Dontay Corleone
Dontay Corleone  DT  Cincinnati | NFL Draft 2026 Souting Report - Portrait Image
Dontay Corleone
Height
6-0
Weight
340
College
Cincinnati
Position
DT
Class
Senior
Home town
Cincinnati, OH
84.9
Player Rating
18
PositionRank (DL)
5.1
FortyYD Time
Sacks
Fumbles Forced
Tackles
14
Sol tackles
5

Dontay Corleone DT Cincinnati |
NFL Draft Profile & Scouting Report

Jersey: #2 SUB-POSITION: NT 0-TECH
Last Updated: 03/23/2026
Draft Year: 2026
FORTY time: 5.10 seconds (52%*)
Bowl Invite: Shrine Bowl
Measurables:
Height: 6-0 (2%*) Weight: 340 (99%*)
Hands: 9 1/2 (30%*) Arm: 31 7/8 (24%*) Span: 77 (16%*)
Forty: 5.10 (O) (52%*)
0% 100%
(C) - NFL Combine (P) - Pro Day (O) - Other (HS) -Estimated from High School Combine
For an explanation of how the (HS) data is calculated see this article
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Jersey: #2
SUB-POSITION: NT 0-TECH
Last Updated: 03/23/2026
Draft Year: 2026
Forty time: 5.10 seconds (52%*)
Bowl Invite: Shrine Bowl
Measurables:
0% 100%
Height: 6-0 (2%*) Weight: 340 (99%*)
Hands: 9 1/2 (30%*) Arm: 31 7/8 (24%*)
Span: 77 (16%*)
Forty: 5.10 (O) (52%*)
(C) - NFL Combine (P) - Pro Day (O) - Other
(HS) -Estimated from High School Combine
For an explanation of how the (HS) data is calculated see this article
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Overall Rating: 84.9 / 100
Average rating of opposition Offense player has faced
Offense Rating:
71%
Click the links below to view how player ranks vs other prospects.
Tackling:
71%
Pass Rush:
67%
Run Defense:
83%
DRAFT PROJECTION: 2nd - Late
Overall Rank: #61 Position rank: #18 (DL)
College Games: 44 College Snaps: 1566
Grade: 3 ESPN  Stars 3 ESPN  Stars ESPN RATING: 72/100
Grade: 247 Sports 3  Stars 247 Sports 84 Stars 247 RATING: 84/100
Grade: 2 Stars 2 Stars RIVALS RATING: 5.4 (89%)
Player Comparison* (Similarity level)
JJ Pegues - Ole Miss
71%
Jordan Phillips - Maryland
55%
Cameron Young - Mississippi State
54%
Draft Profile: Bio
A prep career at Colerain High School that produced 137 tackles and 19.5 sacks earned Dontay Corleone Division I First-Team All-Ohio honors and kept him close to home in Cincinnati. A three-star recruit with 247Sports and ESPN, he committed to his hometown Bearcats and redshirted in 2021. His 2022 redshirt freshman season was a breakout: 44 tackles, 5.5 tackles for loss, three sacks, two forced fumbles, and PFF's top defensive player grade in the country. He earned AP Third-Team All-American recognition alongside several freshman All-American honors.

The 2023 season brought 39 tackles, 6.5 TFLs, three sacks, and Second-Team All-Big 12 from both the AP and conference coaches. A blood clot scare in June 2024 sidelined him for three months, but he returned to start 11 games and collect First-Team All-Big 12 with 26 tackles, five TFLs, and a career-high 3.5 sacks. His 2025 season saw production dip considerably to just 14 tackles and no sacks across 10 games due to an ankle injury suffered early in the year. Nicknamed "The Godfather," Corleone earned his bachelor's degree in December 2024 and finishes his career with 109 tackles, 17 TFLs, and 9.5 sacks across 44 games, with four All-Conference selections.
Scouting Report: Strengths
  • Natural leverage at 6-0 is a genuine advantage; fires out low and stays beneath blockers' pads every snap.
  • Refuses to get moved off his spot against double teams; widens his base, bends his knees, and anchors down.
  • Quicker than 340 pounds suggests; short-area burst shows up when shooting gaps or sliding against zone runs.
  • Hand placement and timing are sharp; shoots hands into blockers' chests quickly and controls at the point of attack.
  • Recognizes down blocks early and gets hands on pulling guards or climbing linemen before they reach their spots.
  • Contact balance keeps him upright through chaos; absorbs contact and stays engaged to finish tackles in traffic.
  • Competes on every snap with genuine pursuit effort; redirects quickly on screens and cutbacks without coasting.
Scouting Report: Weaknesses
  • Carries too much bad weight at times; reports had him past 350 pounds, and conditioning will need monitoring.
  • Pass rush arsenal is thin beyond first-step quickness and a bull rush; stalls near the line when those fail.
  • Short arms at 31 7/8 inches hurt his ability to extend and shed blocks once blockers get into his chest.
  • Stands up out of his stance too early, killing bull rush power and giving double teams angles to uproot him.
  • Medical history raises real flags: blood clots in his lungs, a 2022 knee issue, and a 2025 ankle injury.
Scouting Report: Summary
Corleone has a rare combination of size, strength, and movement ability for the nose tackle position. His college testing numbers back that up: a 485-pound bench, a 605-pound squat, and enough short-area quickness at 335 pounds to earn a spot on Bruce Feldman's "Freaks" list. That power and burst show up on film. He commands double teams, swallows running lanes, and keeps linebackers clean to flow to the football. His skill set translates as a 0-technique in an odd front or a 1-technique in even fronts, with the strength to two-gap and control blockers or attack gaps in a penetrating scheme.

The concerns are narrower than they might appear but still real. His pass rush lacks variety beyond the bull rush and gap shooting, which limits his third-down value until he develops more counters. The medical history needs thorough combine evaluation, and his weight will require monitoring to keep the athletic profile intact. The 2025 production dip to 14 tackles and no sacks is the most recent data point scouts have, and it raises questions, even though four years of quality tape and three prior All-Conference selections show what he can do when healthy.

Corleone projects as a quality rotational piece who can compete for starting snaps in the right system. He makes teammates better by commanding attention and doing thankless work in the trenches. A team looking to shore up its run defense gets a player with physical tools and experience to contribute early, provided the medicals clear and the conditioning stays on track. The floor is a dependable run-game anchor. The ceiling is a starter who sets the tone inside for years.
Written By:
Andrew Moore (The American)

Dontay Corleone percentiles vs other Defensive Tackles (NFL Combine historically - higher value represents better perfomance)

How other scouting services rate Dontay Corleone (Overall Rank)

All Scouts AverageOverall Rank
99.1
All Scouts AveragePosition Rank
28.0
*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.