2025 Draft Board: Interior Defensive Lineman
The below information I included in the QB draft board earlier in the week, I'm going to include it for every board, but it will be identical on each. The only thing to note here is that I split the Defensive Tackles up by weight. Anyone over 320 is listed under Nose Tackle, not necessarily the position they'll play as a pro, just how I divvy them up for my formulas.
If you've ever read one of my draft board articles before then you have an idea of what you'll see below, but there is a slight change. If you haven't read them, quick explanation, I use stats, athletic testing, past performance from current pro players, and formulas to try and determine the chances a prospect in the current draft has at succeeding as a pro. In the past I used a "PSR", and an "A Met" and "S Met" to give every player a round grade. Now, it all comes down to a Score. The scores differ by position, so before each draft board I will put what the high score was between the 2020-2023 drafts at that position. And at the bottom you will see a small blurb I wrote up for each position.
This will be updated as pro day results become available.
High Score for DL: 68.09
My DL Draft Board
| Players | College | Score | Rounds |
|---|---|---|---|
| Darius Alexander | Toledo | 61.27 | Day 2 |
| Elijah Roberts | SMU | 59.04 | Day 2 |
| TJ Sanders | South Carolina | 56.93 | Day 2 |
| Jared Harrison-Hunte | SMU | 52.67 | Day 2 |
| Derrick Harmon | Oregon | 50.69 | Day 3 |
| Cam Horsley | Boston College | 49.94 | Day 3 |
| Aeneas Peebles | Virginia Tech | 48.42 | Day 3 |
| Ty Robinson | Nebraska | 47.28 | Day 3 |
| Omarr Norman-Lott | Tennessee | 46.71 | Day 3 |
| Walter Nolen | Ole Miss | 46.04 | Day 3 |
| Tonka Hemingway | South Carolina | 45.18 | Day 3 |
| Tommy Akingbesote | Maryland | 44.89 | Day 3 |
| Mason Graham | Michigan | 44.74 | Day 3 |
| Joshua Farmer | Florida State | 43.71 | Undrafted |
| Warren Brinson | Georgia | 43.50 | Undrafted |
| Howard Cross III | Notre Dame | 43.27 | Undrafted |
| Eric Gregory | Arkansas | 42.59 | Undrafted |
| CJ West | Indiana | 41.75 | Undrafted |
| Jahvaree Ritzie | North Carolina | 41.71 | Undrafted |
| Tyrion Ingram-Dawkins | Georgia | 41.52 | Undrafted |
| JJ Pegues | Ole Miss | 41.48 | Undrafted |
| Payton Page | Clemson | 41.24 | Undrafted |
| Sean Martin | West Virginia | 41.14 | Undrafted |
| Rylie Mills | Notre Dame | 37.98 | Undrafted |
| Tim Smith | Alabama | 36.59 | Undrafted |
| Junio Tafuna | Utah | 36.55 | Undrafted |
| Vernon Broughton | Texas | 36.40 | Undrafted |
| Ty Hamilton | Ohio State | 36.30 | Undrafted |
| Jordan Phillips | Maryland | 35.19 | Undrafted |
| Shemar Turner | Texas A&M | 32.08 | Undrafted |
| DeAndre Jules | South Carolina | 24.45 | Undrafted |
High Score for NT: 78.94
My NT Draft Board
| Players | College | Score | Rounds |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yahya Black | Iowa | 50.47 | Day 2 |
| Jamaree Caldwell | Oregon | 49.81 | Day 3 |
| Nazir Stackhouse | Georgia | 43.47 | Day 3 |
| Tyleik Williams | Ohio State | 41.71 | Day 3 |
| Jay Toia | UCLA | 40.31 | Day 3 |
| Elijah Simmons | Tennessee | 37.09 | Undrafted |
| Alfred Collins | Texas | 0.00 | Undrafted |
| Cam Jackson | Florida | 0.00 | Undrafted |
| Deone Walker | Kentucky | 0.00 | Undrafted |
| Kenneth Grant | Michigan | 0.00 | Undrafted |
| Zeek Biggers | Georgia Tech | 0.00 | Undrafted |
Things worth noting:
-Elijah Roberts and Sean Martin worked out with the Edge Rushers at the Combine, but they grade out better as Defensive Lineman (I'm aware Martin gets an undrafted grade here, but it was worse when he was put in at Edge). Both figure to play a Defensive End role in a 3-4, Roberts has the potential to play outside in a 4-3 and kick inside on pass rush downs. Roberts' versatility would have him very high on my board entering round 2 if I was a GM.
-Darius Alexander narrowly missed out on a Day 1 grade, and he's the highest graded Defensive Lineman I've had since Milton Williams came out in 2021, and I'm including the Nose Tackles in that.
-Mason Graham with a Day 3 grade and Kenneth Grant at Undrafted might seem like I'm off my rocker. But for Graham, the athletic testing matters at this position, and had he tested I don't think he would've helped himself out all that much anyways, maybe he'll test at his pro day and prove me wrong, but I doubt it. As for Grant, 22 reps on the bench at his size is a massive disappointment.
-In case you didn't gather it from my first note, Elijah Roberts is my sleeper.
I've been tracking the success rate of each position individually based on my grades from 2020-2022, and I'm going to include that for each position. It might help shine a light on some of my "things worth noting." I combined the Nose Tackles in with the DL for this one, the NT group was too small, when I get a few more years added to the group I will split them out.
