6 Trade Ideas for Top-10 Picks in the 2026 NFL Draft

The 2026 NFL Scouting Combine is underway in Indianapolis. And as this year's top collegiate prospects are put through the paces, it means this year's NFL Draft in Pittsburgh is drawing nearer by the day.

The draft is one of the most exciting events on the NFL calendar—in part because while we think we know the draft order, it annually gets the snow-globe treatment when teams start making trades.

In 2025, we made it all of one pick into the draft before the Jacksonville Jaguars moved up to select 2024 Heisman Trophy winner Travis Hunter.

There will be trades this year as well, and there will be deals made early in the festivities. For the teams involved, they can change the entire trajectory of a franchise. Boost rebuilding teams closer to contention. Fill in the final missing piece for a contender. Or be the kind of boondoggle that can cost a general manager a job.

Here's a look at some trades that could shake up the top 10, including a pair of seismic deals involving the presumptive first overall pick.

Why not? Might as well make things interesting.

The Mendoza Blockbuster

AP Photo/Mike Stewart

New York Jets Receive: 2026 Round 1 Pick (1.01)

Las Vegas Raiders Receive: 2026 Round 1 Pick (1.02), 2026 Round 2 Pick (2.12), 2027 Round 1 Pick, 2027 Round 2 Pick

Let's just get this out of the way—from all indications, it is exceedingly unlikely the Las Vegas Raiders will trade the first overall pick in the draft and the rights to draft Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza.

However, while speaking to reporters, Raiders general manager John Spytek wouldn't completely rule out the idea.

"I learned a long time ago, always listen," he said. "I'm always listening."

For the Raiders to actually consider dealing the Mendoza pick (which is hopefully much better than the Mendoza Line), two things will have to happen.

The first is that the Raiders cool on the NFL prospects of the 2025 Heisman Trophy winner. The second is the sort of Godfather offer that would be hard to pass up.

The Raiders have more needs than just at the quarterback position. With multiple first- and second-round picks over the next two seasons, the New York Jets have the draft capital to make this kind of blockbuster offer without completely mortgaging the future.

And if there is one team in the NFL that might be even more desperate for some measure of optimism under center than the Raiders, it's the Jets.

Of course, dealing the first overall pick to the Jets wouldn't solve the quarterback conundrum in Sin City.

But this next trade just might.

Kyler Murray (Plus a Bunch) for Mendoza

AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin

Arizona Cardinals Receive: 2026 Round 1 Pick (1.01), 2026 Round 6 Pick (6.01)

Las Vegas Raiders Receive: QB Kyler Murray, 2026 Round 1 Pick (1.03), 2027 Round 1 Pick

The Arizona Cardinals are widely expected to move on from quarterback Kyler Murray in the offseason, although general manager Monti Ossenfort said the team is keeping its options open under center.

"I'd say all options are on the table for us," he said. "We got (Kyler Murray, Jacoby Brissett and Kedon Slovis) all under contract as it pertains to that position. As it pertains to every position on our team, we're going to look at every avenue to improve. We're going to continue to go through our process with that."

Murray hasn't played up to the level of the five-year, $230.5 million deal he signed in 2022. But he is a former No. 1 overall pick in his own right, and he has led a team to the playoffs and made a pair of Pro Bowls.

Fernando Mendoza may be the clear No. 1 QB in his class, but he's by no means a can't-miss, generational prospect. Getting a top-five selection in 2026, an additional first-rounder in 2027 and a quarterback could be enough for the Raiders to gamble on a reclamation project with Murray. And with $91.5 million in cap space, per Over the Cap, the team has the room to absorb Murray's deal.

It's an expensive proposition for the Redbirds. But if they want to reset under center badly enough, this is probably what it would take to pry Mendoza away from Vegas.

Cincinnati Bengals Go For Broke

AP Photo/Maria Lysaker

Cincinnati Bengals Receive: Edge Maxx Crosby

Las Vegas Raiders Receive: 2026 Round 1 Pick (1.10), 2027 Round 1 Pick, 2027 Round 4 Pick

From the moment the Raiders shut down star edge-rusher Maxx Crosby with two games left in the 2025 season, some around the league wondered if he might want out of Las Vegas.

However, general manager John Spytek has publicly pushed back on that idea.

"Maxx is an elite player, and I've been very upfront from the start when I got here that we're in the business of having really good players on the team, and we need a lot more of them," he said.

Of course, the Raiders shouldn't want to trade Crosby. But if he really isn't interested in another rebuild, the team may not have much choice. And dealing an elite edge-rusher in his prime would accelerate said rebuild.

If Crosby is made available, the Cincinnati Bengals should be one of the first teams to pick up the phone.

The Bengals were a mess defensively in 2025, including a pass rush that managed just 35 sacks. The team's best pass-rusher, Trey Hendrickson, is a pending free agent almost certain to be leaving. And the Bengals fashion themselves as a team that can contend in 2026 if they can field a passable defense.

Raiders fans don't want to think about dealing Crosby any more than they want to see the team deal the Mendoza pick. But adding Kyler Murray, keeping two picks inside the top 10 in 2026 and parlaying these moves into three first-round picks in 2027 would turbocharge the team's efforts to climb back to respectability.

Chicago Bears Get Aggressive to Improve Secondary

AP Photo/Jay LaPrete

Chicago Bears Receive: 2026 Round 1 Pick (1.06), 2026 Round 5 Pick (5.01)

Cleveland Browns Receive: 2026 Round 1 Pick (1.25), 2026 Round 3 Pick (3.25), 2027 Round 1 Pick

The Cleveland Browns are woeful.

Edge-rusher Myles Garrett is a golden god, but outside that? The Browns have no long-term solution at quarterback. The passing-game weapons are among the weakest in the league. The offensive line needs a complete overhaul.

Other than that, though, everything is fine.

The Browns already have two first-round picks in 2026 after trading back last year, but general manager Andrew Berry should be looking to stockpile even more selections.

Cleveland has holes all over the roster and a challenging salary-cap picture tied to Deshaun Watson's massive deal. Given this isn't an especially impressive draft class, the team should be willing to make another move back if it means adding draft capital.

The Chicago Bears are coming off their first NFC North title since 2018, but the team has some significant needs. The safety position could be at the top of that list—the team's top three safeties (Kevin Byard III, Jaquan Brisker and C.J. Gardner-Johnson) are all slated to hit free agency.

Safety isn't generally a position teams move up to address, but it's not every year that a prospect like Ohio State's Caleb Downs enters the NFL. Downs may well be the No. 1 player overall in the class, and were he to slide to No. 6 he'd be worth the cost for a Bears team with eyes on a trip to SoFi Stadium next February.

Jerry Jones Does Jerry Jones Things

AP Photo/Rick Scuteri

Dallas Cowboys Receive: 2026 Round 1 Pick (1.04), 2026 Round 3 Pick (3.02)

Tennessee Titans Receive: 2026 Round 1 Pick (1.14), 2026 Round 1 Pick (1.20)

The Dallas Cowboys have never been shy about making trades. Just this past year, the Cowboys dealt star edge-rusher Micah Parsons to the Green Bay Packers and acquired Pro Bowl defensive tackle Quinnen Williams from the New York Jets.

By virtue of all the Cowboys' wheeling and dealing in 2025, the team is sitting on two first-round picks in 2026—No. 14 and No. 20. While speaking to the media, COO and VP Stephen Jones said that the Cowboys could be interested in making more moves ahead of April's draft.

"It's tough to predict but we're certainly open-minded to it," Jones said. "We're always open-minded to trading and if the right guy fits, if it is a perfect fit then we would certainly look at it, see if it works in with what we're trying to get accomplished."

The Dallas defense was atrocious last year—30th in total defense and dead last in scoring defense. The Cowboys struggled to rush the passer as well, managing just 35 sacks. This move into the top-five would give Dallas the opportunity to select an elite prospect on the edge, whether it's Ohio State's Arvell Reese or Miami's Rueben Bain Jr.

The Tennessee Titans need an edge-rusher too. But Tennessee's needs go well beyond that, and a trade back would allow the team to address multiple needs while keeping a pair of picks inside the top 20.

Los Angeles Rams Go All-In on 2026

AP Photo/Jacob Kupferman

Los Angeles Rams Receive: 2026 Round 1 Pick (1.08)

New Orleans Saints Receive: 2026 Round 1 Pick (1.29), 2026 Round 3 Pick (3.29), 2027 Round 1 Pick

The Los Angeles Rams came within a game of the Super Bowl last year. It's a team loaded with talent on both sides of the ball.

By virtue of a trade with the Atlanta Falcons last year, the Rams have two first-rounders in 2026: Nos. 13 and 29. The Super Bowl window is most assuredly open in L.A.

But with MVP quarterback Matthew Stafford not getting any younger, that window isn't going to stay open forever. And that could spur Rams general manager Les Snead (who has never been reluctant to live in the now) to get aggressive on draft day and try to move into the top 10—while keeping a second pick in the top 15.

Such a trade could allow the Rams to essentially have their choice of any of the draft's prospects at cornerback such as LSU's Mansoor Delane (arguably the team's biggest need). They could add an immediate upgrade on the offensive line in Miami's Francisco Mauigoa, or get better at linebacker with Ohio State's Sonny Styles. Caleb Downs could also be in play. Two impact players added to an already formidable roster.

Rookie quarterback Tyler Shough showed some flashes for the Saints a year ago, but New Orleans remains closer to the start of a rebuild than the end. Adding a Day 2 pick and another first-rounder in 2027 is worth the move back.