2025 NFL Draft Scouting Report: Mason Graham

Prospect Summary:

A former star recruit, Graham flashed as a freshman in 2022, collecting 28 tackles, three sacks, one forced fumble, and a pass batted. He recorded 35 tackles, three sacks, one pass batted, and one forced fumble in 2023. Late in the season, Graham was playing at a high level and was a key player on defense, helping Michigan to win the National Championship. In 2024, Graham had 46 tackles, 3.5 sacks, and one pass batted.

One of the harder commodities to find for NFL teams is interior pass rushers and well-balanced defensive tackles that are solid against the run while being capable of contributing to the pass rush. It is nearly mission impossible to find interior pass rushers like Aaron Donald, Warren Sapp, or John Randle, so NFL teams are just hoping to find good run-defending tackles that can help the edge rushers by getting a push into the pocket to prevent quarterbacks from stepping up. Having a tackle that can contribute 5-8 sacks is very valuable, and Mason Graham is that type of prospect for the next level. Hence, he should have plenty of teams hoping to land him next April.

As a pass rusher, Graham is very capable of getting penetration, and he is dangerous to collapse the pocket. Graham has heavy hands to rock back guards. He can bullrush his way down the pocket or toss blockers to the side to get free. Graham shows more developed moves than typical interior rusher prospects, as he will use a club move and a swim move to go along with his bull rush. When Graham gets free, he has a burst to close. Graham will fire to the quarterback to get pressure and disrupt the timing of plays. As a pro, Graham may not become a prolific sack producer like Donald, Sapp, or Randle. Still, Graham could be a good contributor with comparable sack production to a player like Grady Jarrett.

In the ground game, Graham is tough as nails. He plays with outstanding leverage and strength. Graham is nearly impossible to move backward and is very reliable in standing up his blocker to hold his gap at the point of attack. Graham not only holds his ground, but he is capable of shedding the block and pursuing outside of his gap to get in on tackles. Graham will be an asset to his NFL team in terms of run defense.

For the NFL, Graham needs to improve his body and his conditioning. One team source who has scouted Graham in person said that Graham looks like “the marshmallow man.” Thus, Graham has to improve his body with improved strength and weight distribution. The bad body is going to be more problematic in the NFL that will have a negative impact on his playing time and conditioning. Team sources say that Graham is not a great worker, so he is going to need to develop a better work ethic for the NFL.

Even with the bad body, Graham is a good football player who looks like he has plug-and-play starting potential. Multiple team sources say they project Graham to be a pick in the 10-20 range of the 2025 NFL Draft.