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The 2026 NFL draft, like any other, instilled mixed feelings among fans.
Radio and social media have sparked debate on many topics, and controversies have overshadowed the event for some this year.
Here’s all the biggest drama that came out of the 2026 NFL Draft:
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The latest scandal for the New England Patriots
Dianna Russini, left, and Mike Vrabel, right, are shown in a separate composite photo featuring Russini with an ESPN microphone and Vrabel on the Titans sidelines wearing a headset. (Photographs)
Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel left his team on Day 3 of this year’s draft, as he looked after his family after several scandalous photos of him and NFL reporter Dianna Russini leaked in recent weeks.
Vrabel and the Patriots announced that he would be leaving the team early Thursday morning, and a few hours later a photo of Vrabel and Russini kissing was published by the New York Post.
Vrabel then held a press conference shortly before the start of the first round, amid speculation about his future with the team.
“My past actions do not meet the standard I hold myself to,” he said in a press conference.
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Vrabel was asked to explain why he made the statement in the first place calling his pictures again Russini at a resort in Arizona is “laughing” after it was published by the New York Post in early April.
“That’s right a private and personal matter. I don’t think those words…were an attempt to protect your family,” Vrabel said.
It was the last question Vrabel answered before he stormed the podium and left the room.
The Patriots then selected Utah offensive tackle Caleb Lomu in the first round, prompting a lot of jokes after his draft profile video showed him dancing.
“This video will go triple platinum when Drake Maye gets sacked for the fifth time in the half,” one user captioned X’s post on Lomu’s video.
Arvell Reese and the New York Giants
Ohio State linebacker Arvell Reese meets with NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell after the New York Giants selected him with the fifth pick in the first round of the NFL draft in Pittsburgh on April 23, 2026. (Gene J. Puskar/AP)
The Giants shocked many when they selected Ohio State linebacker Arvell Reese with the No. 5 pick.
Some fans and pundits believe the Giants won’t add another quarterback with such a high pick, with a high-profile investment already on the roster. Some fans were even more frustrated when they used the 10th overall pick on offensive lineman Francis Mauigoa, passing on top safety prospect Caleb Downs. Downs then moved out of the 11th place rival Dallas Cowboys.
Meanwhile, Reese has emerged as a topic of debate for other reasons. News that he had a 0.4 GPA in high school, then a 3.7 GPA at Ohio State, spread like wildfire on draft night.
“I think the secret is time and effort,” Reese told CBS Sports. “In high school, it was a time when I didn’t even try to go to school or I didn’t think school was important. So, it took me just shutting down in the middle of it and taking it seriously.”
But New York sports talk radio host Craig Carton of WFAN was more vocal when he commented on Reese’s academic roller coaster.
“How does a kid with a 0.4 GPA in high school leave Ohio State with a 3.7 GPA?” Khathoni said. “I would like to understand that.”
Reese also went viral in a series of interactions with the New York sports media shortly after he was drafted.
During the press conference, Reese received praise and fear from fans and critics for comments about embracing “violence.”
“You play defense, you have to be aggressive. You have to think about doing something violent,” he said.
At one point during the press conference, Reese was asked an awkward question about how he would make an impact on veterans and children with disabilities.
Reese asked the reporter to repeat the question, then stammered, before answering, saying “I don’t know how to answer that.”
“Who would ask such a question outside the gate?” one X user wrote in response to the interactive piece.
ESPN and the eight-minute draft clock
The NFL introduced a new, shortened clock this year, reducing the time teams have to pick from 10 minutes to eight.
However, the decision seemed to spark a huge backlash on social media, particularly against ESPN’s coverage.
Many fans have complained that they can’t even scroll to X or turn on their phones without seeing 3-4 results before. One user wrote: “Personally I liked the 8 minute clock, but the 10 selections were so annoying that I couldn’t even turn on my phone without the 4 selections being messed up.”
Sean McVay and the Rams’ selection of QB Ty Simpson
Alabama’s Ty Simpson celebrates after being selected with the 13th overall pick by the Los Angeles Rams in the first round of the 2026 NFL Draft at Acrisure Stadium in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, on April 23, 2026. (Emilee Chinn/Getty Images)
When the Los Angeles Rams drafted quarterback Ty Simpson in the first round of the NFL Draft on Thursday, head coach Sean McVay didn’t look happy, and he admitted as much on Friday.
McVay, while recounting the second day of the Draft rams, opened his press conference admitting his behavior after Simpson’s election.
“I get my behavior last night, but we’re happy about it. There are different things. I always want to remember how things turn out and things like that. I was very happy last night and I’m very happy today. We couldn’t be more happy that we continue to lead together, but all the decisions we make are together and in cooperation, “said McVay.
“Any questions or disagreements based on my behavior or my behavior last night, I wanted to get it out of the way. This is my friend right here.,” McVay said with a smile as he reached out to general manager Les Snead.
“That was important to me because I got a lot of texts. That was not the way I intended to go out, but sometimes I get angry.”
The reporter then asked the 40-year-old coach why he was angry.
“Well, there were other things that didn’t have to do with that, which is normal life,” McVay said.
“The main thing was, I couldn’t be more happy to be able to add him, but also to understand how much I love Matthew Stafford, how he wants to respect and how things can be interpreted. The behavior would not be stoic in nature because he is happy, but it is not – it is Matthew’s football team.”
The Cardinals moved back with the third pick
Jeremiah Love of Notre Dame celebrates after being selected as the third overall pick by the Arizona Cardinals in the first round of the 2026 NFL Draft at Acrisure Stadium in Pittsburgh, Pa., on April 23, 2026. (Emilee Chinn/Getty Images)
The Arizona Cardinals made one of the boldest and most controversial picks of this year’s draft, taking running back Jeremiah Love out of Notre Dame with the third overall pick. While Love is undeniably talented, the move has Twitter in the Draft in complete disarray, with fans, commentators, and spies calling it everything from “the first drink strategy” to “bad business.”
“Love the player. Hate the pick where it happened. A RB in the top 5 shouldn’t happen these days,” wrote one X user.
Another user wrote, “I hope jersey sales are good because RB Jeremiah Love will be a high pick in Round 1. I believe ownership is in.”
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ESPN reporter Myron Medcalf wrote on X, “I think Jeremiah Love is an amazing RB. And I still don’t think you can pick a RB in the first round in the current NFL. No. 3 sounds like an amazing reach, based on where the game is today and the value of the position in the later rounds.”
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