Jaydn Ott RB Oklahoma |
NFL Draft Profile & Scouting Report
| Jersey: #0 ROLE: DUAL-ROLE Back | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Last Updated: 03/23/2026 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Draft Year: 2026 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| FORTY time: 4.46 seconds (81%*) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Age: 23.8 DOB: 12/16/2002 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bowl Invite: Senior Bowl | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Jersey: #0 | |
| ROLE: DUAL-ROLE Back | |
| Last Updated: 03/23/2026 | |
| Draft Year: 2026 | |
| Forty time: 4.46 seconds (81%*) | |
| Age: 23.8 DOB: 12/16/2002 | |
| Bowl Invite: Senior Bowl | |
| Overall Rating: | 79.8 / 100 | |
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| Average rating of opposition Defense player has faced | ||
| Defense Rating: |
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81% |
| Click the links below to view how player ranks vs other prospects. | ||
| Rushing: |
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68% |
| Break Tackles: |
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41% |
| Receiving/Hands: |
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57% |
| Pass Blocking: |
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43% |
| Run Blocking: |
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56% |
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DRAFT PROJECTION:
UDFA
Overall Rank:
#250
Position rank:
#15 (RB)
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| College Games: 41 College Snaps: 1707 | ||
ESPN RATING: 80/100
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247 RATING: 91/100
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RIVALS RATING: 5.8 (95%)
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| Player Comparison* (Similarity level) | ||
|---|---|---|
| Rasheen Ali - Marshall |
|
72% |
| Jerome Ford - Cincinnati |
|
66% |
| Tyler Goodson - Iowa |
|
65% |
Draft Profile: Bio
Two high school stints, one at Bishop Gorman in Las Vegas and the other back home in Norco, California, shaped Jaydn Ott's recruiting profile before he ever touched a college football. He was a consensus four-star recruit who rushed for over 2,200 yards and 30 touchdowns as a senior, earning MaxPreps Big XIII League Back of the Year. He signed with Cal and made an immediate impact as a true freshman in 2022, rushing for 897 yards and eight touchdowns on 170 carries while adding 321 receiving yards and three scores through the air. That earned him freshman All-America honors from The Athletic and honorable mention All-Pac-12 recognition.His sophomore year was the real statement. Ott ran for 1,315 yards and 12 touchdowns in 2023, leading the Pac-12 in rushing yards per game at 109.6. He was named first-team All-Pac-12 by both coaches and media and finished as a finalist for the Polynesian College Football Player of the Year Award. His 274-yard game against Arizona stands as the most ever by a Pac-12 freshman.
Injuries limited his 2024 season to 385 rushing yards across 10 games. He transferred to Oklahoma for 2025 but saw just 31 offensive snaps, totaling 68 rushing yards on 21 carries with no touchdowns.
Scouting Report: Strengths
- Good initial burst and acceleration to hit creases before they close.
- Patient runner who lets blocks develop before committing downhill.
- Contact balance keeps him on his feet through arm tackles and glancing hits.
- Willing pass catcher with soft hands; 98 career receptions across four years.
- Testing numbers confirm real explosiveness: vertical and broad jump both well above average.
- Runs with physicality and forward lean despite a frame under 210 pounds.
- Shows good vision on zone runs, finding cutback lanes at full speed.
Scouting Report: Weaknesses
- Production fell off a cliff after his sophomore year and never recovered.
- Poor agility testing raises concerns about lateral quickness and change of direction.
- Pass protection is a clear liability; lunges at blitzers instead of anchoring.
- Bench press numbers suggest he lacks the functional strength to hold up inside.
- Pad level gets high in traffic, which invites bigger collisions and stalls his legs.
- Turns 23 before his rookie season, limiting the window on his prime years.
- Only 31 snaps at Oklahoma make it nearly impossible to evaluate his current form.
Scouting Report: Summary
The challenge with Ott is separating the 2023 version from everything that came after. At his best, he looked like a zone-scheme runner with real vision and enough juice to rip off chunk plays once he cleared the second level. That sophomore tape at Cal is genuinely appealing. He processed blocking flow quickly, committed to his cuts without wasted motion, and carried a workload of 246 attempts without showing wear until late in the season. The receiving work was functional too, not flashy, but he tracked the ball well and picked up yards after the catch.The problem is that the film from 2024 and 2025 does not support the same player. Injuries clearly played a role, but 31 snaps at Oklahoma in his final college season leaves a massive gap in the evaluation. His agility testing was poor, and the bench numbers point to a back who may struggle to pass protect or finish runs through arm tackles at the NFL level. At 23, there is less room to bet on development than there would be with a younger back carrying similar question marks.
The most realistic path for Ott is as a late-round or priority free agent pickup in a zone-heavy scheme that does not ask him to carry a full workload right away. He has the one-cut ability and the vision to be effective in a committee role, particularly on early downs where he can use his patience and burst in sequence. But he will need to prove his health, improve his blitz pickup technique, and show that the back who ran wild in the Pac-12 two years ago is still in there somewhere.
Written By:
Lennox Tate
Jaydn Ott percentiles vs other Running Backs (NFL Combine historically - higher value represents better perfomance)
How other scouting services rate Jaydn Ott (Overall Rank)
All Scouts AverageOverall Rank
206.2
All Scouts AveragePosition Rank
17.0
*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.
