Chris McClellan DT Missouri |
NFL Draft Profile & Scouting Report
| Jersey: #7 SUB-POSITION: DT 3-TECH | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Last Updated: 02/20/2026 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Draft Year: 2026 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| FORTY time: 5.05 seconds (63%*) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Age: 22.9 DOB: 10/17/2003 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Jersey: #7 | |
| SUB-POSITION: DT 3-TECH | |
| Last Updated: 02/20/2026 | |
| Draft Year: 2026 | |
| Forty time: 5.05 seconds (63%*) | |
| Age: 22.9 DOB: 10/17/2003 | |
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SHARE THIS PROFILE:
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| Overall Rating: | 83.1 / 100 | |
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| Average rating of opposition Offense player has faced | ||
| Offense Rating: |
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72% |
| Click the links below to view how player ranks vs other prospects. | ||
| Tackling: |
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74% |
| Pass Rush: |
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78% |
| Run Defense: |
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77% |
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DRAFT PROJECTION:
5th
Overall Rank:
#143
Position rank:
#29 (DL)
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| College Games: 50 College Snaps: 1546 | ||
ESPN RATING: 82/100
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247 RATING: 95/100
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RIVALS RATING: 5.9 (97%)
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| Player Comparison* (Similarity level) | ||
|---|---|---|
| Ty Hamilton - Ohio State |
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87% |
| Jaden Crumedy - Mississippi State |
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87% |
| Jordan Phillips - Maryland |
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84% |
Drafted: ROUND: 3 - Pick Number: 77 (GB)
Draft Profile: Bio
Chris McClellan came out of Oklahoma as one of the more coveted interior prospects in the 2022 class -- all three major recruiting services had him as a four-star, and both Rivals and 247 Sports ranked him inside the top 120 players nationally. He was the top or second-best prospect in Oklahoma depending on which service you checked, and the top-ten defensive tackle ranking from Rivals was no accident. At Edison and then Owasso, he put up the kind of production that gets a kid to a program like Florida: 46 tackles, five sacks and 12 quarterback hurries in his senior season alone, three consecutive state playoff appearances, and a trip to the All-American Bowl. He was a legitimate blue-chip recruit.The Florida years were a mixed bag. McClellan played in 25 games over two seasons with the Gators, collecting 46 tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss and two sacks in a rotational role. He earned one start, against Florida State in the 2023 finale, but never cracked the regular lineup in Gainesville. After two seasons in the rotation, he made the decision to transfer to Missouri, where the opportunity to start was real and immediate. It paid off. He stepped into the starting lineup in 2024 and delivered 39 tackles, 5.5 tackles for loss, 2.5 sacks, two passes defended and a forced fumble across 13 games on 504 snaps. The Tigers trusted him with the job, and he held it.
His senior season in 2025 was the best of his career by every measure. McClellan started all 13 regular season games and finished with 48 tackles, 8.0 tackles for loss, 6.0 sacks, six quarterback hurries and two pass breakups. He was a key piece of a Missouri defensive line that produced 21.5 combined sacks alongside ends Damon Wilson II and Zion Young, one of the more disruptive trios in the SEC. The performance against Texas A&M -- seven tackles and a pass breakup against the third-ranked team in the country -- stood out. So did the Alabama game, where McClellan and the Tigers held Ty Simpson to a season-low 200 passing yards and limited one of the country's better offenses to 325 total yards. The SEC coaches took notice, naming him second-team All-SEC at the end of the year. He has accepted a Senior Bowl invitation and will participate in the NFL Scouting Combine starting February 23.
Scouting Report: Strengths
- 323 pounds and he carries it well -- proportional build with enough length that he checks the NFL body box at nose tackle without needing to add weight before training camp.
- Tackling grade is excellent and the film shows why -- once he locates the ball carrier, his pursuit angles are sharp and he finishes plays, which not every big interior guy can say.
- One-on-one against single blockers he's a problem; wide base, hard to move, and he takes on blocks with the kind of anchor that makes running at him a losing proposition.
- Block recognition is better than average -- he doesn't get caught sleeping on down blocks or fold blocks, stays in his gap more often than not and keeps himself clean enough to make plays.
- The bull rush has genuine pop when his pad level is right -- he's collapsed pockets on tape, and his hump move has flashed as something worth developing at the next level.
- His hands are legitimately big, among the best in this class, and on reps where he punches on time he controls the block and sheds clean -- that's the version of him you're betting on.
- Two full seasons of starting-caliber production in the SEC is not nothing -- 8.5 sacks, 13.5 tackles for loss, and he held up on a real snap count against real competition.
- Showed enough hip fluidity to work a swim move when given the chance, so there's at least a second gear in there as a pass rusher, even if it hasn't shown up consistently yet.
Scouting Report: Weaknesses
- Pad level is the problem that won't go away -- he plays tall, and that single issue is why double-teams move him, why his anchor breaks down, and why offensive linemen can get into his chest and control him.
- Pass-rush grade is average and honestly some reps are worse than that -- the get-off is slow, the first step doesn't threaten anybody, and when the initial move stalls there is nothing behind it.
- No counters. That's not an exaggeration. When his bull rush gets picked up or his swim gets swatted, he stops generating pressure and blockers just ride him past the quarterback.
- Scoop blocks and reach blocks are where defenses can scheme against him -- he won't sink his hips moving laterally and gets washed out of the gap more than you can live with on a weekly basis.
- Hand timing in pass rush is genuinely inconsistent -- he arrives late and wide, gives blockers his chest, and gets locked up on reps where a better-timed punch would have won the rep outright.
Scouting Report: Summary
Look at the grades and the picture gets real clear, real fast. The run defense and tackling numbers are legitimate. The pass rush number is not. That gap isn't a minor issue you coach away in a few weeks -- it goes to his pad level and his first step, and both of those are stubborn problems in grown men. McClellan is a run-stopping interior lineman. In an even-front defense with a good nose tackle role to fill, he can be a useful early-down player who takes on double-teams, frees up linebackers and keeps the run game honest. That's not nothing. Teams carry that player and the good ones use him well.The trouble starts when you ask him to do more than that. Third down is a problem today. He doesn't have the get-off or the counter arsenal to be a reliable pass-rush presence, and NFL offensive linemen will figure that out fast. His pad level has to improve before his bull rush becomes a real weapon, and until it does, a double-team on passing downs shuts him down entirely.
There's a real player here. The body is right, the run-defense foundation is real, the tackling is excellent, and two years of starting in the SEC carries weight. But the projection is backup nose tackle with a defined role, and that's only going to work if the team drafting him is honest about what that role looks like. Plug him into the right scheme on early downs and he contributes. Ask him to be a three-down starter and this evaluation falls apart in a hurry.
Chris McClellan percentiles vs other Defensive Tackles (NFL Combine historically - higher value represents better perfomance)
How other scouting services rate Chris McClellan (Overall Rank)
All Scouts AverageOverall Rank
111.0
All Scouts AveragePosition Rank
32.0
*Percentile Ranking in Player's Position Group (NFL Combine Historical Data): This percentile reflects how a player's specific statistics rank
in comparison to historical performances at the NFL Combine, specifically within their position group. A higher percentile indicates a better performance.
For instance, being in the 90th percentile for a particular stat means the player outperformed 90% of their peers in that category.
*Similarity Percentage: This percentage is calculated based on a comprehensive analysis of various factors, including height, weight, 40-yard dash times, on-field performance statistics, and overall player rating. The analysis is conducted against our database of draft prospects from 2021 to 2023. This similarity score helps in evaluating how closely a current prospect aligns with past prospects. It is important to note, however, that this score reflects similarities based on college production and attributes, and does not account for eventual success or performance in the NFL.
*Similarity Percentage: This percentage is calculated based on a comprehensive analysis of various factors, including height, weight, 40-yard dash times, on-field performance statistics, and overall player rating. The analysis is conducted against our database of draft prospects from 2021 to 2023. This similarity score helps in evaluating how closely a current prospect aligns with past prospects. It is important to note, however, that this score reflects similarities based on college production and attributes, and does not account for eventual success or performance in the NFL.