Where does Michigan defensive tackle Kenneth Grant stand in the 2025 NFL Draft with his scouting report?
Can Grant challenge for Round 1 capital as a natural nose tackle with mold-breaking tools? Let’s take a closer look.
Kenneth Grant’s Draft Profile and Measurements
- Height: 6’3″
- Weight: 339 pounds
- Position: Defensive Tackle
- School: Michigan
- Current Year: Junior
The Michigan Wolverines have a proven track record when it comes to finding and developing top-shelf defensive line talent, and Grant is a continuation of that trend.
Grant was one of Jim Harbaugh’s prized acquisitions in the 2022 recruiting cycle. As a senior at Merrillville High School in Merrillville, Ind., Grant put up 6.5 sacks and 14.5 tackles for loss and blocked eight kicks for good measure. His production was eye-catching. His athleticism? Even more so.
According to Bruce Feldman, who puts together the “Feldman’s Freaks List” each offseason, Grant ran a sub-5-second 40-yard dash at almost 360 pounds as a freshman. Then, entering the 2023 season, he trimmed down 20 pounds and proceeded to put together a second-team All-Big Ten campaign.
Filling the void left by Mazi Smith, Grant accumulated 29 tackles, five tackles for loss, 3.5 sacks, an interception, a forced fumble, and five pass deflections along the way to winning a National Championship.
In the 2025 NFL Draft cycle, Grant is one of only a few natural nose tackles on the circuit — but the promise he shows as a potential two-phase threat is what will win over evaluators.
Grant’s Scouting Report
Strengths
- Massive, dense lineman with a low center of gravity and decent proportional length.
- Sheer mass makes him difficult to move at times, as he can halt solo blocks with ease.
- Can eat up double-teams and combo blocks and reset his base alignment in sequence.
- Flashes great explosive capacity for his size, both on the lateral and vertical planes.
- Shows glimpses of above-average lateral agility and twitch off the snap to off-set.
- With explosiveness and overwhelming mass, has high-end raw power capacity.
- Can use his burst and prying upper-body strength to knife through gaps as an attacker.
- Has great extension and anchor placement as a run defender, latching and controlling.
- Hands carry the necessary shock at contact to disrupt blockers and assert control.
- Has the elite raw strength to stack, shed, and displace blockers with bouts of torque.
- Quickly acquires leverage and loads base, halting blocks and forcing RBs to redirect.
- Can combat levers with quick swipes, then transition to power and bowl over blocks.
- Flashes good ankle flexion for his size, stunting across the line and threatening the apex.
- High-effort player in pursuit with surprising vertical speed and range for his size.
- Proactively uses his length to occlude passing lanes when unable to get pressure.
Weaknesses
- Length, while solid, is not proportionally elite for his size.
- Can be a bit heavy-footed on recovery when forced off-balance by combo blocks.
- Doesn’t have elite change-of-direction or recovery athleticism, and is more linear overall.
- Sometimes narrows his base too much off the snap, sacrificing control as a one-gapper.
- Still learning how to properly and consistently leverage his base and length into power.
- Still improving the depth of his pass-rush arsenal and hand precision on counters.
- Consistency with upper-lower synergy and control as a pass-rusher is still improving.
- At his weight, can be naturally uncontrolled at times, veering past pass-rush landmarks.
- Is occasionally late to get off the snap and load his base, which can yield displacement.
- Sometimes lurches over his center of gravity when attacking, sacrificing balance.
- Stamina and conditioning will be points of emphasis to maintain a healthy snap count.
Current Draft Projection and Summary
Entering the 2025 NFL Draft cycle, Grant grades out as a top-50 prospect and a fringe first-round talent. With additional development in the pass-rushing phase — particularly with his base alignment, synergy, hand precision, and counter work — he could break into Round 1.
Grant profiles as one of the best natural nose tackle prospects in the 2025 NFL Draft, and there’s an extremely appealing physical combination to work with on Grant’s tape. At a massive 6’3″, 339 pounds, he’s explosive, energetic, powerful, and incredibly strong.
Grant’s motor commands attention when he’s on the field. In spite of his size, he has legitimate pursuit speed and range when chasing down runners — and although his stamina and snap count are separate issues, his effort is not a concern.
Juxtaposing Grant with former Michigan nose tackle Mazi Smith — who went in Round 1 of the 2023 NFL Draft — Grant is a more consistent run defender with better leverage acquisition and sturdiness against double teams. Smith was a more consistent pass-rush threat — but there’s time for Grant to close the gap.
As a pass-rusher, Grant’s explosiveness and power have already served him well, and he flashes exciting alignment versatility and utility as a stunting lineman. There’s more room for growth, but the foundation is there.
As of now, Grant is assuredly worth early-round capital for odd and hybrid-front teams that placed a heightened value on nose tackles as force multipliers. He’s a high-level run defender on Day 1, with unrealized pass-rush potential.