Playing on a stacked Michigan Wolverines defensive unit, can defensive tackle Mason Graham be one of the team’s first selections in the 2025 NFL Draft with his scouting report? Here’s an in-depth look at what Graham brings to the table as a prospect.
Mason Graham’s Draft Profile and Measurements
- Height: 6’3″
- Weight: 318 pounds
- Position: Defensive Tackle
- School: Michigan
- Current Year: Junior
It tracks that Graham comes from the west, because he has that butte strength that so many evaluators look for year in and year out.
Originally from Anaheim, California, Graham attended Servite High School with other 2025 NFL Draft prospects like Noah Fifita and Tetairoa McMillan. Graham eventually earned four-star recruit billing, but he only had one Power Five offer ahead of his senior season.
Nevertheless, those who did the work recognized Graham’s talent. He flashed with every opportunity on tape, and in addition to his football talent, he was an experienced wrestler who earned Trinity League Heavyweight Champion honors in two consecutive years.
Unsurprisingly, the Wolverines found Graham and helped mold him into the force he is today. As a true freshman in 2022, he logged 2.5 sacks as a tune-up. In 2023, he dominated to the tune of three sacks and 7.5 tackles for loss, earning first-team All-Big Ten honors.
Now, entering his first year of NFL Draft eligibility in 2024, Graham is in the mix to be DT1. Does he have a case?
Graham’s Scouting Report
Strengths
- Dense, barrel-built defensive lineman with excellent mass and weight distribution.
- Explosive athlete with a great first step and stellar quickness and energy off the snap.
- Flashes elite explosive capacity when throttling up to attack blocking angles with force.
- Can attack adjacent gaps with bristling lateral agility and energized short-area twitch.
- Able to instantly beat run blocks with eye-popping bursts of lateral explosion.
- Frame affords him excellent natural leverage and a stable low center of gravity.
- Naturally plays with strong base and controlled lean, supplementing power and balance.
- Heavy hands create menacing knock-back force at contact, sustained by leg drive.
- Has the energy to unlock torque and power on hand punches in spite of lacking length.
- Has the strength to stack and shed as a one-gapper, then wrench free with swim moves.
- Able to stack swim and rip moves off of push-pulls, capitalizing on power imbalances.
- Hands and lower body movements are both quick and violent, enabling recalibration.
- Maniacal competitor who matches explosive energy with ruthless urgency off the snap.
- Has enough ankle flexion to stunt across alignments and curve while keeping speed.
- Has functionality from 0-tech to 3-tech, and can even stunt outside from 4i and 5-tech.
Weaknesses
- Possesses average length at best, which can impact range on power rushes.
- Non-elite length can enable longer blockers to get their hands on him and obstruct.
- At times, hand strikes can be more precise when stunting across alignments.
- First contact sometimes disrupts his composure and forces delays on counters.
- Margin for error on counters is slimmer with average length, as blockers can re-anchor.
- With relatively dense, compact frame, lacks elite hip flexibility rolling around blocks.
- Doesn’t have great torso flexibility, which can impact his ability to pry through gaps.
- Slight hip stiffness occasionally puts a cap on the amount of torque Graham can unlock.
- Doesn’t have high-end ankle flexion and can experience hitches breaching the apex.
- Occasionally drifts upright when stunting, which can allow blockers inside his frame.
Current Draft Projection and Summary
Entering the 2025 NFL Draft cycle, Graham grades out as a mid-first-round prospect who could rise into the blue-chip tier with another year of development. He’s one of the best DT prospects in the 2025 class, and his tools give him early first-round potential.
At 6’3″, 318 pounds, Graham defies expectations with his elite explosiveness and lateral agility at his size. And he compounds those elite physical tools with a relentless motor that never rests. Graham’s energized athleticism allows him to attack and reset, and his strength and power drive the nail further.
With his rare pallet of physical tools, Graham can rush the passer from a variety of different alignments. And when he’s not a double-team magnet, he can beat 1-on-1 blocks instantly with quick, violent, and heavy hands, plus searing lateral and vertical explosion.
Graham’s foundation as a prospect is extremely strong, and beyond his physical tools, he’s naturally well-leveraged and active with his hands. He’s not a perfect player, of course — flexibility can be an issue at times, and his middling length can be the source of deficiencies with anchor deconstruction and power sustain.
Nevertheless, as a one-gapping tyrant with an extraordinary mix of explosiveness, agility, twitch, urgency, strength, and knock-back force, Graham is well worth first-round capital, and he could be the first DT off the board when it’s all said and done.
In odd and hybrid-front schemes, Graham can be a versatile end with utility across the line. And in even-front schemes, he can be a devastating force with universal align at 1-tech, 2i, 3-tech, and 4i.