NFL Draft analyst Todd McShay has two Texas football players projected to go in the first round in his Way-Too-Early 2026 Mock NFL Draft.
First off the board for the Longhorns, according to McShay, is linebacker Anthony Hill Jr. to the Denver Broncos at No. 19. This would mark the second straight draft that Sean Payton and company have looked to Austin on Day 1 after the franchise selected cornerback Jahdae Barron with its first round pick last month.
Of course Arch Manning's decision next offseason will influence who could come off the board first for Texas, but Hill has consistently topped first round mocks in regards to Texas players in next year's draft. Of note, McShay did not include Manning in his mock draft.
RELATED: If Arch Manning is the projected No. 1 pick in the 2026 NFL Draft, would he leave Texas early?
Second off the board from UT, according to McShay, is wide receiver DeAndre Moore Jr. to the Buffalo Bills at No. 30.
Should Moore get selected in the first round, it would mark the third straight season Texas has a wideout selected in the first round after Xavier Worthy in 2024 (Kansas City) and Matthew Golden in 2025 (Green Bay). The Horns247 staff took a stab at predicting who would be first off the board in next year's draft in our recent Horns247 Staff Roundtable.
Of course mock drafts will change as it's almost comical to try and project past the top handful of picks this far out. Texas is coming off a draft that it broke a program record, sending 12 players to the league, along with several undrafted free agent signings.
"There's nothing like seeing our players achieve their lifelong dreams of being drafted to the NFL, and that goes for the ones that will sign as free agents, too." head coach Steve Sarkisian said." When you look at last year's draft with a school-record 11 guys, and this year breaking that with 12, that's 23 players in two years drafted off a team that in year one (in 2021) we didn't have any. That says a lot about the work these guys have poured into building our program and the trajectory of where we're headed because of these guys. This group of guys went to back-to-back college football playoff semifinals, led us to top-five rankings the last two years, won the Big 12, were in the SEC Championship game in overtime – things that hadn't been done at Texas for a long time. They set a standard and there's a lot of be proud of with this group because of what they've meant to our program. To think, when we got here there were 32 players total from Texas on rosters in the NFL and when you add this group in, we've nearly equaled that number in the last three drafts (28) – 23 in the last two alone – which is pretty incredible. I couldn't be prouder of every one of these guys and the future they have ahead of them. It's not really when you get drafted, it's what you do with the opportunity, and I'm confident all these guys – along with the ones signing as free agents –understand that and will maximize the opportunity in front of them.
"These guys are one of the groups that helped change the culture of our program. We were excited to see their names called on draft day, but more importantly, want to let the teams that picked them know that they'll not only give it their all on the field, but be great teammates, tremendous representatives of their franchises and outstanding members of the community. We are incredibly proud of each and every one of them and so happy for them and their families.
"They really put in the work, bought in, committed to being great, and it says a lot about our staff and all they poured into them, as well. Their explosiveness and power, football IQ, ability to do a great job interviewing with teams, the way they conduct themselves, those are all things we take great pride in here, and these guys are a great reflection of that. It's a great moment for them and their families, but it's also definitely motivating for the guys that are on our roster now. The message to them is if you follow the recipe for success here and focus on team success, the individual accolades, awards and honors will come. We've got a hungry group that wants to help the team be successful. It's a roster full of 'want to' guys and not 'have to' guys, and I credit a lot of the players before them for creating that 'want to' mentality that our team has right now."