Justin Jefferson LB Alabama |
NFL Draft Profile & Scouting Report
| Jersey: #10 PLAY STYLE: BOX LB | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Last Updated: 02/22/2026 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Draft Year: 2026 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| FORTY time: 4.57 seconds (85%*) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Jersey: #10 | |
| PLAY STYLE: BOX LB | |
| Last Updated: 02/22/2026 | |
| Draft Year: 2026 | |
| Forty time: 4.57 seconds (85%*) | |
| Overall Rating: | 81.1 / 100 | |
|---|---|---|
| Average rating of opposition Offense player has faced | ||
| Offense Rating: |
|
74% |
| Click the links below to view how player ranks vs other prospects. | ||
| Tackling: |
|
80% |
| Pass Rush: |
|
65% |
| Run Defense: |
|
69% |
| Coverage: |
|
75% |
|
DRAFT PROJECTION:
6th
Overall Rank:
#200
Position rank:
#21 (LB)
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| College Games: 29 College Snaps: 1041 | ||
| Player Comparison* (Similarity level) | ||
|---|---|---|
| Brian Asamoah - Oklahoma |
|
84% |
| Steele Chambers - Ohio State |
|
84% |
| SirVocea Dennis - Pittsburgh |
|
83% |
Drafted: ROUND: 5 - Pick Number: 149 (CLE)
Draft Profile: Bio
Before he ever set foot in Tuscaloosa, Justin Jefferson was already turning heads on the junior college circuit. A Memphis product out of Bartlett High School, Jefferson racked up 116 tackles and two interceptions as a prep senior before heading to Pearl River Community College in Mississippi. He wasted no time making noise there either, posting 57 stops with 13 tackles for loss and three sacks as a freshman, then following that up with 86 tackles, two sacks, and a pick as a sophomore. By the time the 2023 recruiting cycle rolled around, Jefferson was the consensus No. 1 JUCO linebacker in the country and the No. 2 overall junior college prospect, drawing offers from Auburn, Florida, Oregon, and Texas A&M before ultimately choosing Alabama.Jefferson's first year in Tuscaloosa was a redshirt-style campaign in every way but the official designation. He appeared in all 14 games during the 2023 season, but his defensive snaps were almost nonexistent. His real contributions came on special teams, where he flashed the kind of explosive athleticism that made him such a coveted recruit, including a massive forced fumble against Ole Miss on coverage. The 2024 season brought a much bigger role. Jefferson worked his way into a rotational spot and earned three starts across 12 games, piling up 60 tackles with 6.5 for loss, two sacks, a forced fumble, and a pass breakup. The production was solid, but it was clear he was still learning the nuances of playing linebacker at the SEC level.
Everything came together in 2025. Jefferson locked down the starting middle linebacker job and became one of the anchors of Alabama's defense. He finished second on the team with 85 tackles, added 6.5 tackles for loss, three sacks, five pass breakups, an interception, and a forced fumble across 15 games. His dominant performance against Vanderbilt, where he posted 14 tackles, a sack, and a forced fumble, earned him SEC Defensive Player of the Week honors, along with Bednarik Award Player of the Week and Senior Bowl Defensive Player of the Week recognition. He also landed on the watch list for the Butkus Award, given annually to the nation's best linebacker.
Scouting Report: Strengths
- Rare closing speed for a linebacker, consistently turning free rushes into sacks and chasing down ball carriers from the backside with legitimate 4.4 wheels.
- Smooth mover in zone coverage who gets to his landmarks quickly and showed real improvement contesting throws, including five pass breakups and a pick in 2025.
- Wrap-up tackler who rarely whiffs. His missed tackle rate dropped significantly from his first year as a rotational piece to his starting campaign, and it shows on tape.
- Lateral agility and change-of-direction burst allow him to mirror tight ends in man coverage, which is increasingly valuable in today's pass-heavy NFL offenses.
- Reads and reacts to run schemes quickly, beating offensive linemen to the point of attack on inside zone and showing the instincts to sniff out misdirection plays before they develop.
- Proven special teams contributor who has been a mainstay on kick and punt coverage units since day one at Alabama, with the hustle and fearlessness that coaches crave on those units.
- Shows pop as a hitter despite his frame, delivering contact at the catch point to jar balls loose and force incompletions when he arrives on time in coverage.
- Capable of spying mobile quarterbacks thanks to his combination of burst, acceleration, and the discipline to stay home before triggering downhill when the QB takes off.
Scouting Report: Weaknesses
- Light frame at 227 pounds sits well below the threshold for NFL linebackers, and it shows when fullbacks and pulling guards get hands on him at the second level.
- Struggles to anchor against blocks from tight ends and offensive linemen, frequently getting pushed off his spot and losing his gap responsibility on power runs.
- Pursuit angles need refinement, particularly when plays bounce outside. He tends to overrun the play or take too deep a path to the sideline on stretch concepts.
- Zone spacing can be inconsistent, drifting too far from his landmark or sitting too shallow to squeeze crossers, occasionally leaving soft spots for opposing quarterbacks to exploit.
- No discernible pass-rush plan as a blitzer beyond winning as a free runner. When he has to actually defeat a block to get home, the toolbox is empty right now.
Scouting Report: Summary
Jefferson is a classic modern-day WILL linebacker whose calling card is his ability to run and cover. At 227 pounds with 4.4 speed, he is built more like a safety than a traditional thumper, and his NFL future depends on a scheme that lets him do what he does best rather than asking him to stack and shed 300-pound linemen on early downs. His coverage improvements over his final season at Alabama were significant, with opposing quarterbacks finding far less success throwing into his zones than they did the year before. That trajectory matters.The concern with Jefferson is straightforward: can he hold up physically at the point of attack? His run defense grading actually took a step backward in 2025 even as he played more snaps, which suggests that increased exposure to SEC rushing attacks wore on him. He gets moved around too easily by bigger bodies, and until he proves he can either add functional strength or develop the block-avoidance skills to compensate, he is going to be a two-down player at the next level. That limits his ceiling, and evaluators know it.
The path to an NFL career is there, though. Jefferson fits best as a nickel linebacker in a sub-package defense, the guy who comes in on passing downs to cover running backs and tight ends, blitz off the edge when schemed free, and fly around on special teams. Think of him as a role player who contributes in specific situations rather than an every-down starter. In the right system, one that values speed and coverage ability at the second level and does not ask its weak-side linebacker to eat blocks, he can carve out a productive niche. The athleticism is undeniable, and the ball production in 2025 suggests a player whose instincts are still catching up to his physical gifts.
Justin Jefferson percentiles vs other Linebackers (NFL Combine historically - higher value represents better perfomance)
How other scouting services rate Justin Jefferson (Overall Rank)
All Scouts AverageOverall Rank
232.0
All Scouts AveragePosition Rank
31.0
*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.