at the same calls. > I think he's more of a maybe a top fifteen, top twenty prospect. *(their words, quoted for attribution)* ## The claims - **Garrett Nussmeier to be 3rd quarterback off the board** - Kind: Position Order Calls · About: Garrett Nussmeier - Verdict: scored 8.84 out of 100, against 33.08 for a naive guess - **Jeremiyah Love to be picked “the Chiefs there in the top ten” (picks 1–10)** - Kind: Mock Draft Picks · About: Jeremiyah Love - Verdict: scored 100 out of 100, against 50 for a naive guess - **Rueben Bain to be picked “a top fifteen, top twenty prospect” (picks 1–15)** - Kind: Mock Draft Picks · About: Rueben Bain, Miami Dolphins - Verdict: scored 100 out of 100, against 50 for a naive guess - **Ty Simpson to be picked “could be a first round pick somewhere ... late twenties” (picks 1–32)** - Kind: Mock Draft Picks · About: Ty Simpson - Verdict: scored 100 out of 100, against 50 for a naive guess - **Kenyon Sadiq to be picked “certainly a first round pick ... anywhere from fifteen all the way down into the twenties” (picks 1–32)** - Kind: Mock Draft Picks · About: Kenyon Sadiq - 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 - **Fernando Mendoza to be picked “first round quarterback” (picks 1–32)** - Kind: Mock Draft Picks · About: Fernando Mendoza - Verdict: scored 100 out of 100, against 50 for a naive guess - **Cole Payton to be picked “pushing into the first round or somewhere up into the top fifty” (picks 1–32)** - Kind: Mock Draft Picks · About: Cole Payton - Verdict: scored 0.18 out of 100, against 50 for a naive guess - **Kenyon Sadiq to be 1st tight end off the board** - Kind: Position Order Calls · About: Kenyon Sadiq - Verdict: scored 100 out of 100, against 15.51 for a naive guess ## Who this take is about - Garrett Nussmeier — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/players/garrett-nussmeier - Jeremiyah Love — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/players/jeremiyah-love - Rueben Bain — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/players/rueben-bain - Miami Dolphins — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/teams/dolphins - Ty Simpson — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/players/ty-simpson - Kenyon Sadiq — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/players/kenyon-sadiq - Fernando Mendoza — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/players/fernando-mendoza - Cole Payton — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/players/cole-payton ## What others said about the same people - Alain Poupart on Carlos Washington: Poupart expects rookie guard Kadyn Proctor to clear concussion protocol and play against Detroit, sees Ollie Gordon II continuing as the Dolphins' workhorse back, and thinks practice squad back Carlos Washington Jr. could be elevated for the Lions game. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/8f436e4c-b47e-41c6-9c95-ad8a2e6a32f0 (scored 0) - Nick Brinkerhoff on Miami Dolphins: Predicts a 23-20 Dolphins win over the Jets. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/a38cb982-14c3-4bea-bf0f-f61b43e1535a (scored 100) - Mike Kadlick on Miami Dolphins: Picks the Dolphins to beat the Jets. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/23a2739f-abc5-4aea-9665-cebe61f324c5 (scored 100) - Alain Poupart on Miami Dolphins: Picks the Dolphins to upset the Jets 24-20, citing New York's run-defense problems against a Miami ground game led by Ollie Gordon II and Malik Willis. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/0737798d-0dca-47e8-926d-d78d3f3f095a (scored 97.62) - Alain Poupart on Miami Dolphins: Picks the Jets to beat the Dolphins 19-17, while predicting Miami will get its win over New York in the rematch five weeks later. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/9911cc3c-511b-46b0-b379-e65b36a962bf (scored 100) - Jourdan Rodrigue on Miami Dolphins: Roderick picked the Vikings to smash the Colts, the Dolphins to win their first game of the season against the Jets, and the Saints to upset the Steelers in Paris. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/b45ad24a-5924-47e4-b85c-68b9fa738ef4 (scored 100) ## More mock draft picks The same kind of call, about other players and teams. - Chris Simms on Malachi Corley: Simms named the Bears the NFL's best overall offense and best rushing offense, the Bengals the best passing offense, Seattle the best total defense, Minnesota the best pass defense and Tampa Bay the best run defense; they also called Tristan Wirfs the league's best offensive lineman, projected Miami's Malachi Toney as a top-15 pick, and predicted a 30-14 Jaguars win in Baltimore. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/c0fd4647-2de8-4a5f-bac2-950fed303ee9 (scored 11.46) - Todd McShay on Keelon Russell: While breaking down LSU's offense, McShay called receiver Jackson Harris a top-50 NFL draft prospect, and later said LSU's Sam Levitt and Alabama's Keelan Russell are potential top-10 picks in a future draft. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/15d40546-2ab9-4ab8-b5bd-ed0ef7f26ae5 (scored 0) - Philip Hughes on Kyle Kennard: Evaluating edge rusher Kyle Kennard ahead of the draft, the account projected them as a Day 2 selection. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/605a686a-b5f1-4611-82b4-961abf8de93e (scored 33.86) - Blaine Grisak on Brian Thomas Jr.: Grisak argues the Rams should not trade a second-round pick for Jaguars receiver Brian Thomas Jr., calling it too great a risk and too high a cost. In an embedded tweet of their own from the 2024 pre-draft period, they suggested the Rams could select Thomas at pick No. 19. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/627bcf5d-9f1d-4a34-a1b7-53b8f0aebc40 (scored 84.09) - Charlie Campbell on Xavier Williams: Campbell's draft stock report projects Indiana WR Charlie Becker as a top-10 pick in 2027, Mississippi State CB Kelley Jones as a first-rounder, Tennessee DT Xavier Gilliam as a top-15 pick, and Texas OT Trevor Goosby as a top-10 pick, while suggesting Arch Manning could still be a first-rounder if they declare. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/2dd4bf46-e5eb-4dff-8500-95d9fdbd2986 (scored 0) - Charlie Campbell on Xavier Williams: Reviewing Week 7 college games, Campbell projects a slate of draft outcomes: Tennessee's Xavier Gilliam as a top-15 pick in 2026, Alabama's Bray Hubbard as a Day 2 pick and Yhonzae Pierre as a potential first-rounder, Jeremiah Smith as one of the very first players drafted, Charlie Becker as a top-10 pick in the 2027 draft, Colin Simmons and Trevor Goosby as top-10 picks, and Jadan Baugh as a first-round pick. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/d2c00414-086d-4a40-bb69-7584be496742 (scored 0) --- 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=nick-baumgardner