Sports
5 Prospects Whose Stock Skyrocketed After the 2026 Combine, According to Joel Klatt
Mar
The 2026 NFL Scouting Combine set a new gold standard for athleticism, with Joel Klatt calling it the event’s best showing to date. Interestingly, Klatt left Ohio State’s Arvell Reese off his ‘risers’ list, noting that Reese’s elite 4.46 speed simply confirmed his status as a top-10 lock rather than increasing his value. Instead, the list featured five names who surged up draft boards, highlighted by one of Reese’s teammates and a premier defensive standout from the 2025 season.
5. Caleb Banks, DT, Florida
After playing just three games in 2025 due to a foot injury, Banks needed to have a strong showing in Indianapolis. He did, showing an impressive combination of burst and size.
“Banks wasn’t really on anyone’s radar coming into the combine,” Klatt said. “Maybe he is, but he didn’t really play [in 2025]. He lost most of the season due to an injury. So, now you’ve got to go perform. And perform he did. He’s 6-foot-6 and 327 pounds with an 85-inch wingspan and he jumped 32 inches. What are they feeding these kids?”
After recording 4.5 sacks in 2024, Banks further impressed at the combine with a 5.04-second 40-yard dash. His performance earned him the fifth-highest athletic score among all defensive tackles according to Next Gen Stats. This standout showing vaulted him to No. 14 on FOX Sports analyst Rob Rang’s latest big board.
4. Omar Cooper Jr., WR, Indiana
Klatt admitted that he carries some bias for Cooper, thanks to his game-winning touchdown grab in Indiana’s win over Penn State this past season.
“Omar Cooper had an outstanding combine,” Klatt said. “Bear with me for everything I’m about to say here: I thought he was the best wide receiver in the Big Ten after he had the ball in his hands. I know that’s a big preface, but when you watch Omar Cooper, man, those RPO games — you should go back and watch the Illinois tape. But that catch against Penn State … that was the greatest play I’ve ever seen live and I’m always going to remember Omar Cooper because of that.”
While Cooper’s raw athletic testing didn’t necessarily shatter records, Klatt felt his 4.42-second 40-yard dash was more than respectable. His performance in the on-field drills further proved his value, as he secured the third-highest production score among all wide receivers at the combine, according to Next Gen Stats.
“I think his tape is incredible. I think his body control is incredible. His hands are incredible. Then, he runs a 4.42. Boom! Let’s go, Omar Cooper. Now, I think he’s a first-round wide receiver. Daniel Jeremiah, he’s the guy I most respect, has him inside of that first-round ranking.”
3. Jacob Rodriguez, LB, Texas Tech
2. Kenyon Sadiq, TE, Oregon
“Here’s what’s going to make him so valuable: He was better as a blocker than he was a wide receiver, and he runs a 4.39,” Klatt said. “He’s an insanely good wide receiver; he can flex and be an athlete. This guy’s a phenomenal player, but it’s all the work he puts in at the point of attack. He’s a terrific blocker. He’s humble. He works hard.
“When I talked to [Oregon head coach] Dan Lanning and [former Oregon offensive coordinator] Will Stein for preparation ahead of the Northwestern game this past season, Dan Lanning was like, ‘Joel, you can’t watch just a pass-catching cut up of Sadiq. You have to watch him block.’ So, I did. I reset the filters and just watched run plays. I watched this guy work in the run game, block, work his tail off and get after it. I was like, ‘Oh my gosh, he’s one of the best blocking tight ends in all of America.'”
1. Sonny Styles, LB, Ohio State
Klatt has Styles at No. 1 after a showing that he thinks might be the best ever in the history of the combine. What Klatt really liked about Styles’ combine performance, though, was that he participated.
“That was bonkers. Was that the best on-field workout in combine history? You’re not going to get an argument from this guy. I think it might have been the best on-field workout in the combine ever,” Klatt said. “Here’s what I love, at least for Sonny Styles, is that this guy was already a first-round guy. He pops off the tape. He’s a great leader. He wore No. 0 because that’s the most important number in that program, and he was voted to that position by his teammates. He had the audio in the helmet and he was the leader of that defense. The best defense in America was led by Sonny Styles.
“He’s got all the intangibles and he’s got a first-round grade. It’s so easy for a guy like that to be like, ‘Oh, I don’t want to compete.’ But he knew, ‘I can go to the combine and absolutely blow it out of the water.’ Now, here’s where he finds himself.”
Styles ran a 4.46 in the 40, which was the best among all linebackers at this year’s event. But it was his vertical jump that was even more impressive, leaping 43.5 inches for the best vertical by an off-ball linebacker since 2003.
When you consider that Styles’ on-field production earned him a first-team All-American spot this past season, Klatt thinks that the Ohio State product might be as sure a prospect as it gets in this year’s NFL Draft.
“He goes from a mid-first-round guy to clearly in the conversation to be in the top 10 and maybe in the top five,” Klatt said. “Here’s the best part about it: All those intangibles are now backed up by freak athleticism. So, if you’re an NFL organization, there are zero concerns about Sonny Styles.
“I think he’s going to have a phenomenal career in the NFL. Like I said, some organization is going to look up and say, ‘We have to take Sonny Styles. Obviously, he’s going to be our captain and play in our organization for 12, 13 years and be the face of our organization and our city.'”
