Markel Bell OT Miami |
NFL Draft Profile & Scouting Report
| Jersey: #70 SUB-POSITION: Left Tackle | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Last Updated: 02/13/2026 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Draft Year: 2026 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| FORTY time: 5.36 seconds (30%*) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Jersey: #70 | |
| SUB-POSITION: Left Tackle | |
| Last Updated: 02/13/2026 | |
| Draft Year: 2026 | |
| Forty time: 5.36 seconds (30%*) | |
| Overall Rating: | 84.6 / 100 | |
|---|---|---|
| Average rating of opposition Defense player has faced | ||
| Defense Rating: |
|
80% |
| Click the links below to view how player ranks vs other prospects. | ||
| Pass Blocking: |
|
83% |
| Run Blocking: |
|
67% |
|
DRAFT PROJECTION:
4th
Overall Rank:
#101
Position rank:
#22 (OL)
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| College Games: 28 College Snaps: 1524 | ||
| Player Comparison* (Similarity level) | ||
|---|---|---|
| Anthony Belton - NC State |
|
71% |
| Tyler Guyton - Oklahoma |
|
71% |
| Patrick Paul - Houston |
|
67% |
Drafted: ROUND: 3 - Pick Number: 68 (PHI)
Draft Profile: Bio
Markel Bell walked out of Cleveland Central High School in Cleveland, Mississippi, in 2022 without a single star next to his name. Zero recruiting services ranked him. No Power Five programs came calling for a kid who was already bigger than most college tackles. The combination of a small-town high school, limited camp exposure, and raw technique left Bell invisible to the recruiting world despite the kind of frame that scouts dream about. He had offers from a handful of HBCUs, but Bell bet on himself and took the junior college route, enrolling at Holmes Community College with the intention of building a resume from scratch.Two years at Holmes changed everything. Bell reshaped his body, refined his technique, and by the time the 2024 recruiting cycle rolled around, he was a completely different prospect. 247Sports rated him a four-star recruit, the No. 4 overall junior college player in the country, and the No. 1 offensive lineman in the JUCO ranks. On3 slotted him as the No. 12 JUCO prospect regardless of position and the No. 2 offensive tackle. He earned NJCAA All-Region honors after a dominant 2023 season. Programs like Arkansas, Auburn, Ole Miss, and Mississippi State all extended offers, but Bell chose Miami, where the Hurricanes were building one of the most explosive offenses in college football.
His first season in Coral Gables started as a rotational role before opportunity knocked. Bell appeared in 12 games and made five starts at left tackle during Miami's 2024 campaign, filling in when Jalen Rivers dealt with injury and eventually rotating in as the coaching staff looked to develop him for the future. That offense finished No. 1 nationally in both points per game (43.9) and yards per game (537.2), and the offensive line earned a spot on the Joe Moore Award Honor Roll. Bell contributed to multiple 500-plus-yard performances, including a 750-yard explosion against Ball State. Entering 2025 as the full-time starting left tackle, Bell took a significant leap. Over 1,034 offensive snaps as the unquestioned starter, he allowed zero sacks and just one quarterback hit while posting an 83.5 pass blocking grade, a massive jump from the 63.6 he recorded as a part-time player in 2024. His season culminated in a national championship game appearance, a Senior Bowl invitation, and recognition as one of the fastest-rising offensive line prospects in the 2026 draft class.
Scouting Report: Strengths
- At 6'9" with 36-plus-inch arms, Bell's dimensions are genuinely freakish; he can establish contact and steer rushers wide before they ever threaten his frame.
- Grip strength is a real weapon. Once Bell latches on, defenders look like they're trying to escape a bear trap, and their rush is effectively dead.
- The year-over-year improvement is striking. His pass blocking grade jumped from below average in 2024 to solidly good territory in 2025, showing a player whose ceiling keeps rising.
- Zero sacks allowed on 558 pass blocking snaps in 2025 is the headline number, and his elite pass blocking efficiency rate backs up what you see on film.
- Bell has developed a club move that can violently redirect a rusher's path and force them completely out of their planned attack angle.
- His ability to recover after losing initial contact is underrated. When he gets walked back, he resets his feet, sinks his hips, and regains ground rather than panicking.
- Independent hand usage has gotten noticeably sharper since arriving at Miami. He times his strikes well and can punch with accuracy to keep speed rushers at bay.
- On frontside kick-outs and double-team feeds, Bell brings his feet and generates enough torque to create running lanes when he stays low enough to compete at the point of attack.
Scouting Report: Weaknesses
- Run blocking remains a clear liability. Below-average grades in both 2024 and 2025 tell you he consistently struggles to displace defenders and sustain blocks at the second level.
- His 6'9" frame creates a permanent leverage disadvantage; defenders who get underneath his pads can pry him open and neutralize his size advantage entirely.
- Inside counters expose him badly. He bites on outside fakes, over-sets, and then lacks the lateral quickness to redirect when rushers cross his face toward the B-gap.
- Limited foot speed, and it shows up on tape when he is asked to climb, pull, or reach block in space.
- Bell has a tendency to lean forward and punch with unset feet, which throws his balance off and creates openings for rushers to convert with counter moves.
Scouting Report: Summary
Bell's NFL value lives and dies in pass protection, and the tape says there is real starter-quality ability on that side of the ball. You do not find 6'9", 340-pound humans who can move with even adequate fluidity very often, and Bell's pass blocking production in 2025 puts him in rare company for this draft class. The zero sacks allowed, the 15 total pressures on 558 pass blocking reps, the way he smothers speed rushers with length before they can turn the corner. That is a skill set that translates. The development arc from JUCO unknown to Senior Bowl invitee is not something you dismiss, either. Players who improve at that rate tend to keep improving once they get into a pro development program with NFL-caliber coaching.The concern, and it is a legitimate one, is that Bell is essentially half an offensive lineman right now. His run blocking grades are below average across both seasons at Miami, and the tape confirms it. He cannot consistently win the leverage battle at the point of attack because his height and pad level make it physically difficult to get underneath defenders. Asking him to reach block, pull, or operate in space is a losing proposition. Any offense that relies heavily on outside zone or asks its tackles to play in the second level is going to have a hard time fitting Bell into the scheme. That rules out a significant number of NFL offenses.
The right landing spot is a team that leans on a pass-heavy or play-action-centric attack where the tackle's primary job is keeping the pocket clean. A gap-based running scheme that lets Bell fire off the ball on down blocks and double teams without asking him to move laterally would mask his limitations on the ground. He needs time to develop, ideally a year learning behind a veteran, but the raw materials are too tantalizing to ignore. The length, the grip strength, the pass protection production, and the rate of growth all point to a player who could become a quality NFL starter if the situation is right. The floor is a long-tenured swing tackle who you trust in an emergency, and that alone has value in this league.
Markel Bell percentiles vs other Offensive Tackles (NFL Combine historically - higher value represents better perfomance)
How other scouting services rate Markel Bell (Overall Rank)
All Scouts AverageOverall Rank
121.8
All Scouts AveragePosition Rank
30.0
*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.