2026 NFL Scouting Report: Sonny Styles

Sonny Styles, 6-4/243
Linebacker
Ohio State

Sonny Styles Scouting Report

By Charlie Campbell

Strengths:

Fast
Long
Good athlete
Natural dropping in coverage
Safety background visible in coverage skills
Covers a lot of ground in zone
Fast to the flat
Good tackler
Improved taking on and shedding blocks
Improved ability to read his keys
Improved recognition and diagnosis skills
Ready to compete quickly
Experienced and successful against good college programs

Weaknesses:

Tackles a little high at times
Improved, but still can get better at taking on and shedding blocks

Prospect Summary:

Styles started out his college career as a safety, and he flashed his special skill set immediately. In 2023, Styles had 53 tackles with two sacks and one pass batted. As a junior, Styles moved to linebacker, and after a slow start, he finished the year strong, helping the Buckeyes win a National Championship. Styles totaled 100 tackles with six sacks, one forced fumble, and five passes broken up. In his final season, Styles was a force and productive. He recorded 83 tackles with five passes broken up, one interception, .5 sacks, and a forced fumble.

In the passing-driven NFL, Styles is a great fit to help his defense cover in the middle of the field. Styles is fast and athletic, covering a ton of ground in zone coverage. Styles flies around the field and uses his tremendous speed to neautrizlie passes to the flat. Styles has good size and length to cover up targets with the skill set to line up in man coverage on tight ends. Styles is smooth in his drop, comfortable in space, and adept at dropping down the middle seam. With his safety background, Styles is natural in coverage. Along with covering well, Styles is a good open-field tackler as well.

As a run defender, Styles showed improvement to close out the 2024 season and was vastly improved in 2025 with his ability to take on and shed blocks. Styles did a nice job of taking on, using strength to shed, and then getting in on tackles. Those skills will require continued development for the NFL, but it is definitely headed in the right direction. Styles also looked faster and more comfortable reading his keys. He comes downhill fast and has zero hesitation to get physical. Styles was a really good tackler in 2025 with very few missed tackles, and for the NFL, he could stand to get lower and not tackle as high. That is not surprising considering how tall Styles is, but getting lower in the target zone will help him to avoid missed tackles and helmet-to-helmet penalties.

In the 2026 NFL Draft, Styles could go as high as the middle of the first round. Linebackers can slide in the draft, and if Styles slips to the second night, he should not have a long wait before a team yanks him off the board.

Prospect Comparison:

Payton Wilson. In terms of skill set with size, speed, and athleticism, Styles reminds me of Wilson. Wilson (6-4, 242) and Styles are almost identical in size and length.