LaQuan Jones· Apr 1, 2026
Jones says drafting George Kittle as a top-five tight end coming off an Achilles tear would be a mistake, preferring healthier options like Oronde Gadsden and Sam LaPorta who are going later, and he ranks Chris Olave as a top-six fantasy receiver. He is also out on Patrick Mahomes and thinks Najee Harris would be fantasy-irrelevant in Seattle. On the draft he expects Carnell Tate to be the first receiver taken and Sadiq to slide toward pick 30.
“George Kittle going off the board as a top five. That's a huge mistake.”
said on air or in an interview · The Rich Eisen Podcast (podcast) · read the original →
8 checkable claims — 2 mock draft picks, 2 position order calls, 2 sleeper calls, 1 fantasy bust call and 1 positional finishe — each graded on its own rather than as one all-or-nothing bet.
It names 10 players and teams, each linked to their own record.
3 of 8 have settled so far, averaging 100 out of 100, against 26.1 for a naive guess at the same calls.
Of the 1 unsettled call enough other pundits have weighed in on, this one lands above the rest of the room.
Where this call stands in the room
Chris Olave · 2026 season · positional finish4 calls from 3 pundits between 5 positional finish and 24 positional finish. LaQuan Jones said 6 positional finish. the room's median is 5 positional finish. not settled yet
Every dot is a call somebody published on the same question. Where the dots land says where this take sits, not whether it is right — nothing here is settled yet. Hover a dot for the name and number; click it to read that take.
Their call against what happened
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Who this take is about
8 checkable claims 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 PicksOmar CooperApr 1, 2026
Omar Cooper to be picked “first round draft pick, like in the late twenties, maybe even in that twenty twenty five spot” (picks 1–32)
“like Omar to me feels like he should be a first round draft pick, like in the late, you know, twenties, maybe even in that twenty twenty five spot”
Hit · 100Scored 100a naive guess scored 50How this was scored
- draft:
- 2026
- naive:
- a shuffled mock scores 50
- player:
- Omar Cooper
- season:
- 2026
- zero at:
- 32
- accuracy:
- 100
- baseline:
- 50
- actual pick:
- 30
- difficulty:
- 1
- weeks in the season:
- 18
- pick accuracy:
- 100
- predicted pick:
- first round draft pick, like in the late twenties, maybe even in that twenty twenty five spot (picks 1–32)
- weeks left when called:
- 0
- mock ordering score:
- only one pick — no order to score
- Position Order CallsCarnell TateApr 1, 2026
Carnell Tate to be 1st wide receiver off the board
“So that's why I think Carnell Tait is the first wide receiver off the board in the draft”
Hit · 100Scored 100a naive guess scored 9.48+90.52 skillHow this was scored
- draft:
- 2026
- naive:
- naming one of the 36 at random averages 9.48
- skill:
- 90.52
- player:
- Carnell Tate
- season:
- 2026
- zero at:
- credit halves every two places
- accuracy:
- 100
- baseline:
- 9.48
- position:
- wide receiver
- class size:
- 36
- difficulty:
- 1
- weeks in the season:
- 18
- actual order:
- 1
- predicted order:
- 1
- weeks left when called:
- 0
- Position Order CallsEli StowersApr 1, 2026
Eli Stowers to be 2nd tight end off the board
“Eli Sauers is the second tight end prospect”
Hit · 100Scored 100a naive guess scored 18.72+81.28 skillHow this was scored
- draft:
- 2026
- naive:
- naming one of the 22 at random averages 18.72
- skill:
- 81.28
- player:
- Eli Stowers
- season:
- 2026
- zero at:
- credit halves every two places
- accuracy:
- 100
- baseline:
- 18.72
- position:
- tight end
- class size:
- 22
- difficulty:
- 1
- weeks in the season:
- 18
- actual order:
- 2
- predicted order:
- 2
- weeks left when called:
- 0
- Sleeper CallsSam LaPortaApr 1, 2026
Sam LaPorta to outplay his draft cost (going outside that top five)
“there's other pieces out there that are going outside that top five, Rondez Gass and Sam Laporter, which I want to whisper because man, that ADP is looking juicy”
Not settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
Chris Olave to finish top 6 at his position, by fantasy points
“I still think that I got him right where I got him, you know, in my wide receiver rankings as a top six wide receiver this year”
Not settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
- Mock Draft PicksKenyon SadiqApr 1, 2026
Kenyon Sadiq to be picked “possibly get him at thirty”
“I don't think Sadik's gonna go as high as everybody thinks he is... I just don't see them taking him at eleven when you could possibly get him at thirty”
Not settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
- Sleeper CallsOronde Gadsden IIApr 1, 2026
Oronde Gadsden II to outplay his draft cost (going outside that top five)
“there's other pieces out there that are going outside that top five, Rondez Gass and Sam Laporter”
Not settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
George Kittle to fall short of his draft cost (top five tight end)
“I honestly think like George Kittle going off the board as a top five. That's a huge mistake”
Not settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
What others said about the same people
- Chris SimmsScore Predictions · New Orleans SaintsClose · 48Simms went through the entire Week 3 slate with straight-up winners and predicted final scores, taking Jacksonville, Buffalo, Cincinnati, Detroit, Houston, Carolina, Kansas City, Seattle, the Giants, Baltimore, New Orleans, Minnesota, San Francisco, Denver and Philadelphia. He also expected Zay Flowers and Puka Nacua to sit, Kyler Murray to play, and said Marvin Harrison Jr. projects as no better than a good No. 2 or high-end No. 3 receiver.
- Richie BradshawScore Predictions · San Francisco 49ersHit · 83Bradshaw picks the 49ers to beat the Cardinals in their Week 3 matchup, predicting a final score of 27-14 in San Francisco's favor.
- Nick WrightScore Predictions · New Orleans SaintsMiss · 33On his Week 3 pick show, Nick Wright gave straight-up final-score predictions for five games, calling blowouts by Seattle over Washington and Kansas City over Miami, a Jacksonville home win over New England, a narrow New Orleans win over the Raiders and a low-scoring Baltimore win over Dallas in Brazil. He also called Seattle the best team in the NFL with the league's best defense.
- Dan BeyerGame Outcome Picks · New Orleans SaintsMiss · 0For his Week 3 survivor pick, he took the Saints to beat the Raiders at home, saying he doesn't see Las Vegas staying unbeaten.
- Darrion GrayScore Predictions · New Orleans SaintsClose · 45Predicted the Saints beat the Raiders 27-17 at home.
- John HendricksScore Predictions · New Orleans SaintsClose · 43Predicted a lower-scoring Saints win over the Raiders, 24-19, with the defense carrying them.
More position order calls
The same kind of call, about other players and teams.
- Ryan WilsonPosition Order Calls · J.J. McCarthyHit · 100Recalling 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.
- Nick ShookPosition Order Calls · Olaivavega IoaneMiss · 35Shook 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.
- Rhett LewisPosition Order Calls · Tyler ShoughHit · 100Lewis names Louisville's Tyler Shough as the new QB3 of the class — the third quarterback off the board — and views Milroe as a second-round selection.
- Nick WrightPosition Order Calls · Mansoor DelaneHit · 100Nick Wright laid out his full mock draft 3.0 for the 2026 NFL Draft, pick by pick through the first round, and also predicted AJ Brown would finish top five in the NFL in receiving yards with the Patriots.
- Todd McShayPosition Order Calls · K.C. ConcepcionHit · 100McShay's mock draft 4.0 has Fernando Mendoza and David Bailey going 1-2 to the Raiders and Jets, the Saints trading up to No. 3 for Arvell Reese, the Titans taking Jeremiah Love at 4, the Giants taking Francis Mauigoa at 5 (though he'd now switch to Sonny Styles), the Cowboys trading up to 6, the Jets trading up to 7 for Carnell Tate, and Arizona trading up to 30 for Ty Simpson. He also predicts seven offensive tackles go in the first round and that Love, Styles, Downs and Reese all go in the top seven.
- Keith SanchezPosition Order Calls · Jordyn TysonClose · 71As relayed by Harrison, Sanchez's latest mock draft has Carnell Tate going to Washington, Jordan Tyson as the first receiver off the board at No. 5 to the Giants, Makai Lemmon at 11 and Chris Brasel at 30 to Miami, Sonny Styles at No. 8 to New Orleans, and Caleb Downs at No. 13 to the Rams.