The LSU Tigers are one of the biggest producers of NFL talent in the country. They currently have 39 former players in the NFL, which is the fifth-most of any school in the country, trailing only Alabama, Georgia, Ohio State, and Michigan. On Monday, LSU hosted its annual Pro Day to give its NFL Draft prospects one more chance to show off in front of NFL scouts. All 32 NFL teams were in attendance, with guys like Mansoor Delane, Garrett Nussmeier, and Harold Perkins set to work out. I was there throughout the day, so here were my biggest takeaways from LSU’s 2026 Pro Day.

Mansoor Delane Makes His Case to Be a Top-10 Pick

Mansoor Delane is projected to be a top-15 pick in the upcoming NFL Draft, but I wouldn’t be shocked at all if he ended up in the top 10. Some were already mocking him to the Washington Commanders, New Orleans Saints, and Kansas City Chiefs, but after his Pro Day performance, I think it’s almost a guarantee that he’ll end up going in the first 10 picks.

Delane only ran the 40-yard dash during the testing period. People have been questioning his speed all offseason, but he set a blazing time with a 4.35-second 40-yard dash. Times can be all over the place at Pro Days, but I didn’t hear of anybody with a time above a 4.39. All of the questions about his speed instantly disappeared after that number was posted.

After his 40-yard dash, Delane took part in defensive back workouts – where he was interestingly joined by LSU WR Chris Hilton (who also did WR workouts). Delane looked smooth and displayed excellent ball skills in the short workout, further adding to his case to be a top-10 pick.

There are a lot of teams near the top of the draft order that could spend their top-10 pick on Delane. The first realistic landing spot for him is with the Commanders at No. 7. They traded for Marshon Lattimore a couple of years back, and he never panned out and is now off their roster. They need to get younger at many positions on defense, so Delane could certainly be in play there (and based on the comments on my X post, Commanders fans seem very open to that possibility).

If the Commanders pass up on him at No. 7, the Saints are another potential landing spot at No. 8. Many think they’ll go edge rusher or receiver, but if David Bailey and Rueben Bain are gone and they don’t love any of the top wideouts, Delane could fill a pretty big need at cornerback.

The Chiefs at No. 9 and the Bengals at No. 10 are two more places that make a lot of sense for Delane. The Chiefs lost their top-two cornerbacks this offseason, and while the Bengals have D.J. Turner, they could add Delane and go from one of the worst secondaries to one of the best in one offseason.

Those are four teams that could realistically select Delane in the top 10. At this point, I’d be pretty shocked if he falls out of the top-10 picks.

Garrett Nussmeier’s Impressive Workout

After a really strong 2024 season, Garrett Nussmeier was dubbed a Heisman favorite and a top-10 pick in the 2026 draft class, but unfortunately for him, an injury on the second day of fall camp and Brian Kelly and the rest of the staff forcing him to play through it caused his draft stock to tank after a poor 2025 campaign.

“It’s been a long process trying to get back, but I’m feeling great,” Nussmeier told the media after his Pro Day. “I feel like today I showed that, and in a sense, I showed who I am. I’m healthy and actually able to throw the ball…I had about nine days to prepare for the Senior Bowl, where I was able to throw the ball the correct way. It was a long process, and I created some bad habits as well throughout the season just trying to get the ball out of my hand.”

Now that Nussmeier has been healthy for over a month, he was able to put his skills on full display at the Pro Day. Nussmeier completed 69 of his 72 pass attempts; all three of his incompletions were to the right side on overthrows and looked really sharp. He connected on pretty much every single deep ball and was able to put zip on his intermediate passes. He looked like a completely different quarterback than we saw throughout the season.

Nussmeier is expected to get a lot of attention as the draft keeps creeping closer. This is a pretty thing, QB class, but after standout performances at the Senior Bowl and at his Pro Day, Nussmeier’s been rising up some teams’ draft boards. After his Pro Day, Nussmeier said he’s on Zooms every single day and has met with almost every team.

“I’ve had Zooms pretty much every single day. I’ve met with pretty much everybody, so it’s been fun,” Nussmeier explained.

After Monday’s performance, Nussmeier could be a day two pick. He has a ton of upside, and if his abdomen isn’t a long-term issue (which it doesn’t seem like it is), someone’s going to get a potential starter in round two or three.

Harold Perkins Tests Like a Freak

A couple of years ago, Harold Perkins was viewed as a first-round pick. He was an exciting, young linebacker who could come off the edge but also play off the ball, but after a couple of disappointing seasons and an ACL tear, he’s viewed as a mid- to late-round pick.

Perkins’ biggest ability has always been his athleticism. He’s a freak, so when he chose to sit out at the NFL Combine, I was very surprised. The combine is built for guys like him, but so are Pro Days, and he absolutely stood out on Monday.

Perkins weighed in at 6 feet, 220 pounds, and ran a 4.38-second 40-yard dash. That would’ve topped the timing sheets for linebackers at the combine by nearly an entire tenth of a second. The quick one in Indianapolis was Sonny Styles, who ran a 4.46. Some people I talked to placed him in the low 4.4s, but even if it was a 4.42 or 4.43, that’s an incredibly impressive time.

On top of that, Perkins tested pretty well in the vertical leap and broad jump. He posted a 35-inch vertical and a 10-foot, 4-inch broad jump. His vertical was below average, but his broad jump was right around the average mark for a linebacker at the combine.

Perkins is a defensive weapon, but he has to find a team that can utilize his skill set properly. He’s too small to be an edge rusher, but he’s an elite pass rusher from the linebacker position. If he lands on the right system, he could become a really, really good player.