At SIS, our whole conceit when it comes to the NFL Draft is that scouting and stats are complementary.
A scouting report has tons of nuance but can be limiting because most scouts haven’t watched a player’s whole career. Analytics can capture a whole player’s career, but there’s lots of context that is difficult to account for. We think you should take both into account; we feel great when these sources agree, and there is more investigation needed when they disagree.
To that point, below are some players who merit more investigation in the 2026 class. We’ll mention reasons to be excited about each of these players, but no prospect is a perfect prospect.
You be the judge!
Scouting Grades Better Than His Stats
WR Jordyn Tyson (WR1, #9 overall)
Tyson is our top-graded receiver, so having middling stats is definitely something to take a look at if we’re talking about a mid-first-round pick being used for him.
Our scouts liked his all-around game, with a particular confidence in his footwork to set up defenders and execution in contested catch situations (although he could stand to be less reliant on the latter). Our scouts give grades to player traits where a 6 is NFL-caliber, and he has 6’s or 7’s on every trait except run after catch ability.
Separately, it’s also worth noting that he’s dealt with a serious knee injury as well as injuries to his collarbone and hamstring over the last few years.
Statistically, his one calling card is his dominance in the offense, ranking first in the class in target share and our Target Rate Plus-Minus, which judges based on the route run, coverage, and number of receivers in the pattern. He never posted an elite Total Points Rating (a per-play Total Points scaled like a Madden rating) in a large sample season, and his yards after catch stats match the limitations expressed by the eye test.
Jordyn Tyson – Notable Ranks Among Draft Prospects
| Category | Stat | Rank |
| Target Share | 35% | 1st |
| Catchable Catch % | 78% | 34th |
| YAC Per Reception | 4.3 | 44th |
CB Brandon Cisse (CB3, #17 overall)
We have Cisse graded as a solid starter and definitively one of the four best corners in this class. His speed will pay the bills (and help him recover if he gets beat initially), especially since he’s undersized for the position. He played a lot more press this year and our scouts liked what they saw, although NFL receivers might push him around more if he doesn’t bulk up.
Defensive back statistics are notoriously fickle, with little that sticks year-to-year in the NFL let alone when projecting from college. But it’s definitely interesting that Cisse’s key stats in 2025 almost universally rank 20th or worse at the position. There isn’t a big previous season to hang your hat on, either; his best Total Points Rating at any component in any season was a 94 in run defense this past season, and everything else is an 85 or worse.
Brandon Cisse – Notable Ranks Among Draft Prospects
| Category | Stat | Rank |
| Hand on Ball % | 8% | 8th |
| Yards Per Coverage Snap | 1.1 | 37th |
| Total Points Rating | 84 | 22nd |
ED Keldric Faulk (EDGE6, #30 overall)
Faulk is a big, long edge who is stout at the point of attack and can really disrupt the run game. In fact, given that description it’s a bit odd that we wrote him up as an edge prospect. He has the tools (get-off, pass rush repertoire, lower body strength) but hasn’t quite put it together in that role. So our scouting grade is more of a projection than an evaluation of a finished product.
And for that reason it’s unsurprising that he doesn’t compete with the rest of the edge rusher class in terms of the key metrics we evaluate for the position. He rates decently in terms of Quick Pressure Rate but poorly in True Pressure Rate (isolating pure dropback situations) and Pressure Rate Plus-Minus (judging pressure rate against an expectation determined by alignment and situation), both of which have been more reliable in projecting success in the NFL.
Keldric Faulk – Notable Ranks Among Draft Prospects
| Category | Stat | Rank |
| Quick Pressure % | 5% | 19th |
| True Pressure % | 11% | 38th |
| Tackles For Loss Per Game | 0.5 | 36th |
OT Kadyn Proctor (OT2, #11 overall)
Our second-highest-graded tackle, Proctor brings excellent size and strength and surprising athleticism to the position. His power grade of 8 is one of the few 8’s given to any player in any trait in a given year, but he also graded out as a 7 in six other traits (including second-level ability and range). He has some technique limitations as a pass blocker, but when he’s set he is nearly immovable.
In general the stats for offensive linemen aren’t as predictive of NFL success as other positions, but the pass blocking stats like Blown Block Rate (how often they’re physically beaten within the first few seconds of the play) and Total Points carry the most weight. His blown block rate in the run game looks better than in the pass game, and his Total Points in both dimensions look more good than great.
Kadyn Proctor – Notable Ranks Among Draft Prospects
| Category | Stat | Rank |
| Blown Block % on Rushes | 0.6% | 2nd |
| Blown Block % Overall | 2.4% | 14th |
| Positive % When Run Behind | 37% | 21st |
Stats Better Than His Scouting Grades
QB Diego Pavia (QB14, #319 overall)
You probably know where this is going.
Pavia was a Heisman finalist this year, leading Vanderbilt to unprecedented success. He led the class in our player value metric, Total Points, on a per-game and per-play basis. He was no worse than fourth on every key passing metric we show in the “Overview” tab on his scouting report page. One of our key findings for projecting quarterbacks is that passing performance under pressure is more predictive than clean-pocket performance, and he’s best in class under pressure.
He’s also a 5’10” 6-year senior with a somewhat concerning injury history. On a scale from 1 to 9, where a 6 plays at the NFL level, our scouts graded Pavia a 4 on six out of 15 traits, including the critical factor of accuracy. He gets strong grades for his mobility and leadership (the former of which bears out in his rushing Total Points per play), but concerns about accuracy and arm strength are going to limit his opportunities at the next level.
To take an optimistic view, our measures of his accuracy (in Completion Percentage Above Expectation) and arm strength (in Throw Air Time +/-) both improved notably in 2025. So perhaps there is untapped potential there. But as was a relevant detail with Bo Nix, an older player entering the draft needs to be closer to a finished product.
Diego Pavia- Notable Trait Grades (1-9 Scale)
| Trait | Grade |
| Leadership | 7 |
| Pocket Awareness | 5 |
| Under Pressure | 5 |
| Arm Strength | 4 |
DT Gracen Halton (DT8, #161 overall)
Halton’s last two years at Oklahoma leap off the page, albeit with somewhat limited reps. His 2025 ranked him no worse than fourth in the defensive tackle class at every key stat we track for the position, from Total Points categories (pass rush and run defense) to advanced pressure rates to tackle depth and tackles for loss. And he was as good or better in most of those metrics in 2024 with similar usage. Total Points is the best of our metrics at projecting interior line production at the next level, with the pass rush side being the more valuable one.
But one of the common threads among players whose stats might disagree with scouts’ projections is size. Halton is a smidge shorter and some 20-30 pounds lighter than most DT prospects, with shorter arms as well. He could bulk up at the next level, but with less space on his frame to do so he might not be able to get to where he needs to be to compete with NFL offensive linemen. He has good skills and is explosive off the snap but he doesn’t recognize plays well and can suffer from a lack of discipline.
Gracen Halton – Notable Trait Grades (1-9 Scale)
| Trait | Grade |
| Tackling | 5 |
| Pass Rush | 5 |
| Football Intelligence | 4 |
| Discipline | 4 |
TE Dallen Bentley (TE6, #154 overall)
Teams love to dream on versatile, big-bodied tight ends who can offer the opportunity to run or pass from the same personnel grouping. Bentley was a beast at Utah, claiming a strong 21% target share in his final season to go with elite Total Points per play both as a receiver and as a blocker. Target share is one of the better predictors of overall success at the NFL level for tight ends, so that’s a tick in the “pro” column for sure.
However, he was the dictionary definition of a one-year wonder. He had just 8 targets in his previous two seasons at Utah, and while he was in as a blocker more in 2024 his stats there weren’t notable.
From a scouting perspective, he may have been able to execute with good technique as a blocker, but his worst trait grades were play strength and toughness, so he might not be able to impose his will against NFL talent. We like his hands and feel for the game, but he doesn’t reliably separate and can have trouble in contested catch situations, a concerning combination of traits.
Dallen Bentley – Notable Trait Grades (1-9 Scale)
| Trait | Grade |
| Catching Skills | 6 |
| Run After Catch | 5 |
| Toughness | 4 |
| Play Strength | 4 |
