- Carson Schwesinger will make waves as a blitzer: His capacity to shoot gaps and monitor down quarterbacks allowed him to rack up 4 sacks, whereas his flexibility and burst produced a 27.4% pass-rush win fee — the second-highest fee of any defender within the class.
- Shaun Dolac has had a winding soccer journey: The former walk-on developed into an All-American at Buffalo, rating because the highest-graded linebacker in slot protection (88.8) and early- (89.1) and late-down (90.4) PFF general grades in 2024.
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Draft Position Rankings
The 2025 NFL Draft season is nearing its conclusion. Every participant brings a singular talent set to the desk, within the hope of getting their title known as on the large stage. We’re breaking down the draft class’ finest gamers in each aspect, for each place, to get a extra knowledgeable view of the NFL hopefuls.
These are PFF’s highest-graded 2025 linebacker prospects in every key grading aspect. Click right here for extensive receivers and tight ends, right here for working backs, right here for offensive linemen and right here for defensive backs.
Box PFF Coverage Grade: Jay Higgins, Iowa (90.9)
Although Higgins’ middling athletic profile will hinder his draft inventory, his high-end manufacturing and grading profile communicate volumes. As captain of the Hawkeyes’ protection, Higgins used his soccer acumen and good eyes to diagnose and anticipate performs in protection persistently, leading to a trio of interceptions, 14 protection stops and the second-highest PFF protection grade within the nation (minimal 100 protection snaps) when lined up within the field.
Slot PFF Coverage Grade: Shaun Dolac, Buffalo (88.8)
This received’t be the one time the Buffalo standout’s title seems on this checklist. Dolac’s instincts allowed him to excel in protection, significantly when lined up over the slot, the place he earned the second-highest PFF protection grade in faculty soccer — even amongst defensive backs with way more explosion and motion expertise. He snagged a pair of interceptions and allowed only a 33.6 passer score into his protection from the slot.
PFF Coverage Grade in Single Coverage: Jailin Walker, Indiana (85.2)
While Walker’s draft inventory falls into the Day 3 vary, he can undoubtedly catch on with an NFL franchise due to his athleticism and protection capacity. The Indiana playmaker’s prowess in checking tight ends and working backs in single protection amounted to a PFF protection grade that charts six factors increased than the next-best draft-eligible linebacker, powered by three pressured incompletions on simply 4 targets.
PFF Pass-Rush Grade: Carson Schwesinger, UCLA (87.0)
With a ceaseless motor, fast processing, pursuit velocity and acceleration, Schwesinger is a menace as a blitzer. His capacity to shoot gaps and monitor down quarterbacks allowed him to rack up 4 sacks, whereas his flexibility and burst produced a 27.4% pass-rush win fee — the second-highest fee of any defender within the class (minimal 50 pass-rush snaps).
PFF Run-Defense Grade: Danny Stutsman, Oklahoma (90.9)
Despite some notable deficiencies in protection, Stutsman excels as a downhill striker within the run sport. His capacity to rapidly diagnose pre- and post-snap, paired along with his expertise to stack and shed blockers, resulted in backs being swallowed up earlier than even getting began. Stutsman recorded the bottom common sort out depth (2.41) of any linebacker within the class and racked up 14 tackles for loss or no achieve in 2024.
PFF Overall Grade vs. RPOs: Kobe King, Penn State (90.0)
Due to the proliferation of the run-pass choice within the fashionable sport, taking part in linebacker has by no means been tougher. However, King continues to push the boundaries of what a linebacker can accomplish when positioned into battle choices. His glorious eyes put him in the appropriate spot on the proper time, permitting him to chart as one in all two linebackers within the class to generate a 78.0-plus PFF run-defense and PFF protection grade on RPO seems to be.
PFF Overall Grade in Red Zone: Jack Kiser, Notre Dame (83.8)
After six seasons in Notre Dame’s program, Kiser profiles as one of many constant defenders within the class with unbelievable soccer acumen and a cultured sport. He is a difference-maker within the purple zone, charting as the one linebacker within the class to generate a constructive grade on greater than 20% of his red-zone run-defense snaps whereas additionally garnering a unfavorable grade on lower than 6% of these performs.
PFF Overall Grade on Early Downs: Shaun Dolac, Buffalo (89.1)
While Dolac lacks the prototypical bodily instruments NFL groups search for on the place, his excessive soccer IQ and tenacity enable him to succeed. On first and second downs in 2024, Dolac completed as the one linebacker within the class with an 85.0-plus PFF grade in each protection (88.5) and run protection (87.8).
PFF Overall Grade on Late Downs: Shaun Dolac, Buffalo (90.4)
If it wasn’t sufficient for Dolac to tempo the 2025 draft class in early-down PFF grade, let’s add late-down grade to his checklist of accolades, as nicely. On third and fourth downs, the Buffalo standout produced an 83.0-plus grade in all three main defensive aspects — run protection (86.6), cross dashing (83.6) and protection (87.5) — leading to a cumulative grade that ranks practically 10 factors increased on the grading scale than the next-best linebacker within the 2025 class.
Missed Tackle Rate: Jack Kiser, Notre Dame (4%)
Tackling is maybe probably the most spectacular piece of Kiser’s sport. The sixth-year senior accrued 109 complete tackles in 2024 whereas lacking simply 5 (simply over 4.5%). He completed as the one linebacker in faculty soccer to provide greater than 100 tackles whereas clocking lower than a 5% missed sort out fee.