2026 NFL Combine setting up Miami DE Rueben Bain Jr. to fall right into KC Chiefs’ lap if they’re willing to bet on an outlier
Are the Kansas City Chiefs willing to take a risk on a historical outlier like Rueben Bain Jr.’s arm length?
The 2026 NFL Scouting Combine is shaping up nicely for Miami Hurricanes DE Rueben Bain Jr. to fall to the Kansas City Chiefs at the No. 9 pick.
There’s no doubt that Bain Jr. will be a first-round pick in the 2026 NFL Draft come April, but the combine doesn’t seem to be doing him any favors right now. Bain Jr. opted against on-field testing and workouts on Wednesday, which will be a problem for some teams that want to see him compete. After the tape he put up during the 2025 college football season en route to the National Championship Game against Indiana, I think he’s probably earned the benefit of the doubt with most clubs there. Still, a good result in any of the testing could’ve made up for what some are considering the biggest red flag for Bain Jr. as a prospect.
Rueben Bain Jr.’s arm length confirmed to be a historical outlier, but will it matter to the Chiefs?
On Wednesday, ahead of on-field testing, drills, and workouts, the linebackers and defensive linemen all had their measurements taken. Bain Jr. measured 6-2 1/4 and 263 pounds, with 9 1/8-inch hands, but the measurement everyone was waiting for was his arm length and wingspan.
His arm length came in at 30 7/8 inches, and his wingspan at 77.5 inches. Thankfully, for Bain Jr., Texas A&M’s Cashius Howell’s arm length came back even shorter at 30 1/4 inches. Still, it’s in the first percentile for both, making each player a historical outlier. Should Bain Jr. be selected in Round 1, and he’s expected to go within the top 10 selections, he’d have the shortest arms among any edge rusher drafted in the first round in over two decades.
He maintains that the arm length thing is weird and an overblown issue.
“People keep bringing that up out of nowhere, but no teams brought it up to me, so I don’t bring it up either,” Bain Jr. told reporters at his podium session on Wednesday. “As long as I just talk the talk and walk the walk, play with technique, nobody actually cares about it.”
ESPN seems to be doing some damage control on the issue. However, Bain Jr. might be right that teams don’t actually care about the lack of arm length. It’s seen as important because typically the first one to get their hands on the other in the trenches between the offensive and defensive lines is the one who controls the repetition. It simply doesn’t show up as a disadvantage for Bain Jr. on his tape. He uses his hands, quickness, technique, and bend to offset it, and he proved he could do so against virtually any opponent he faced in college.
Will that translate to the NFL? That’s ultimately up to the Chiefs and 31 other teams to decide on. Steve Spagnuolo has typically followed some pretty rigid thresholds, but they have colored outside the lines before, and even in the first round. Trent McDuffie’s tape was so good that the Chiefs didn’t really care that he was somewhat undersized for what they typically like in an outside cornerback. They were just happy to have the chance to draft him. That could be the case with Bain Jr. as well.
His formal interview with the team could ultimately prove the difference for Kansas City. They, at the very least, will have no questions about his love for the game.
“(Expletive). I eat, sleep, and breathe football,” Bain Jr. told reporters on Wednesday. “That’s all I do. I don’t have any other hobbies.”
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