One of the headliners of the loaded defensive tackle group in the 2025 NFL Draft is the hulking presence from Oregon: Derrick Harmon. After multiple years of development, Harmon’s size and athleticism will be sought out by many teams early in this draft.
Derrick Harmon’s Draft Profile and Measurements
- Height: 6’4 1/2″
- Weight: 313 lbs
- Position: Defensive Tackle
- School: Oregon
Harmon’s Scouting Report
Hailing from Detroit, Harmon attended Loyola High School and was recognized as a three-star recruit by 247Sports. He was ranked as the 98th defensive line prospect in the country and the 24th overall recruit in the state of Michigan.
Harmon started his career at Michigan State and played in four games as a true freshman. In 2022, his impact increased with five starts and 468 total snaps. He closed out his redshirt sophomore year with three tackles for loss and two sacks.
As a redshirt sophomore in 2023, Harmon started 10 games and racked up 40 tackles, four tackles for loss, and 1.5 sacks. Following head coach Mel Tucker’s being fired, Harmon entered the transfer portal in April of 2024 and took his talents to Oregon.
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In his final season at Oregon, Harmon started all 14 games for the Ducks en route to a Big Ten championship. Harmon was recognized as a CSN first-team All-American and CSN Interior Defender of the Year as he totaled 11 tackles for loss and five sacks.
At the 2025 NFL Combine, Harmon shined with a blazing 40-yard dash time for a defensive tackle prospect of his size, clocking in at 4.95 seconds.
Strengths
- Rare athlete for a defensive tackle of his build, flashing exceptional mobility and flexibility.
- Elite first step off the snap enables him to frustrate linemen before they can react.
- Tremendous length and size make him an overwhelming matchup for interior offensive linemen.
- Against the run, he uses his length to lock out blockers while anchoring at the line of scrimmage.
- Displays strong awareness to locate the football against the run while holding his ground to make plays at or behind the line.
- Maintains a good pad level despite being taller than most linemen he’s facing.
- Raw power makes him immovable against the run.
- Flashes an ability to split double teams while taking up multiple gaps.
- Body type allows for versatile deployment in multiple fronts and shades.
Weaknesses
- Struggles to shed blockers and disengage consistently due to inconsistent hand placement.
- Unreliable as a finisher after clearing blockers.
- Overly reliant on his power and size as a pass rusher to win reps.
- Needs to develop a pass-rush move set to become more disruptive in 1-on-1 situations.
Current Draft Projection and Summary
It’s easy to gush over Harmon’s size and athleticism — he’s a 6’5″ monster who ran a 4.95-second 40-yard dash at the NFL Combine. However, his positional versatility has earned him a shot at being an early pick this year.
As a 3-4 defensive lineman, Harmon could be deployed as a 0-tech head-up on a center or bumped out to play 5-tech as a defensive end. His strength is ideal for overpowering centers, and his length works head-up on tackles. He also could align in a 4-3 defense as a 1-tech if a defensive coordinator needs him to.
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Despite the packed defensive tackle class, Harmon is a likely candidate to be picked somewhere in the first round. NFL teams may wait to draft defensive tackles to prioritize scarcer positions. Even if this happens, Harmon’s tools are unique enough for him to be selected somewhere between pick 10 and pick 32.