Edge Rusher Rankings 2026 Nfl Draft

Bonisiwe Shabane

-Oct 31, 2025, 5:01 PM

You are currently viewing our edge rusher rankings for the 2026 NFL Draft. The 2026 edge rusher class has a chance to make it back to back years with really deep classes. Our top edge prospects are selected after thousands of hours carefully scouting the most talented defensive ends and outside linebackers in college football. Even though only about 30 will get selected in the draft, a lot more are signed as free agents, and many more receive a training camp invite. We’ll provide you with inside information to help you know who will be a star, who will be a bust, and which sleepers will shock the world. BNB Football is the best place for in-depth analysis of 2026 NFL draft edge rusher prospects at all levels of college football.

To view other positions, follow the links below. 2026: | QB | WR | RB | FB | TE | OT | G | C | DT | EDGE | LB | S | CB | K | P | LS |... Copyright 2008-2026 Drafttek.com. All Rights Reserved.Privacy Policy Neither Drafttek.com or www.drafttek.com are affiliated in any manner with the National Football League. Nor any National Football League Team, or any NFLPA player.

The 2025 college football season has just begun, but it's never too early to break down prospects for next spring's draft class. PFF Lead NFL Draft Analyst Trevor Sikkema offers his breakdowns for 28 edge defenders in the 2026 NFL Draft, including T.J. Parker, R Mason Thomas and Dani Dennis-Sutton. Overton has a thick, compact build and uses good leverage and impressive speed-to-power conversion to defend the run with high efficiency. As a pass rusher, his win percentage is high due to disruption, but he often fails to win cleanly with haste. His length is limited, but what he does best seems to lend itself to a 3-4 defensive end role with some inside-out alignment flexibility.

However, he can be a contributing player in a 4-3 scheme as a power defensive end — he just might struggle to threaten the outside shoulder as a pass rusher with a lack of... Sutton has the build of a versatile NFL defensive lineman at 6-foot-5, 265 pounds. His massive arm length gives him an advantage when executing long arm and bull rush moves with a speed-to-power pass-rush emphasis. His first step has flashes of being NFL-caliber, but he can struggle mightily when changing direction — although that has improved after trimming his weight down. He projects best as a 3-4 defensive end with some 4-3 flexibility to maximize strengths (length and size) and mitigate weaknesses (agility in space). Young is a long and strong defensive end prospect whose best spot in the league may be more inside as a 3-4 defensive end.

He has good arm length with a strong upper body to stack and shed as well as finish tackles. He has a decent first step but is slow when asked to change direction and has a limited top speed in pursuit. His pass-rush win percentage and sack totals have been low throughout his career. He could benefit from adding some weight and finding a home between the tackles as a primary run defender. by Bill Sparks | Oct 27, 2025 | Headlines, NFL Draft <img data-recalc-dims="1" decoding="async" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-987558630 lazyload" src="https://i0.wp.com/twsn.net/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/Screenshot-2025-10-27-at-2.11.26-PM.png?resize=1044%2C594&quality=80&ssl=1" alt="Top 10 Edge Rushers in the 2026 NFL Draft" width="1044" height="594" srcset="https://twsn.net/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/Screenshot-2025-10-27-at-2.11.26-PM.png 1044w, https://twsn.net/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/Screenshot-2025-10-27-at-2.11.26-PM-980x558.png 980w, https://twsn.net/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/Screenshot-2025-10-27-at-2.11.26-PM-480x273.png 480w" sizes="(min-width: 0px) and (max-width: 480px) 480px, (min-width: 481px) and...

If there’s one position group helping to carry the 2026 NFL Draft class, it’s the edge rushers. This group is loaded with explosiveness, power, and relentless pursuit; the kind of defenders who live in opposing backfields and dictate game flow. It’s a deep, violent, and versatile class headlined by Rueben Bain Jr., who’s not only my No. 1 defensive player in the entire draft and one of only two “Blue-Chip” prospects, but arguably the most complete edge prospect since Will Anderson Jr. Let’s talk about the EDGE rushers in the 2026 NFL Draft. With the college football season coming up quickly, it’s time for NFL fans to get acquainted with the next NFL draft class coming up.

What the 2025 class lacked in depth at the top of the class, the 2026 group has so much flash and pop at the front of the class at premium positions. The QB class gets the most acclaim, as does the tackle class, but we’re not focusing on those guys yet. Let’s talk about the big guys up front, starting with an EDGE class that I think has a lot of promise. The star power is tantalizing at the top, but throughout the entire group there are guys with the potential to rise up the chart. In fact, some of my favorite players in this class at this early portion in the cycle are in the EDGE class. So, let’s break down my top ten right now.

Remember, this isn’t set in stone and will be fluid by the time we come back around during the college football season. Faulk is very similar to the freakish prospects who went at the top of last year’s draft like Mykel Williams and Shemar Stewart. Faulk has the size, length and strength to dislodge linemen at the point of attack in the run and passing game. He’s got a good feel for blocking on the inside as a 4i, and as a pass rusher he has the versatility to win from multiple alignments. I would love to see him work more of a pass rush plan going into next season, but for now he’s my top EDGE in the class. If we’re just talking collection of tools, Parker is in consideration for one of the best prospects in the class overall.

He’s a solid 6’3 and 265 pounds, and his ability to convert speed to power as a pass rusher and use a variety of ways to get around the corner is awesome at his... He’s also a part of a monstrous front at Clemson with another top prospect for 2026, DT Peter Woods. I want Parker to be a bit stronger at the point of attack in the run game in 2025, but he’s on track for the top half of the NFL Draft. Rueben Bain Jr. is a WMD class edge, capable of laying waste to the best laid offensive game plan. Matayo Uiagalelei isn’t just a speed rusher, but the full size swiss-army sledgehammer NFL DCs covet on the edge.

Last week, I discussed why Cade Klubnik is my early QB1 for the 2026 NFL Draft. This week, we’re beginning a series where I’ll discuss my top five for each position group in next April’s draft. This week, we’re getting off to a hot start with my 2026 EDGE rusher rankings! 2025 was an elite class for EDGE rushers, with names like Abdul Carter, Mykel Williams, Jalon Walker, Shemar Stewart, and James Pearce Jr. all hearing their name called in the first round. The class also had incredible depth, with names like Donovan Ezeiruaku, Nic Scourton, Oluwafemi Oladejo, Princely Umanmielen, and others being great values in the next two rounds.

While 2026 may not end up having the same depth as this past class, there are still plenty of names to be excited about! Miami Hurricanes EDGE Rueben Bain Jr. is my early EDGE1. Miami’s defense was rather poor last season, but that was no fault of Bain Jr. Bain Jr. is a good athlete and gets off the ball in a hurry.

His acceleration, along with his footspeed, allows him to get into offensive tackles’ chests in an instant. Turning our attention to the exciting group of edge rushers, we’re ranking the top guys for the 2026 NFL Draft, and leaving some sleepers in here as potential guys to be selected. It’s a solid group of prospects, with many making jumps since the last rankings update. Let’s dive in and see who is climbing the draft board this season. Subscribe to Prep Draft Pro to keep reading this post and get 7 days of free access to the full post archives.

Edge Rusher Rankings 2026 Nfl Draft

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