Auburn Projected to Produce Three First-Round Picks in 2026 NFL Mock Draft

Auburn Projected to Produce Three First-Round Picks in 2026 NFL Mock Draft originally appeared on Athlon Sports.

The Auburn Tigers have not posted a winning season in four straight years. In addition, the Tigers have gone five consecutive NFL Drafts without a first-round selection.

But under Hugh Freeze, who has signed back-to-back top-10 recruiting classes and a pair of strong transfer portal hauls, Auburn is closing the talent gap against its competition.

With that, CBS Sports’ Ryan Wilson has predicted three Tigers to go in the first round of his 2026 NFL Mock Draft.

Expected to elevate the play for Auburn’s offensive line – ranked as a top 10 group in College Football heading into the season, according to PFF – Virginia Tech transfer Xavier Chaplin headlines the trio of Tigers on the list. 

Making his way to the Plains after an All-American campaign in 2023 along with being an All-ACC honorable mention recipient in 2024, Chaplin is slotted in as the No. 12 overall pick to the New England Patriots in Wilsons’ mock draft. 

Leading the charge on the defensive side of the ball for a young, but extremely talented group, is defensive lineman Keldric Faulk. A product of Highland Home high school in Alabama, Faulk is looking to build on a 2024 campaign in which he tallied 45 tackles, 11 tackles for loss and seven sacks as a second-year starter. He is tabbed as the No. 28 overall pick to the Detroit Lions in Wilsons’ list.

Rounding out the trio of talented Tigers is none other than the explosive Georgia Tech wide receiver transfer in Eric Singleton Jr. Coming off a 754 yard and three touchdown campaign a season ago, Singleton is expected to lead what may be Auburn’s most talented group out wide in program history. He is slotted in as the No. 30 overall pick to the Buffalo Bills on Wilsons’ list. 

Only time will tell if Auburn can break the five-year drought of not having a first-rounder in the NFL Draft, but it surely boasts its most talented roster of the Freeze era and the Tigers are in a perfect position to do so in 2026. 

Related: Auburn’s Eric Singleton Jr. Projected as a First-Round Pick in 2026 NFL Mock Draft

This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 12, 2025, where it first appeared.