NFL Combine Survey: 42 Prospects Weigh in on Top QBs, Coaches, Players & More

INDIANAPOLIS — The future of the NFL will be front and center in Indianapolis at this week’s Scouting Combine. But before the prospects take the field in the underwear Olympics and try to boost their draft stock, let’s take some time to learn what the stars of tomorrow think about the NFL and the college game. We talked to 42 draft prospects participating in this week’s combine — a wide range of offense and defense, big schools and small schools — asking a quick, anonymous, 11-question survey about the NFL and college football, about what they like most and what they’d like to change most. I did the same exercise a year ago, and originally back in 2022 at The Athletic, with some of the same questions from year to year to appreciate how the answers changed over time. Let’s take a look at how the 2026 draft class views the league. Which current NFL head coach would you most like to play for? It’s a seemingly easy question: If you could play for any current NFL head coach, who would you most like to play for? Prospects can be superstitious, so even cloaked in secrecy, they want to make it clear they’ll be grateful to play for any NFL team that will have them.  Also, more bluntly: “I don’t really know the names of the head coaches,” one told me. We had 10 prospects skip the question for one reason or another. With 10 head coaches losing their jobs in the last two months, some familiar names aren’t available now. The same exercise had former Pittsburgh coach Mike Tomlin lead the way a year ago. Recency bias or not, the two big winners were fresh from this year’s Super Bowl, with the Patriots’ Mike Vrabel (eight votes) beating out the Seahawks’ Mike Macdonald, who got five, and that was counting an obligatory “Seattle’s Mike McDaniel” and “the young head coach of the Seahawks.” It’s worth mentioning that two of the NFL’s newest coaches were among those named — Baltimore’s Jesse Minter and Miami’s Jeff Hafley, though some of that might be them coaching in college recently enough to have former players at this year’s combine. RESULTS: Mike Vrabel, Patriots: 8 Mike Macdonald, Seahawks: 5 Andy Reid, Chiefs: 3 Dan Campbell, Lions: 2 Jeff Hafley, Dolphins: 2 John Harbaugh, Giants: 2 DeMeco Ryans, Texans: 2 (Coaches that received one vote: Ben Johnson, Bears; Jesse Minter, Ravens; Sean Payton, Broncos; Brian Schottenheimer, Cowboys; Kevin Stefanski, Falcons; Kyle Shanahan, 49ers) How many NFL games do college football players watch in a weekend? We move from superlatives to curiosities. Just how much time do college football players have to watch NFL games on TV during their football season? “All of them,” one told me, and others touted the greatness of NFL RedZone, allowing them to keep an eye on the entire league. “With RedZone, like 14 out of 16 games,” another said. “I try to watch them all,” said one. The other extreme is out there, with a few prospects conceding they haven’t watched many NFL games, citing either a busy college schedule or just personal indifference. “I don’t watch any,” one said. “I like to watch in the playoffs when the stakes are high, and I watch a lot of film, but not actual games. “I don’t have cable,” another said, “but I watch the highlights on YouTube.” Said one: “I don’t follow the NFL a ton, though I’m sure I will once I’m drafted.” We included Thursday night and Monday night in this, giving them as many as five windows in a normal week, and the most common response was three games a week, which got 10 votes. On the low end, three said only one game a week (“honestly, one,” one told me) and three more said they didn’t watch any at all. Four players abstained from answering that question. We also asked prospects if they’ve ever attended an NFL game in person as a fan — out of 42 players, 32 (76%) said they’d been to at least one. But for the other 10, their first NFL game might be one they’re playing in this fall. RESULTS: 5 or more games per week: 14 4 games per week: 3 3 games per week: 10 2 games per week: 5 1 game per week: 3 0 games per week: 3 Roughly how much money did you make from NIL while in college? As you might expect, more than half of our prospects politely declined to answer this. We’ve moved very quickly from asking “if” a player got any NIL money three years ago to asking everyone how much they got. We’re also taking their word on their answers, which could be inflated or deflated from their actual NIL earnings. We’ll also acknowledge this isn’t an exact cross-section of the draft pool – the guys more likely to have time to take part in an anonymous survey are less likely to be the elite top prospects in the class. Still, we had three players answer that they made more than $1 million. “Close to $2 million,” one told me, while another said “like $1.3 million.” Another nine answered with totals between half a million and a million dollars — “not a lot, like $500,000,” one earnestly humblebragged. Only two of the players who responded had a total figure under six figures — “maybe $50,000” and “about $45,000,” they said. All told, it adds up to about $11 million from the 20 who answered, which is just over $500,000 each. Who was the best individual player you went up against in college? This is a fun question that can yield three different kinds of answers — big-name former college stars already in the NFL, top prospects in this year’s draft class, or players who will be back in college football in 2026. Ohio State receiver Jeremiah Smith, for instance, was already in that last category a year ago for some prospects. In all, we had 34 different players get name-dropped, including seven who were picked by two prospects, from well-known NFL quarterbacks like C.J. Stroud to players whose names we’re still learning, like Penn State guard Olaivavega “Vega” Ioane. One player abstained from answering this question. RESULTS: PLAYERS NOW IN NFL C.J. Stroud, QB, Ohio State (now Texans): 2Jared Verse, edge rusher, Florida State (now Rams): 2Laiatu Latu, edge rusher, UCLA (now Colts): 2Jalen Carter, DL, Georgia (now Eagles): 2Xavier Worthy, WR, Texas (now Chiefs): 2 Other current NFL players picked: Braylon Allen, RB, Wisconsin (now Jets)Abdul Carter, edge rusher, Penn State (now Giants)Jordan Davis, DL, Georgia (now Eagles)Troy Fautanu, OL, Washington (now Steelers)Zay Flowers, WR, Boston College (now Ravens)Matthew Golden, WR, Texas (now Packers)Mohamad Kamara, OLB, Colorado State (now Buccaneers)Jacob Saylors, RB, East Tennessee State (now Lions) Darnell Wright, OT, Tennessee (now Bears)Bryce Young, QB, Alabama (now Panthers)Peter Skoronski, G, Northwestern (now Titans)Rome Odunze, WR, Washington (now Bears) PLAYERS IN THIS DRAFT Rueben Bain, edge rusher, Miami (Fla.): 2Olaivavega Ioane, G, Penn State: 2Demond Claiborne, RB, Wake ForestCaleb Downs, S, Ohio StateMikail Kamara, DE, IndianaJeremiyah Love, RB, Notre DameCashius Howell, edge rusher, Texas A&MTy Simpson, QB, AlabamaJordyn Tyson, WR, Arizona StateWesley Williams, DL, Duke PLAYERS STILL IN COLLEGE Isaac Brown, RB, LouisvilleTrinidad Chambers, QB, Ole MissMalachi Toney, WR, MiamiAhmad Hardy, RB, MissouriKam Perry, Miami (Ohio)*LaNorris Sellers, QB, South CarolinaJeremiah Smith, WR, Ohio State * transferred to Colorado this offseason If you need a touchdown to win the game, who’s your QB? The first question is a simple superlative, one you can answer yourself: If you needed a touchdown with a minute left in a game, which current NFL quarterback would you want leading your team down the field? The winner — for the third time in as many questionnaires, and to little surprise — is Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes, whose reputation is still strong despite missing the playoffs, as well as the end of 2025 with a torn ACL. Mahomes was the choice for 15 of 39 prospects (three declined), almost twice as much as runner-up Lamar Jackson of the Ravens (eight votes). Last year’s runner-up, the Eagles’ Jalen Hurts, didn’t get a single vote, with Buffalo’s Josh Allen (5), Chicago’s Caleb Williams (4) and the Rams’ Matthew Stafford (3) getting multiple votes. Four quarterbacks got a single vote each: the Bengals’ Joe Burrow, the Seahawks’ Sam Darnold, the 49ers’ Brock Purdy and the Buccaneers’ Baker Mayfield. One dutiful response, refusing to name any one quarterback even when protected by anonymity, told me “the quarterback that coach puts out there that he trusts to go out there and execute the job. That’s the quarterback we’re standing with. Whoever coach puts out there.” RESULTS: Patrick Mahomes, Chiefs: 15 Lamar Jackson, Ravens 8 Josh Allen, Bills 5 Caleb Williams, Bears 4 Matthew Stafford, Rams 3 (QBs that received one vote: Joe Burrow, Bengals; Sam Darnold, Seahawks; Brock Purdy, 49ers; Baker Mayfield, Buccaneers) Which non-QB would you build a franchise around? To offset the QB-centric responses you get to most questions, we asked prospects if they were building an NFL franchise around a current NFL player — at any position other than quarterback — who would they pick? A year ago, the runaway winner was Eagles running back Saquon Barkley, coming off a 2,000-yard season, but this time Barkley drew just a single vote. The clear-cut winner, after resetting the NFL record for sacks in a season with 23, is Browns edge rusher Myles Garrett, who was chosen by 10 of 41 prospects. One player said they weren’t sure who to pick. Lions running back Jahmyr Gibbs was next with three votes, one more than two other dual-threat running backs in the 49ers’ Christian McCaffrey and the Falcons’ Bijan Robinson. Two edge rushers also got two votes in the Raiders’ Maxx Crosby and the Packers’ Micah Parsons, as did Vikings receiver Justin Jefferson. In all, there were 25 different players named out of 41 votes, and impressively, a near-perfect split with 13 offensive players and 12 on defense. RESULTS: Myles Garrett, edge rusher, Browns: 10 Jahmyr Gibbs, RB, Lions: 3 Maxx Crosby, edge rusher, Raiders: 2 Justin Jefferson, WR, Vikings: 2 Christian McCaffrey, RB, 49ers: 2 Micah Parsons, edge rusher, Packers: 2 Bijan Robinson, RB, Falcons: 2 (Players that received one vote: Saquon Barkley, RB, Eagles; Derrick Brown, DT, Panthers; Calen Bullock, S, Texans; Jalen Carter, DL, Eagles; Nick Emmonwori, DB, Seahawks; Jaycee Horn, CB, Panthers; Creed Humphrey, C, Chiefs; Aidan Hutchinson, edge rusher, Lions; Lane Johnson, OT, Eagles; Chris Jones, DT, Chiefs; George Kittle, TE, 49ers; Cooper Kupp, WR, Seahawks; Penei Sewell, T, Lions; Jaxon Smith-Njigba, WR, Seahawks; Bobby Wagner, LB, Commander; Kenneth Walker, RB, Seahawks; Jameson Williams, WR, Lions; Quinnen Williams, DL, Cowboys) Who is your favorite current pro athlete in any sport other than football? Every year, we think that LeBron James might slip as the most popular choice among prospects who have witnessed his dominance for literally their entire lives, and every year, we stand corrected. The Lakers’ superstar was easily the top choice again this year, getting 13 of 41 votes, four times as many as any other athlete. There continues to be a strong NBA tilt to the answers. Basketball players accounted for 26 of the 41 responses, though that’s down from 31 of 40 last year. The Timberwolves’ Anthony Edwards was a distant second with three votes, ahead of two NBA veterans (Golden State’s Steph Curry and Houston’s Kevin Durant), golfer Scottie Scheffler and soccer legend Cristiano Ronaldo with two each. The rest ran the gamut from hockey and baseball to tennis and golf and even UFC fighters, as one player abstained from answering this question. RESULTS: LeBron James (NBA): 13 Anthony Edwards (NBA): 3 Steph Curry (NBA): 2 Kevin Durant (NBA): 2 Cristiano Ronaldo (soccer): 2 Scottie Scheffler (PGA): 2 (Athletes that received one vote: Carlos Alcaraz, tennis; Devin Booker, NBA; Jimmy Butler, NBA; Sidney Crosby; Gervonta Davis, boxer; Luka Dončić, NBA; Aaron Ekblad, NHL; James Harden, NBA; Aaron Judge, MLB; Conor McGregor, MMA; Lionel Messi, soccer; Charles Oliveira, MMA; Alex Volkov, MMA; Victor Wembanyama, NBA; Russell Westbrook, NBA; Bobby Witt Jr; Tiger Woods, golf) How many teams should be in the College Football Playoff? We started asking this in the survey when there were still only four teams, but now that we’ve had two years with a 12-team field, that seems to be accepted and preferred. Out of 42 prospects, more than half — 23 total — said they like it, with 12 as in the current format. “I thought it was pretty entertaining with 12 this year,” one told me. Of the remaining 18 votes, there was a split between potential expansion, as has been discussed, or going back to a smaller playoff field, however unlikely that might be. There were 10 prospects who wanted more than 12 playoff teams — six asked for 16 teams, with two seeking 24 and one somehow wanting a 25-team field. There were eight on the other side, with five content to have eight playoff teams and two wanting to go all the way back to four teams. RESULTS: 12 teams: 23 16 teams: 6 8 teams: 5 4 teams: 2 24 teams: 2 6 teams: 1 14 teams: 1 18 teams: 1 25 teams: 1 What would you change about college football? In another open-ended question, we got a variety of answers. But there were a handful of answers that struck a similar theme. Several prospects said they wanted to see changes to the transfer portal, NIL regulation, specific on-field rules and playoff scheduling. Multiple players wanted to limit the number of times you can transfer to typically just once before graduating and once again as a graduate player. Another wants players to be able to transfer whenever coaches leave. “A position coach or coach can leave at any point in the season or postseason. They should be able to leave if their position coach or coach leaves,” one prospect told me. As for NIL regulation, one prospect suggested that student-athletes form their own union. “I need that in college football in the next two or three years,” the prospect told me. “My experience in college football was a roller coaster, and a union for college football players. Coaches don’t care and treat everybody fairly. College football is crazy in that aspect. There needs to be more structure with a union able to look after players.” One player suggested that the non-power conferences should play their own playoff, and another player suggested that the clock should be stopped following first downs again. A couple of prospects wanted to see changes made to education matters, too. “I would make all the education online so you can spend more time with football,” one prospect told me. What’s the best advice you’ve received? Another open-ended question that gave us a variety of answers, and great quotes, like this one: “Excuses are like buttholes. Everyone has one.” Numerous players mentioned believing in their faith as the best advice they’ve received. Others mentioned hard work, worrying about what you can control and being present as some of the best advice they’ve received. “Be where your feet are,” one prospect told me. “Don’t look too far into the future. Just appreciate every moment. Remember what your goal is every time while you’re working.” If not Fernando Mendoza, who goes No. 1 in the draft? It’s widely expected right now that the Raiders will use the No. 1 overall pick in this year’s draft on Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza, fresh off a Heisman Trophy win and undefeated season as college football’s surprising champs. So with an eye on the top of the draft, we framed our question like this: If it isn’t Mendoza or you, who should go No. 1 in the draft? That worked out well, with four draft prospects getting at least four votes in the survey, led by Miami edge rusher Rueben Bain, who had 11 out of 34 votes. “Rueben Bain was unstoppable in the playoffs,” a prospect told me. Bain edged out a pair of Ohio State prospects. Linebacker Arvell Reese was second with seven votes, and safety Caleb Downs was next with four, tied with Miami offensive tackle Francis Mauigoa, also known as “61, whoever that is, however you say his name,” as one said. And this is a question where we’re trusting prospects to name their best guess, to answer truthfully, but it sometimes devolves to naming a teammate or training partner. Among the abstentions were honest answers like “I have no idea” and “I haven’t paid much attention.” So let them have their fun, we say. RESULTS: Rueben Bain, edge rusher, Miami: 11 Arvell Reese, LB, Ohio State: 7 Caleb Downs, S, Ohio State: 4 Francis Mauigoa, OT, Miami: 4 (Prospects to receive one vote: David Bailey, OLB, Texas Tech; Taylen Green, QB, Arkansas; Lee Hunter, DL, Texas Tech; Emmanuel McNeil-Warren, DB, Toledo; T.J. Parker, DL, Clemson; Sonny Styles, LB, Ohio State; Carnell Tate, WR, Ohio State; Logan Taylor, OL, Boston College)