2026 NFL Rookie Risers and Fallers After Week 7: Day 3 Defenders Crash the Party
Michael Taaffe, Hezekiah Masses and Harold Perkins are soaring past their draft slots, while Jordyn Tyson and Peter Woods slide without a snap.
Seven weeks in, the live 2026 NFL redraft has stopped looking like draft night. Our board now leans about 63% on what rookies have actually done on the field, with the rest still coming from where they were picked. That's enough weight for real production to move players a long way, and the biggest jumps this year belong to defenders who heard their names called on Day 3.
The flip side is just as stark. Several first- and second-round picks have yet to take a regular-season snap, and the board has no choice but to let them sink.
The biggest risers vs. draft slot
| Player | Pos | Team | Orig. pick | Redraft slot | Move |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Michael Taaffe | S | MIA | 158 | 25 | +133 |
| Hezekiah Masses | CB | LVR | 175 | 45 | +130 |
| Harold Perkins | LB | ATL | 215 | 69 | +146 |
| Robert Spears-Jennings | S | PIT | 224 | 79 | +145 |
| Tommy Doman | P | BUF | 239 | 107 | +132 |
Michael Taaffe, S, Miami. The Texas safety is the headliner. He went 158th and now sits 25th, inside the first round, with a board score of 62.4. The production backs it up: 33 tackles, 2 interceptions, 2 passes defended and a forced fumble in 6 games, while playing 93.3% of the snaps. His performance score of 94.5 is one of the best in the class. In today's redraft, Chicago would take him at 25.
Hezekiah Masses, CB, Las Vegas. The Cal corner went 175th and has climbed to 45th. He has 3 interceptions and 6 passes defended to go with 26 tackles and a tackle for loss across 7 games, on 56% of the snaps. That's a ball-hawking line from a player who was a late-round flier in April.
Harold Perkins, LB, Atlanta. Perkins owns the single biggest jump on the board, 146 spots, from pick 215 to slot 69. The LSU linebacker has 31 tackles, half a sack, a tackle for loss and a pass defended in 7 games while playing 54.4% of the snaps.
Robert Spears-Jennings, S, Pittsburgh. The Oklahoma safety went 224th and now sits 79th. He has 21 tackles, an interception and 2 passes defended in 7 games, mostly as a part-timer at 34.2% of the snaps, which makes the climb even more impressive.
Tommy Doman, P, Buffalo. Yes, a punter. Doman went 239th and has appeared in 6 games as a specialist, good for slot 107. Every redraft needs one fun entry.
The biggest fallers vs. draft slot
The fallers share one thing: no game action, or almost none. Our formula can only credit what happens on the field, so as the performance weight climbs every week, a rookie who hasn't played keeps sliding.
| Player | Pos | Team | Orig. pick | Redraft slot | Move |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Peter Woods | DT | KAN | 29 | 177 | -148 |
| Chase Bisontis | G | ARI | 34 | 182 | -148 |
| Ty Simpson | QB | LAR | 13 | 149 | -136 |
| Jordyn Tyson | WR | NOR | 8 | 135 | -127 |
| Logan Jones | C | CHI | 57 | 183 | -126 |
Jordyn Tyson is the most striking name here. The Arizona State receiver was the No. 8 pick and is now 135th without a regular-season snap. Ty Simpson, the 13th pick, has also yet to play and sits 149th. Peter Woods (pick 29) and Chase Bisontis (pick 34) are tied for the steepest drop at 148 spots each. Logan Jones has logged 7 offensive snaps, 1.3% of Chicago's total, in his only game.
None of this means these players are busts. It means they haven't been on the field, and the board will reward them quickly once they are.
Who moved most since Week 6
Week-to-week moves are a different story, because a single appearance can swing a deep-bench rookie a long way.
The Rams' Tim Keenan III jumped 60 spots to 181st after his debut, with 2 tackles on 4% of the snaps. Teammate CJ Daniels rose 55 spots to 173rd just for getting on the field. Philadelphia's Eli Stowers, the 54th pick, climbed 51 spots to 132nd in his first game. Saints guard Jeremiah Wright moved up 21 spots after logging 100 offensive snaps across 2 games.
On the way down, Tyson lost another 17 spots this week. Atlanta corner Avieon Terrell slipped 14 spots to 71st, though he's still playing 44.4% of the snaps with 11 tackles in 6 games.
Broncos check-in
For Denver fans, Jonah Coleman remains the only Broncos rookie with regular-season stats. The Washington back went 108th and sits 112th on the redraft after 3 games, with 19 carries for 93 yards and a touchdown plus 5 catches for 34 yards. In Week 7 against Arizona he ran 9 times for 54 yards and caught both of his targets for 15 yards. The rest of Denver's class, including second-day pick Tyler Onyedim, is still waiting for its first snap.
What's next
The performance weight keeps rising every week, so the Day 3 risers will keep their gains only if they keep producing, and the idle early picks still have time to win their spots back. Follow every move on the live 2026 NFL redraft and the full NFL rookie rankings.
The 2026 NFL redraft re-sorts every morning with the latest games.