David Harrison· Apr 8, 2026
Harrison unveils his top-10 'vertical Z receiver' big board for the Commanders in the 2026 draft class, led by Cincinnati's Jeff Caldwell, and attaches draft-range projections to the prospects (Caldwell early Day 3, Bryce Lance mid-Day 3, Chris Brasel early Day 2, Malik Benson mid-Day 3/seventh round, Stribling late Day 3, Jordan Tyson Day 1). He also lays out Washington's projected receiver depth chart and 53-man group, with Dyami Brown as the starting Z.
“Jeff Caldwell, Cincinnati wide receiver, our number one, number one lid lifting z target in the NFL draft for the Washington commanders because he fits the mold the most clearly.”
said on air, transcribed by us · Locked On Commanders (podcast) · read the original →
20 checkable claims — 10 mock draft picks, 6 roster spot calls, 3 depth chart calls and 1 top player list — each graded on its own rather than as one all-or-nothing bet.
It names 18 players and teams, each linked to their own record.
6 of 20 have settled so far, averaging 89.8 out of 100, against 83.3 for a naive guess at the same calls.
Of the 1 unsettled call enough other pundits have weighed in on, this one lands below the rest of the room.
Where this call stands in the room
Terry McLaurin · 2026 season10 calls from 9 pundits between 1 and 1. David Harrison said 1. the room's median is 1. 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.
Where do you stand? Pick this and every open claim on Picks →
Who this take is about
20 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.
Luke McCaffrey to make the roster
“The top six receivers today, the guys that I would put on the initial 53, McLaren, McCaffrey, Lane, Jefferson, Brown, Traylen Burks.”
Hit · 100Scored 100a naive guess scored 100+0 skillHow this was scored
- club:
- WAS
- skill:
- 0
- player:
- Luke McCaffrey
- season:
- 2026
- claimed:
- he makes the 53
- accuracy:
- 100
- baseline:
- 100
- difficulty:
- 2
- the naive guess:
- he was on somebody's 53 last season, so he makes one again
- weeks in the season:
- 18
- weeks on the53:
- 3
- weeks left when called:
- 18
- first week on the53:
- 1
- weeks on the practice squad:
- 0
Jaylin Lane to make the roster
“The top six receivers today, the guys that I would put on the initial 53, McLaren, McCaffrey, Lane, Jefferson, Brown, Traylen Burks.”
Hit · 100Scored 100a naive guess scored 100+0 skillHow this was scored
- club:
- WAS
- skill:
- 0
- player:
- Jaylin Lane
- season:
- 2026
- claimed:
- he makes the 53
- accuracy:
- 100
- baseline:
- 100
- difficulty:
- 2
- the naive guess:
- he was on somebody's 53 last season, so he makes one again
- weeks in the season:
- 18
- weeks on the53:
- 3
- weeks left when called:
- 18
- first week on the53:
- 1
- weeks on the practice squad:
- 0
Treylon Burks to make the roster
“The top six receivers today, the guys that I would put on the initial 53, McLaren, McCaffrey, Lane, Jefferson, Brown, Traylen Burks.”
Hit · 100Scored 100a naive guess scored 100+0 skillHow this was scored
- club:
- WAS
- skill:
- 0
- player:
- Treylon Burks
- season:
- 2026
- claimed:
- he makes the 53
- accuracy:
- 100
- baseline:
- 100
- difficulty:
- 2
- the naive guess:
- he was on somebody's 53 last season, so he makes one again
- weeks in the season:
- 18
- weeks on the53:
- 3
- weeks left when called:
- 18
- first week on the53:
- 1
- weeks on the practice squad:
- 0
Terry McLaurin to make the roster
“The top six receivers today, the guys that I would put on the initial 53, McLaren, McCaffrey, Lane, Jefferson, Brown, Traylen Burks.”
Hit · 100Scored 100a naive guess scored 100+0 skillHow this was scored
- club:
- WAS
- skill:
- 0
- player:
- Terry McLaurin
- season:
- 2026
- claimed:
- he makes the 53
- accuracy:
- 100
- baseline:
- 100
- difficulty:
- 2
- the naive guess:
- he was on somebody's 53 last season, so he makes one again
- weeks in the season:
- 18
- weeks on the53:
- 3
- weeks left when called:
- 18
- first week on the53:
- 1
- weeks on the practice squad:
- 0
- Mock Draft PicksMalik BensonApr 8, 2026
Malik Benson to be picked “number two twenty three in the seventh round” (picks 217–257)
“which leaves Malik Benson potentially there at two twenty three in the seventh round”
Miss · 39Scored 38.56a naive guess scored 50How this was scored
- draft:
- 2026
- naive:
- a shuffled mock scores 50
- player:
- Malik Benson
- season:
- 2026
- zero at:
- 32
- accuracy:
- 38.56
- baseline:
- 50
- actual pick:
- 195
- difficulty:
- 1
- weeks in the season:
- 18
- pick accuracy:
- 38.56
- predicted pick:
- number two twenty three in the seventh round (picks 217–257)
- weeks left when called:
- 0
- mock ordering score:
- only one pick — no order to score
- Mock Draft PicksCarnell TateApr 8, 2026
Carnell Tate to be picked “first round pick” (picks 1–32)
“You see guys like Carnell Tate, who's a first round pick”
Hit · 100Scored 100a naive guess scored 50How this was scored
- draft:
- 2026
- naive:
- a shuffled mock scores 50
- player:
- Carnell Tate
- season:
- 2026
- zero at:
- 32
- accuracy:
- 100
- baseline:
- 50
- actual pick:
- 4
- difficulty:
- 1
- weeks in the season:
- 18
- pick accuracy:
- 100
- predicted pick:
- first round pick (picks 1–32)
- weeks left when called:
- 0
- mock ordering score:
- only one pick — no order to score
Luke McCaffrey to be 1st on the depth chart
“Luke McCaffrey is that power slot.”
Not settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
Jeff Caldwell to be picked “from one forty seven to one eighty seven”
“Jeff Caldwell from one forty seven to one eighty seven is likely to come off.”
Not settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
Jeff Caldwell to be picked “Early day three”
“Early day three prospects, six foot five, so he's well over that six foot one threshold.”
Not settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
Chris Brazzell to be picked “early day two”
“He's an early day two guy. You know, the commanders don't have an early day two pick.”
Not settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
Dyami Brown to be 1st on the depth chart
“The starting z. I think right now, I would put De'Ami Brown in that in that spot.”
Not settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
Marquise Brown to make the roster
“The top six receivers today, the guys that I would put on the initial 53, McLaren, McCaffrey, Lane, Jefferson, Brown, Traylen Burks.”
Not settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
- Mock Draft PicksBryce LanceApr 8, 2026
Bryce Lance to be picked “Midday three picks”
“Our second unicorn fits the athletic profile to a t... Midday, three picks, six three, 204 pounds”
Not settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
Justin Jefferson to make the roster
“The top six receivers today, the guys that I would put on the initial 53, McLaren, McCaffrey, Lane, Jefferson, Brown, Traylen Burks.”
Not settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
- Mock Draft PicksMalik BensonApr 8, 2026
Malik Benson to be picked “midday three pick”
“Malik Benson is a midday three pick projection out of Oregon.”
Not settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
- Mock Draft PicksDe'Zhaun StriblingApr 8, 2026
De'Zhaun Stribling to be picked “late day three”
“He is also projected to be a late day three guy, although you see some mocks with him going earlier.”
Not settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
- Top Player ListsApr 8, 2026
“The top guy in this year's NFL draft class that fits that profile, Cincinnati wide receiver, Jeff Caldwell coming in second. North Dakota state receiver, Bryce Lance... Georgia State's Ted Hurst is tenth. ... Mckay Lemon actually ended up coming in eleventh overall.”
Not settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
- Mock Draft PicksJordyn TysonApr 8, 2026
Jordyn Tyson to be picked “day one, potentially could slide to day two”
“I still think he's gonna go day one, potentially could slide to day two.”
Not settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
Terry McLaurin to be 1st on the depth chart
“Terry McLaren's a starting x. Jalen Lane is your gadget.”
Not settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
- Mock Draft PicksZavion ThomasApr 8, 2026
Zavion Thomas to be picked “from one eighty seven to 209”
“Zavian Thomas from one eighty seven to 209 is likely to come off.”
Not settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
What others said about the same people
- Chris SimmsScore Predictions · Cincinnati BengalsClose · 40Simms 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.
- Chris LongGame Outcome Picks · Cincinnati BengalsMiss · 0Long liked the Rams over the Broncos on Sunday night even without Puka Nacua, and expected the Bills to beat the winless Chargers in Buffalo. He also backed the Bengals over the Steelers, expected an angry Detroit team to handle the Jets, and still thought both the Lions and Vikings could win the NFC North.
- Matt HarmonGame Outcome Picks · Cincinnati BengalsHit · 100Harmon 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.
- Nate TiceScore Predictions · Cincinnati BengalsClose · 74Tice 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.
- John MiddlekauffGame Outcome Picks · Tennessee TitansMiss · 0Middlekauff expects blowout wins for Seattle over Washington and Kansas City over Miami in Week 3, picks Cincinnati to beat Pittsburgh in the AFC North matchup, and takes Tennessee over the Giants if Jameis Winston is taking snaps.
- Bryan DeArdoScore Predictions · Cincinnati BengalsClose · 50He picks the Bengals to beat the Steelers in Pittsburgh in a low-scoring, defensive game, arguing Pittsburgh's struggling offense can't break through against Cincinnati's strong defense.
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.
- Jeff CavanaughMock Draft Picks · Lorenzo StylesMiss · 1Streaming from the NFL Combine, Jeff pegged safety Dylan Thienemann's draft range at roughly picks 20-35, said LSU safety AJ Halsey would cost a second- or third-round pick, and insisted Sonny Styles' brother would not be a top-50 selection despite a fast 40.