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Carnell Tate 2026 NFL Draft profile: The next elite Ohio State wide receiver?
In a class boasting at least three and as many as six wide receivers with a first-round grade, Carnell Tate sits atop the list as the most NFL-ready.
Coming from a long line of talented Buckeyes' wideouts, the 21-year-old is predicted to be the first at his position to hear his name called in the 2026 NFL Draft on Thursday.
Here's everything you need to know about the Ohio State product poised to take the NFL by storm.
Stream the 2026 NFL Draft live on DAZN
The 2026 NFL Draft kicks off in Pittsburgh on 23 April, and you can watch every round live on DAZN with a Game Pass subscription.
From just £9.99/€9.99, witness the moment Fernando Mendoza, Jeremiyah Love and Carnell Tate hear their names called and take their first steps toward NFL stardom.
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Who is Carnell Tate?
Carnell Tate grew up on the West Side of Chicago, in the Garfield Park neighbourhood. A four-star recruit, he chose Ohio State over LSU, Notre Dame and Tennessee.
He starred at IMG Academy after transferring from Marist High School, where his sophomore season was wiped out by COVID-19.
Tate dedicated his college career to his mother, who was tragically killed in a drive-by shooting in Chicago in 2023.
Describing her as his “best friend”, Tate would play something of a homecoming game at Wrigley Field against Northwestern the next year, honouring his mother with two touchdowns in front of his family.
Gregory Shamus / Staff
Tate's college career at Ohio State
Tate played on Ohio State's 2024 National Championship team alongside future first-rounders Jeremiah Smith and Emeka Egbuka.
Despite never being the number-one option, he racked up 1,600 yards and 13 touchdowns over his final two seasons, numbers that very few in this class can match.
He finished as an All-American and a Biletnikoff Award semi-finalist before declaring for the 2026 NFL Draft.
What Tate does best
At 6'2¾" and 195lbs, Tate is a receiver who has built his game from the ground up on craft and precision. What separates him from his peers cannot be measured with a stopwatch.
He's a refined, intentional route runner with the ability to beat a man and press coverage with ease.
There is no safer pair of hands in this class. He had zero drops in 2025 and only five on 121 catches in the last three years.
Going up for the ball in traffic is where he genuinely separates himself. Per PFF, among the 200 college wideouts with at least 50 receptions and 10 contested catches, Tate ranked fourth with an 85.7 per cent rate.
The concerns about Tate
Tate ran a 4.53-second 40-yard dash at the 2026 NFL Combine, the eighth slowest among wide receivers. At his pro day, he declined to re-run it, calling the 40 "overvalued."
Stacy Revere / Staff
It highlighted a point somewhat obvious to most: Tate is not going to blow past defenders with pure pace in the pros.
While Tate has enjoyed success against press coverage at the college level, his frame is wiry, and he will need to get stronger to handle physical NFL corners.
He is unlikely to create much on his own after the catch against NFL tacklers, and he has limited experience in the slot.
Tate's NFL outlook
Dane Brugler of The Athletic calls Tate "a day-one NFL starter and potential Pro Bowler." He's not wrong.
Questions about his speed will follow him into draft night. But Larry Fitzgerald ran a 4.63, and his former Ohio teammate Jaxon Smith-Njigba was clocked in a similar range at his Buckeyes' pro day.
For Fitzgerald and JSN, the 2025 Offensive Player of the Year, route running, the ability to track the ball and superior catching ability mattered far more. That should be the case for Tate, too.
His landing spot will dictate whether he enjoys early success. Long-term, he should enjoy a very productive NFL career.
