Thirty-six wide receivers were selected in the 2026 NFL Draft. It started with Carnell Tate going fourth overall to the Tennessee Titans and finished with the Indianapolis Colts taking Deion Burks with the 38th pick in the seventh round.
The Steelers drafted Germie Bernard in the second round, and he was the eighth wide receiver off the board. According to CBSSports.com, Bernard will have the ninth-biggest impact out of the 36 rookie wide receivers taken in the draft. The outlet is projecting Bernard to finish his rookie year with 42 catches for 506 yards and three touchdowns.
“He presents himself well against the soft spots in zone coverage but is also willing to seal the edge in the run game or deliver a game-breaking open field block,” Josh Edwards wrote. “His contributions may not always show up on the stat sheet, but accountability has always been important with Aaron Rodgers. Randall Cobb made a career understanding how to operate in space and hit his mark on time. DK Metcalf and Michael Pittman Jr. will almost certainly command high-volume shares in Pittsburgh’s offense, but do not sleep on Bernard.”
Our own Jake Brockhoff scouted Germie Bernard prior to the draft, and he saw those same things Edwards wrote about. He saw a savvy route runner who understood how to win against zone coverage. Sometimes, highly rated rookie wide receivers may have all the physical tools, but they lack that football intelligence. Bernard certainly doesn’t. That’s why Edwards makes the comparison to former Green Bay Packers WR Randall Cobb.
He’s not the only one seeing that similarity, either. Former NFL WR Steve Smith Sr. made the connection when he talked about how the Steelers built their wide receiver room this year to mimic the Packers’ room at their peak. Now, as Edwards says, Bernard’s fellow wide receivers could prevent him from having a bigger impact. DK Metcalf and Michael Pittman Jr. are NFL veterans who understand how to face NFL cornerbacks and win.
Yet that same barrier now could actually help Germie Bernard go on to have a better career. Analyst James Palmer thinks that room, coupled with QB Aaron Rodgers, will help Bernard start his career well.
Will Bernard produce like CBS Sports predicts? We won’t know until the season wraps up. However, this is another group that thinks Germie Bernard is a good rookie receiver in a good position. That’s a good thing.
As for the rest of the list, CBS Sports thinks that the New Orleans Saints’ Jordyn Tyson will have the biggest impact of any rookie. Both of the Cleveland Browns’ picks at wide receiver, KC Concepcion and Denzel Boston, made the list as well. They ranked Boston fourth and Concepcion sixth. And Philadelphia Eagles WR Makai Lemon came in at third.
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