.jpg)
1 hour ago
3
The narrative surrounding the 2026 NFL Draft is one of disappointment. The quarterback class crashed and burned before sending (presumably) one quarterback to the first round. The consensus blue-chip prospects saw their stock degrade with time, and injuries have thrust extra concern onto other early-round contenders.
It's a messy class, but it isn't without considerable strengths. Even without a slam-dunk option to be the first non-passer off the board, the front seven remains the most formidable part of this class. There are a dozen edge rushers expecting to go in the first two days, and their interior counterparts are an encouragingly deep class. Throw in one of the best crops of off-ball linebackers in recent memory, and it's easy to fall in love with the next wave of defensive talent.
Those interior linemen aren't exempt from stock slippage. Clemson's Peter Woods seems far less likely to be a top-five pick than he did in August. But part of why this group is so strong is because of the athletic freaks flying up boards late in the process.
Watch for these linemen to sneak into Day 2
League-wide trends can help us predict teams' behavior come April, and the dominant thinking in recent years has been an emphasis on the passing game. Quarterback, edge rushers, and offensive tackles have long been the only serious options for No. 1 overall, but positional value has skewed toward linebackers that can cover, nickel cornerbacks that change the math on passing downs, and tight ends who can cosplay as a superstar receiver.
A similar line can be drawn at defensive tackle, where nose tackles aren't quite as in vogue as they once were. Taking their place are smaller, faster defensive tackles who can push the pocket, make an impact on passing downs, and use their athleticism to be versatile in increasingly complex pass-rush plans.
There's a role for these guys, even if it is limited to passing downs, and a lack of run defense isn't guaranteed to keep them out of the early-round conversation.
Nowhere is that clearer than in Southeastern Louisiana's Kaleb Proctor. He was off the radar for the everyman until the NFL Combine, where he ran himself into relevance with a 4.80-second 40-yard dash and similarly elite vertical and broad jumps.
On paper, Proctor's athleticism stands out. Using GPS data, as Oliver Connolly reported, Proctor is even more of an outlier. Despite the level-of-competition concerns and the lack of size, Connolly expects Proctor to ascend far higher than we're currently anticipating, which is generally around the top-100 turn.
Another player who can thank Indianapolis for an athleticism-based ascent is Oklahoma Sooners lineman Gracen Halton.
Halton posted a 4.92-second 40-yard dash at 293 pounds, with broad and vertical jumps that landed ahead of the 90th percentile. His change of direction isn't as impressive as Proctor's, but the size-adjusted speed stands out.
Compared to his small-school counterpart, Halton has soft factors pointing in his direction. logging 8.5 sacks and 13 tackles for loss in his two seasons against SEC competition. There's a story here that makes sense, with Halton maturing as a player, growing into a starting role, and flourishing in his platform season.
MORE: Meet the international prospects hoping to crash the 2026 NFL Draft party
With elite athleticism to his name, there's more than enough in his profile to roll the dice on Day 2.
One more name that's worth highlighting is Penn State's Zane Durant. Like just about everyone else on the Nittany Lions, his stock took a hit in 2025 as the train ran off the Happy Valley tracks. Yet, separating his team's performance from his pass-rushing utility creates an enticing opportunity.
More than any interior lineman in this class, Durant's pass-rush reps look like those of an edge rusher. He's plenty fast enough to moonlight on the edge, and his combination of bend and burst often looks like a prototypical 5-tech. He won't play there often at the next level, but as a 3-tech who makes an impact on passing downs, Durant has the necessary dynamism and versatility to unlock more production at the next level.
Running a 4.76-second 40-yard dash at 290 pounds is enough to have me interested. His film is similarly encouraging, and I wouldn't blame a team for finding a part-time playmaker on the interior at the end of Round 3.
English (US)