3 NFL Teams Had 'Worst' Draft, According to Mel Kiper Jr.

Which NFL teams had the best draft in 2026? Which NFL teams had the worst ones?

ESPN NFL Draft expert Mel Kiper Jr. is here with his official 2026 NFL Draft grades on Sunday morning. They are sure to spark controversy and debate, as always.

"The 2026 NFL draft wasn't short on excitement. Quarterback Ty Simpson to the Rams midway through the first round? Big defensive additions for the Cowboys? A dynamic running back to the Cardinals? Two brothers going to the same secondary? Eight trades on Day 1 and 41 across all three days? That was fun," he wrote on Sunday.

"Now we take it all in and try to make sense of the picks. Which teams nailed their selections from start to finish, tackling needs, sticking to the board and actively getting better? Which teams found steals in some places but reached in others? And which teams made real head-scratching moves, missing big opportunities to get value or fill a hole on the roster?"

According to Kiper Jr., three NFL teams had the "worst" 2026 NFL Draft performances:

• 49ers
• Jaguars
• Titans

All three NFL teams received a "C" grade for their performance in 2026, according to ESPN's top expert.

Kiper Jr. hated what the 49ers did the most

Kiper Jr. very much disliked what the 49ers did. He had them at the bottom of his NFL Draft rankings.

He was "really confused" by some of their picks.

"The 49ers traded out of Day 1, and I wrote about their Day 2 on Friday night. There were some really confusing picks in this class. I like De'Zhaun Stribling, Kaelon Black and some others, but it seemed like general manager John Lynch went off the board to get the guys he wanted, often way ahead of where they were valued. The Niners needed to fix their depth more than anything. Last season, injuries gutted the roster," he wrote.

"San Francisco went 12-5 and lost in the divisional round, but it was a what-could-have-been kind of season. Nick Bosa (knee) missed 14 games. Fred Warner (ankle) missed 11. Mykel Williams missed the back half of his rookie year with his own knee injury. George Kittle was out six games, and the receiver room took its share of hits (perhaps most notable with Brandon Aiyuk not returning at all and now looking like he'll be headed elsewhere)."

You can view Kiper's complete NFL Draft grades here.

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This story was originally published April 26, 2026 at 9:00 AM.