Bryce Lance is a wide receiver and 2026 NFL Draft prospect who finished his collegiate career at North Dakota State University. A native of Marshall, Minnesota, Lance is the younger brother of former No. 3 overall NFL Draft pick Trey Lance, and his father Carlton played professional football in the CFL. He was a three-star recruit who enrolled at NDSU in 2021, redshirted his first season, and contributed primarily on special teams during the 2022 and 2023 seasons, recording just one reception over that span. He broke out in historic fashion in 2024, catching 75 passes for 1,071 yards and a school-record and MVFC-record 17 receiving touchdowns, earning first-team All-MVFC honors and starring in the Bison's FCS national championship run with 25 catches, 375 yards, and seven touchdowns across four postseason games. He returned for his senior year rather than entering the draft despite Big Ten transfer offers, finishing 2025 with 51 receptions for 1,079 yards and eight touchdowns and earning first-team FCS All-American honors from multiple outlets. He graduated with a marketing degree and completed his MBA from NDSU.
Measured at 6-foot-3 and approximately 204 to 210 pounds, Lance posted one of the most eye-catching combine performances in recent receiver history, running a 4.34 in the 40-yard dash and recording a 41.5-inch vertical and 11-foot-1 broad jump, producing a 9.98 Relative Athletic Score that ranked seventh among all wide receivers tested since 1987. His size-speed combination is genuinely rare, and his track record of consistent touchdown production, back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons, and strong hands in contested situations give him legitimate NFL upside as a vertical threat and red zone weapon. The primary concerns center on the level of FCS competition he dominated, a route tree that leans heavily on vertical concepts and intermediate crossers rather than a complete menu of NFL-level routes, and a release package that will need refinement against physical press corners. Lance projects as a Day 2 to early Day 3 selection who could develop into a Christian Watson-type vertical weapon in a play-action offense.
