Steven Ruiz· Sep 3, 2026
Ruiz ranks the 20 best position groups in the NFL entering the 2026 season, topped by the Rams' defensive line, and picks the Broncos as owners of the league's best offensive line. He also suggests Bears tight end Colston Loveland could be the NFL's best tight end a year from now.
“With the Eagles taking a step back last season, it's time we pass the "best OL in the league" title off to a new line. The Broncos are my pick for the honor.”
published in writing · Fox Sports · read the original →
3 checkable claims — 2 position group rankings and 1 positional finishe — each graded on its own rather than as one all-or-nothing bet.
It names 2 players and teams, each linked to their own record.
None of them have settled yet — they grade once their results are in.
Of the 1 unsettled call enough other pundits have weighed in on, this one lands below the rest of the room.
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Who this take is about
3 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.
- Position Group RankingsSep 3, 2026
“1. Rams Defensive Line ... 2. Texans Defensive Line ... 5. Seahawks Defensive Line ... 17. Steelers Defensive Line”
Not settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
- Position Group RankingsSep 3, 2026
“3. Broncos Offensive Line ... 6. Buccaneers Offensive Line ... 7. Eagles Offensive Line ... 9. Bills Offensive Line ... 16. Rams Offensive Line ... 20. Colts Offensive Line; "The Broncos are my pick for the honor" of best OL in the league”
Not settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
Colston Loveland to finish top 1 at his position, by receiving yards
“At this time next year, we could be talking about Loveland as the best tight end in the NFL.”
Too vague to check — we could not tell what would count as right.
What others said about the same people
- Nate TiceGame Outcome Picks · Chicago BearsMiss · 0Tice picked the Bengals over the Texans in a low-scoring game, the Jaguars at Denver, the Bears over the Vikings, the Patriots over the Steelers and the Rams to edge the Giants, and his Hail Mary was the Cowboys scoring 40 on Washington. He also floated Abdul Carter as a possible All-Pro.
- Matt HarmonGame Outcome Picks · Chicago BearsMiss · 0Harmon picked the Bengals to beat the Texans in Week 2, expecting Nico Collins to miss the game with a hamstring injury, and also predicted the Titans would be shut out by the Eagles. He took the Rams over the Giants, the Bears over the Vikings, and the Jaguars at Denver.
- Tracy SandlerGame Outcome Picks · Chicago BearsHit · 100Sandler predicted Caleb Williams would miss two to three weeks with his hamstring injury, and in the picks segment took the Broncos, Ravens, Vikings, Bills and Bears (switching off an earlier Tampa pick).
- Adam ChudwinGame Outcome Picks · Chicago BearsHit · 100In his annual game-by-game Bears prediction, Chudwin went through all 17 games and landed on a 12-5 season for Chicago.
- John BreechGame Outcome Picks · Chicago BearsHit · 100A CBS Sports piece predicts the week each NFL team will suffer its first loss, effectively picking winners in each of those games, and names the Ravens as the league's final undefeated team after a 7-0 start.
- Mike MoraitisRoster Spot Calls · Josh BlackwellHit · 100Moraitis names seven Bears as trade candidates before roster cuts, predicting Kiran Amegadjie and Jedrick Wills are on the roster bubble and likely to be traded, while Ozzy Trapilo avoids an injured list, and listing several players as locks for the 53-man roster.
More position group rankings
The same kind of call, about other players and teams.
- Rich EisenPosition Group RankingsClose · 75Eisen ranked his top five defenses remaining in the NFL playoffs, with the Texans first, Seahawks second, Broncos third, Bills fourth and Rams fifth.
- Gregg RosenthalPosition Group RankingsClose · 75In a snake draft of the NFL's best position groups, Rosenthal took the Eagles' tackles as the No. 1 group in the league, followed by the Steelers' edge rushers, Bengals receivers, Texans corners, Lions safeties, Rams defensive tackles, Broncos corners, Chiefs quarterbacks, Patriots corners and Seahawks defensive tackles. He also rated Ja'Marr Chase a top-two receiver and A.J. Brown a top-five receiver.
- Nick ShookPosition Group RankingsMiss · 0Shook's picks in the best-position-group draft: Buccaneers receivers (over the Bengals), Lions tackles, Ravens tight ends, Steelers interior offensive line, Lions running backs, Giants edge rushers, Ravens safeties, Commanders quarterbacks, Lions defensive tackles and Texans safeties. He also called Jordan Addison one of the league's best No. 2 receivers.
- Brandon GrahamPosition Group RankingsMiss · 0Graham ranked his top five wide receiver duos with the Eagles first, and predicted Philadelphia returns to the Super Bowl, the Rams make the playoffs again, and picked the Commanders' duo over the Cowboys' new pairing.
- Kyle BrandtPosition Group RankingsClose · 40Kyle Brandt ranked his top five NFL wide receiver duos, deliberately excluding newly formed pairings, with Cincinnati first and Tampa Bay fifth.
- Jamie ErdahlPosition Group Rankings · Los Angeles RamsHit · 80Erdahl ranked her top five wide receiver duos, putting Philadelphia first, Detroit above Minnesota, and Cincinnati fifth.