NFL Draft 2026: The biggest questions answered by DBs and TEs at the Combine

The NFL Combine keeps chugging along, with defensive backs and tight ends working out on Friday. It was a day filled with surprise results, including three Combine records being broken for the tight end position.

Friday also gave us the answers to some questions, like who the definitive No. 2 tight end is and which safety just shot up draft boards after his impressive performance.

Kenyon Sadiq and Eli Stowers are the clear top two at TE

No surprise that Kenyon Sadiq's spot as the No. 1 tight end prospect was officially secured on Friday when he ran what might have been the fastest 40-yard dash ever by a tight end. (It was at least the fastest on record at the NFL Combine.) Sadiq was a clear first-round talent before the workout, and now he looks like he might go even earlier than expected.

But let's not lose sight of what the No. 2 tight end prospect, Vanderbilt's Eli Stowers, did on Friday, as he set postional records in two categories: vertical jump and broad jump.

Stowers hasn't received the same level of hype leading up to the Combine as Sadiq's gotten, despite a senior season with the Commodores that saw him catch 62 passes for 769 yards and four touchdowns. He's been viewed as a late Day 2 prospect, someone likely to come off the board in the latter half of the third round, but Friday's testing could change that.

Tight end is becoming a more and more crucial position in the NFL, and Stowers showed he has the physical tools to be a matchup nightmare at the next level. The former quarterback is still a bit raw as far as tight end skills, but this showing should push him into the second round.

D'Angelo Ponds has the athleticism to make up for size concerns

Indiana cornerback D'Angelo Ponds was really, really good in 2025, picking off a pair of passes and recording 11 pass defenses, the latter of which was the most in the Big Ten. There's just one small problem.

Ponds is only 5-foot-9. That's not ideal for a starting NFL cornerback, and his size is likely a potential dealbreaker for some teams around the league.

Luckily for Ponds, his testing on Friday showcased a solid reason why teams should ignore his size and draft him anyway: He's got hops. Specifically, Ponds got up real high during the vertical jump.

Ponds' 43.5-inch vertical was the best among all cornerbacks, and it goes a long way toward showing that his shortcomings — pardon the pun — won't kill his chances of being a good NFL corner. He's not the best corner in this class, but he's making a case to be a very early Day 2 pick

Dillon Thieneman is the No. 2 safety in this class

Ohio State's Caleb Downs is the No. 1 safety in the 2026 NFL Draft class. There's no debating that, and there's nothing that can change that fact as we head toward the draft itself. Downs might go in the top five overall.

But the role of No. 2 safety? That one is up in the air. Or, rather, it was up in the air. With apologies to very good players like Toledo's Emmanuel McNeil-Warren and LSU's A.J. Haulcy, Oregon's Dillon Thieneman has separated himself from that tier and has solidified himself as a first-round pick.

Thieneman killed it in every drill. He ran a 4.35-second 40-yard dash, faster than a LOT of wide receivers, and showed that he had the ability to jump really, really high with his 41-inch vertical. His movements were fluid and in drills where he had to catch balls, he, well ... caught them.

Before the Combine, Thieneman was more than likely a first rounder, but probably near the end of the round. A team like the Bills or Rams probably had eyes on him. The Rams still should, only instead of L.A. getting him at No. 29 overall, it might have to think hard about him at No. 13 overall instead. Though more than likely I'd expect he lasts until somewhere around No. 18 overall, where the Vikings pick, or No. 20 overall, the second of the Cowboys' two first rounders.

It's still hard to get a sense of who R.J. Maryland is

SMU's R.J. Maryland's Combine performance probably created more questions than answers, though I suppose one answer it did produce is this: Maryland's fast 40-yard dash time isn't going to matter when you look at his other results.

Maryland tied with Stowers for the second-best 40 among tight ends, running it in 5.1 seconds. Not too surprising for a guy who averaged over 15 yards per catch twice during his college career, but would his other results lead him to be a riser as we approached the draft?

No. Or, at least, probably not.

Maryland's vertical was second-worst among tight ends, beating only Penn State's Khalil Dinkins, a player who arguably had the worst Combine performance of any tight end. His broad jump was better, but six tight ends still bested him. His 10-yard split was near the bottom as well.

Complicated results to parse, but largely they just show that one very good performance in one drill isn't necessarily proof that you'll test well in every drill. Maryland has NFL speed, but his lack of leaping ability will make it hard for him to actually make it in the league.