Since no two prospects are the same, NFL Draft slides come in all shapes and sizes. For edge rushers, shorter arms often mean greater likelihood of slipping out of the first round. For quarterbacks, a lack of starting experience could be the difference between a Day 1 selection and a tumble into the middle rounds. The 2026 draft class could see both of those worries result in projected first-rounders falling out of the first 32 picks.

The 2025 draft provided one of the most infamous slides in recent memory as Shedeur Sanders, once viewed as a surefire first-round quarterback, waited all the way until Day 3 to hear his name called at No. 144 overall. It would be a true shock if any of this year's top prospects experienced that kind of disappointment, but then again, nobody expected it to happen to Sanders, either.

Just because a prospect missed an entire season due to injury or has character concerns does not mean teams will pass on him in the first round. These players are in the discussion to be among the first 32 players selected in the draft for a reason. All of them are potential stars. Teams have to weigh the risks with the possible stardom, though, and in some cases, it simply is not worth the investment.

The more red flags a player raises during the evaluation period, the more likely he is to plummet down the board. Reporting throughout the pre-draft process highlighted concerns for a bevy of potential first-rounders and we rounded them up into one list.

Here are the players in the greatest danger of sliding in the 2026 NFL Draft.

No edge rusher with an arm measurement of 30 7/8 inches or shorter has gone in the first round of any draft since at least 1999, per ESPN. While most expect Rueben Bain Jr. to snap that trend, the precedent exists for him to not only tumble out of the top 10 but to even wait until Day 2 to hear his name called.

Multiple defensive line coaches said to The Athletic that Bain's lack of arm length will force him to rely on his speed when he matches up against opposing tackles. Fortunately, he is well suited to do so. But it could make for a lengthy adjustment period, thus capping his rookie ceiling, and then what happens later in his career when he loses some of his athleticism?

Plus, while most teams consider the matter handled, Bain was cited in 2024 for careless driving in an incident that led to one passenger's eventual death. According to CBS Sports Lead NFL Insider Jonathan Jones, at least one team was not satisfied with Bain's explanation of the matter.

If Bain's arm length is an issue, then Cashius Howell is in an even more precarious position given that he measured out even shorter at 30 1/4 inches. He is more widely projected to be selected in the back end of the first round to begin with, so the risk of falling out of the top 32 is far greater than that of his Miami counterpart.

Howell developed into a standout after a year of development at both Bowling Green and Texas A&M, so while his measurables did not hold him back from elite production, he does have a history of needing time to get up to speed at various levels. That could be a deterrent for NFL teams that need starting-level contributions right away.

This week, Howell explained what he tells teams when they raise concerns about his size.

Texas A&M EDGE Cashius Howell's response to criticisms about his arm length?"I ball out" 😤@2cashius | @AggieFootball | @heykayadams pic.twitter.com/cd64eZ7yNg

An outstanding three-year Miami career, in which he earned Freshman All-American honors in 2023 and became a consensus All-American in 2025, suggests Francis Mauigoa has the upside to become the first offensive lineman selected.

At the same time, a back issue could scare teams away from making him a top-10 pick. Mauigoa was diagnosed with a herniated disc, per ESPN, and underwent a medical recheck two weeks ago.

While the injury is asymptomatic, it would require surgery if it gets worse. Plus, some teams think it is a matter of when, rather than if, he needs the procedure. These kinds of surgeries generally come with a three-month recovery timeline, so Mauigoa could have the procedure done this offseason and still be ready to go for Week 1. If he waits and the herniated disc worsens during the season, his rookie year could come off the rails.

This year's draft class lacks firepower at the quarterback position, which has left people searching for the next-best thing after Fernando Mendoza. While Ty Simpson has become the clear No. 2 passer behind the presumptive top overall pick, the gap between the two is arguably wide enough to keep him out of the first round. That would come as a surprise to some who think there are teams willing to trade up and grab him on Day 1.

Because the 2027 class projects as a loaded one at the signal-caller spot, teams have an incentive to wait another year before finding their franchise quarterback. That could spell a long wait for Simpson, Drew Allar, Garrett Nussmeier and the other quarterback prospects. Simpson having one year of starting experience at Alabama might be another deterrent, especially since he faded down the stretch of his 2025 campaign.

"I would not draft him in the first round, second round. I just don't know that he's going to be that good," one AFC executive said to NFL Media. "The longer you watch him, you feel a little man. What's he going to look like in our league? History's betting against us here. He gets thrown around. The kid's not very big, he's not very gifted. When he gets sacked, it looks like your dog swinging around their squeaky toy."

It doesn't take a whole lot of imagination to picture Jermod McCoy as an NFL standout, but it does take some. That's because he missed the entire college football season due to a torn ACL he sustained in January 2025.

What's more, NFL Media reports he could be headed toward another surgery. The ACL itself is reportedly in good shape, but a bone plug used to repair a cartilage defect in McCoy's knee may need to be replaced.