With the 2026 AFL Draft now just over a week away, the shape of this year's intake is beginning to unfold as more whispers and intel surface, and it's time to deliver our third of four Mock Drafts for the year.
This Mock Draft is an evolution of our most recent exercise, which also included a total of 43 selections across the first two rounds of the count.
VIEW: FIRST EDITION MOCK DRAFT - PICKS 1-18
VIEW: SECOND EDITION MOCK DRAFT - PICKS 1-43
PLAY: AFL MOCK DRAFT SIMULATOR
Pick 42 - Essendon (Matched Bid): Blake Justice
Despite hardly getting on the park due to injury this year, Justice's upside as a midfielder-forward with explosiveness is clear.
If he falls outside the top 36, it would be a dream scenario for Essendon as they would not need to worry about points for a prospect that, if he played a full season, would almost certainly have fetched a bid inside the top 30.
Models his game on Sydney pair Isaac Heeney and Chad Warner and has similarities with his ability to mark, kick goals and break lines.
MATCHED BID: Essendon use Pick 80.
