SNS 2025 NFL Draft - Scout's Notebook (November 1, 2024)

(Mykel Williams / EDGE / Georgia)

Updated Defensive Position Rankings

A little more than halfway through the college football season, certain prospects have stood out as looking like future NFL starters with a few looking like true difference makers at the next level. SNS has evaluated hundreds of prospects so far this season and these prospects have made the best impressions as having starting potential in the NFL amongst those players that are eligible to enter the draft. Obviously, this list will be influenced by how the rest of the college season plays out, with injuries and performances in big time match-ups making the most impact. This list will be regularly updated, and expanded, as the draft process carries on through next April.

EDGE

1.     Nic Scourton / Texas A&M

2.     Abdul Carter / Penn State

3.     Mykel Williams / Georgia

4.     James Pearce / Tennessee

5.     JT Tuimoloau / Ohio State

6.     Jordan Burch / Oregon

7.     Jack Sawyer / Ohio State

8.     Ashton Gillotte / Louisville

9.     Fadil Diggs / Syracuse

10.  Princely Umanmielen / Ole Miss

The 2025 EDGE class has a number of intriguing prospects who may develop into NFL-caliber pass rushers but all of the top prospects have issues that may keep them from reaching their potential. Scourton, Tuimoloau, and Burch rely more on power than speed or finesse and are all very effective at setting a strong edge and shutting down the outside run. Carter, Williams, and Pearce have the desired ability to bend, flatten, and close on the QB with an excellent burst. Carter and Pearce lack the desired size to hold the edge in the run game but are good enough athletes to play off the ball LB on run downs and become a featured pass rusher on third down. Williams, unlike Carter and Pearce, has the frame to add more mass and line up as either a 4-3 or 3-4 EDGE in the NFL, and has the most upside of any player on this list. Gillotte stats are down from last year but he has become a more complete player this season. Sawyer, Diggs, and Umanmielen are immensely talented and highly recruited prospects who are just beginning to tap into their upside as well-rounded 4-3 DEs. Diggs, in particular, has really elevated his level of play this season and might find himself in first round consideration next April.

IDL

1.     Mason Graham / Michigan

2.     Walter Nolen / Ole Miss

3.     Deone Walker / Kentucky

4.     Kenneth Grant / Michigan

5.     Derrick Harmon / Oregon

6.     Tim Keenan / Alabama

7.     Howard Cross / Notre Dame

8.     Dontay Corleone / Cincinnati

9.     Simeon Barrow / Miami, Fl

10.  Tim Smith / Alabama

NFL teams looking for well-rounded DTs who are effective against both the run and pass will like the quality at the top and the overall depth of the class. Several of these prospects will likely grade out as Top 50 prospects overall with as many as four going in the first round next April. Graham entered the season as the best IDL in the nation and has played up to the billing. He has a combination of strength and quickness that fits any defensive system and looks like a Top 10 pick next spring. Nolen was the most-prized recruit in his high school class and is playing up to the hype this year at Ole Miss. Nolen has a chiseled physique with a level of athleticism rarely found in a man his size and looks like a first-round pick when he enters the draft. Walker and Grant offer intriguing combination of size and power. They both have the size and position flexibility to play in even and odd man fronts. Harmon and Barrow, two transfers from Michigan State who left for more money and the chance to win a national title, have solidified their team’s defensive fronts as they began their seasons undefeated. Both prospects fit the NFL prototype regarding measurements and physical ability and look like immediate contributors at the next level. Keenan, Corleone, and Smith do not have the measureables or quickness of the other top prospects have but all three are excellent run stuffers with plenty of experience and durability to play at the NFL level. Cross is the lightest and quickest IDL amongst these prospects and will not fit every defensive system. But his experience and interior pass rushing ability will draw the interest of NFL teams.

LB

1.     Jay Higgins / Iowa

2.     Jalon Walker / Georgia

3.     Deontae Lawson / Alabama

4.     Smael Mondon / Georgia

5.     Nick Jackson / Iowa

6.     Danny Stutsman / Oklahoma

7.     Barrett Carter / Clemson

8.     Jihaad Campbell / Alabama

9.     Cody Simon / Ohio State

10.  Jailin Walker / Indiana

The LB position continues to be undervalued in the NFL. Specifically, off the ball LBs who are not featured as pass rushers seem to be overlooked, not just by fans but also by personnel departments. But coaches know the importance of LBs in not just stuffing the run but having a player can pick up RBs and TEs in space. Higgins and Jackson are highly instinctive tackling machines who rarely take false steps and break down well in space. Jalon Walker is used as a match up piece by the Bulldogs to take advantage of personnel packages while Mondon is a leader who gets the defense lined up and is reliable against the run. Lawson and Campbell are book ends for the Tide who have the range and athleticism to start in the NFL early in their careers. Stutsman and Carter were probably the two highest rated LBs entering the season and both are high-end NFL prospects, but neither has played quite as well as expected this season. The last half of the season will impact both player’s draft future. Simon looks the part of an old school MLB who fills the alley aggressively and brings his pads on contact. Jailin Walker, much like the undefeated Hoosiers, has seemingly come out of nowhere and become an NFL prospect. Although undersized, he is quick and has excellent range. His playmaking ability makes Indiana’s surprisingly effective defense go.

CB

1.     Will Johnson / Michigan

2.     Travis Hunter / Colorado

3.     Tacario Davis / Arizona

4.     Quincy Riley / Louisville

5.     Daylen Everette / Georgia

6.     Jermari Harris / Iowa

7.     Xavier Scott / Illinois

8.     Domani Jackson / Alabama

9.     Denzel Burke / Ohio State

10.  Trey Amos / Ole Miss

The potential 2025 CB class looks like it could be special with several prospects possessing the desired combination of height, length, speed, and quickness to line up on an island and shut down the opposing WR. Hunter may very well be the top prospect in this draft and is undoubtedly the most intriguing athlete in next year’s draft. He combines size, agility, ball skills, and the bravado to be an elite CB – but he is unlikely to ever reach his potential at either CB, or WR, until he commits to a single position. Johnson has the size and ball skills to be a Pro Bowl level CB. His big game experience is what makes him the top prospect at the CB position. Davis has a rare combination of length and quickness that will entice every proponent of press coverage. Riley, Everette, Harris, and Jackson are ascending this season and have the length and short area reaction skills to thrive in the NFL. Scott is the best slot CB in the nation, edging out Jabbar Muhammad (Oregon), he plays the ball in the air like a WR and is willing and effective in run support. Burke and Amos entered the season as possible first-round draft picks next April but their level of play has not quite lived up to the hype. Both players have the size and athleticism desired but need to play with more consistency and better technique to succeed at the NFL level.

S

1.     Billy Bowman / Oklahoma

2.     Malaki Starks / Georgia

3.     Andrew Mukuba / Texas

4.     Malachi Moore / Alabama

5.     Xavier Watts / Notre Dame

6.     Akili Arnold / USC

7.     Jaylen Reed / Penn State

8.     Javon McIntyre / Pittsburgh

9.     Nick Emmanwori / South Carolina

10.  Dan Jackson / Georgia

The quality of the 2025 safety class looks to be potentially one of the best groups to come into the NFL in quite some time. What the prospects at the top of this class have in common is that they all are playmakers that make QBs pay for mistakes. Bowman, Starks, Moore, and Watts all would have been drafted if they had entered the 2024 NFL Draft. All four safeties are ball hawks with enough athleticism to cover RBs and TEs in space but are best watching the QB’s eyes and jumping routes. Mukuba and Arnold are transfers who came to their new school and immediately solidified their secondaries. Mukuba is a ball hawk who has elevated his level of play this year after transferring in from Clemson. Arnold, a transfer from Oregon State, has a non-stop motor and is excellent in run support. Reed and McIntyre look like classic, old-school free safeties with the range and ball skills to cover the back half and help erase mistakes made by the CBs. Emmanwori has LB size, likes to hit, and matches up well with TEs in coverage. Jackson is an underappreciated component of a dynamic Georgia defense who allows Starks and the CBs to take chances because Jackson will cover those gaps. Jackson looks like a solid mid-round pick next spring.

Specialists

1.     Tyler Loop / K / Arizona

2.     Jonathan Kim / K / Michigan State

3.     Dominic Zvada / K / Michigan

4.     Jack Dawson / P / Jacksonville State

5.     Ryan Fitzgerald / K / Florida State

The specialist prospects who may be available next April do not seem to be of the same caliber as the specialists that have entered the NFL over the last few seasons, but that does not mean that there are not prospects with NFL ability. All of the kickers on this list (Loop, Kim, Zvada, and Fitzgerald) have the leg strength and accuracy desired for the NFL level. Dawson has plenty of leg strength and excels at pinning the offense inside the five-yard line with his coffin corner ball placement.

SNS 2025 NFL Draft Top Defensive Prospects

1.     Mason Graham / IDL / Michigan

2.     Will Johnson / CB / Michigan

3.     Travis Hunter / CB / Colorado

4.     Nic Scourton / EDGE / Texas A&M

5.     Abdul Carter / EDGE / Penn State

6.     Walter Nolen / IDL / Ole Miss

7.     Billy Bowman / S / Oklahoma

8.     Mykel Williams / EDGE / Georgia

9.     Deone Walker / IDL / Kentucky

10.  Tacario Davis / CB / Arizona

11.  Malaki Starks / S / Georgia

12.  Jay Higgins / LB / Iowa

13.  James Pearce / EDGE / Tennessee

14.  Kenneth Grant / IDL / Michigan

15.  Jalon Walker / LB / Georgia

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