The 2026 NFL Draft is now less than two months away. We’ve already gone through the combine, which means Pro Days are really the only big events coming up between now and the draft. Teams have met with and scouted a lot of the top prospects in the draft, so all that’s left to do is grade them and prepare for draft night.

Trades are a huge part of draft season. On Wednesday morning, the Kansas City Chiefs traded Trent McDuffie to the Los Angeles Rams for the 29th pick in the draft, plus other draft capital, which could potentially be used to move up in the first round.

This deal marks the first one of draft season, but there will be plenty of more before the draft is over. Today, we’re going to go over five teams that should look to trade up in the first round, and who they should target.

Dallas Cowboys Trade Up For Mansoor Delane

The Dallas Cowboys have a massive hole at cornerback. Their secondary was awful last year, and they absolutely need to get better. There are some good cornerbacks on the free agent market, but their top target this offseason should be Mansoor Delane.

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Delane is a special talent. He doesn’t have the athleticism or top end speed that some of the other corners in this draft have, but he has the most important skill for a corner back: coverage skills. After a very successful career at Virginia Tech, he transferred to LSU to prove to everyone that he could compete with the best receivers in the country. And he did, allowing a 40 percent completion rate, 165 yards and zero touchdowns while picking off two passes and breaking up seven more. He was targeted 34 times, meaning over 25 percent of his targets ended in an interception or PBU.

If Dallas wants to ensure they land the top corner in the draft, they likely have to jump Miami, and possibly Cincinnati (and now possibly even Kansas City after they traded McDuffie, but we’ll get to them shortly). It wouldn’t take a whole lot to move up two to three spots, but they also have to find a team willing to move down. It would be a bit tricky to get into the top-10, but it could be worth it if they can get Delane.

Kansas City Chiefs Trade Up For Jeremiyah Love

After the McDuffie trade, I could 100 percent see the Chiefs sticking at nine and picking Mansoor Delane (or any of the other corners if they love Jermod McCoy or Avieon Terrell), but that trade could also be setting them up to make a move for Jeremiyah Love. It’s no secret that the Chiefs need to improve their run game, and there’s only one running back in this class that’s worth a first-round pick, and that’s Love.

It’s hard not to fall in love with Jeremiyah Love. He had incredible production at Notre Dame, and is coming off a very impressive combine performance, where he ran a 4.36-second 40-yard dash, second-fastest among all RBs. He is everything the Chiefs need and more, but there are a few teams ahead of them that could be interested in Love.

The Tennessee Titans, New York Giants, Washington Commanders and New Orleans Saints could all be in the market for Love. The odds of him getting past one or two of those teams aren’t bad, but the odds for him to get past all four are incredibly low. Say the Giants sign Kenneth Walker (they’ve been linked in recent reports), could the Chiefs package pick nine and some others to move up to five and take Love? And then take a corner at 29? I wouldn’t say it’s out of the question.

The Chiefs have a lot of options now, and I don’t think anybody will know their true intentions until draft night.

New Orleans Saints Trade Up For Jeremiyah Love

Another team that should entertain a trade up for Love is the Saints. They sit one pick ahead of the Chiefs, but would have to rely on Love making it past the Titans, Giants and Commanders if they want to get him, unless they trade up.

With the receivers projected to fall and Mickey Loomis’ love for trading up, I think there’s a real chance we could see the Saints leapfrog the Commanders and move up to No. 6 to select Love (if he’s still there, of course). They get their guy, and the Cleveland Browns would still get the receiver of their choosing, given the Commanders would probably turn to defense if Love was off the board.

The Saints have their quarterback in place, and they have a star wideout in Chris Olave. What they really need is a run game. They have to fill some holes at guard, which they can do in free agency and later in the draft, but a talent like Love doesn’t come around every year. If they can fix their issues on the interior of the offensive line and get Love, their offense should take off in 2026.

Buffalo Bills Trade Up For Jordyn Tyson

With the combine shaking things at the top of the draft up a little bit, it seems like Jordyn Tyson might take a bit of a slide in the draft. He didn’t work out at the combine and his medical history is pretty lengthy, and with guys like Sonny Styles raising their draft stock, Tyson could fall out of the top-10, which opens the door for someone like the Buffalo Bills to go get him.

This Bills team is a couple of receivers away from being ready to win the Super Bowl, and with Joe Brady taking over as head coach, I expect we’ll see a change in draft philosophy for Buffalo this year. I would be shocked if they left the first two rounds without a receiver, so if Tyson does fall to the 10-15 range, they should absolutely entertain a trade up.

If Tyson can stay healthy, I think he’s the best receiver in this class. He does so many things well, and he’s a true, dominant WR1 that Josh Allen has been desperately missing since Stefon Diggs left. There are other solid wideouts who will be there at the end of round one, but the drop off after Tyson, Carnell Tate and Makai Lemon is pretty steep in my eyes.

Pittsburgh Steelers Trade Up For Ty Simpson

This is not me saying the Pittsburgh Steelers should trade up from 21 to get Ty Simpson. I think they should stick and pick the best receiver on the board there, and then move back into the first round, preferably to No. 23, right in front of Cleveland, to select the Alabama quarterback.

Do I think Simpson is going to be great? I’m not sure. He has one year of starting experience in college and a pretty average arm, but quarterback is a premium position, and that fifth-year option is very valuable, especially for a team that already has a playoff roster. If he’s good, then you bought yourself five more years of being able to pay everyone else before you have to pay him.

I’m not completely sold on this one, but the Steelers aren’t going to be bad enough to be within striking distance of any of the top quarterbacks in 2027, so if they can find a solid one in the end of round one, it would really help them get back to being a Super Bowl contender.

San Francisco 49ers Trade Up For Monroe Freeling

No offensive lineman helped their draft stock more than Monroe Freeling, who earned a 9.99 Relative Athletic Score at the NFL Combine. He’s massive, but he’s also very athletic for his size, and his combine workout should’ve solidified him as a first-round pick.

Right now, the 49ers are trying to figure out what’s going to happen with their All-Pro LT Trent Williams. Contract talks have stalled, and there’s a world where he forces his way out of San Fran, leaving a massive hole at LT.

If that happens, the 49ers will almost certainly have to address that need in the draft, and Freeling might be the second-best tackle available after Francis Mauigoa goes off the board in the top-10. Super Bowl teams need a good left tackle, so giving up some future assets to move up 5-10 spots and select Freeling wouldn’t be a bad idea.