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This defensive tackle class in the upcoming NFL Draft isn’t short on options if the San Francisco 49ers are looking for a pass-rushing alternative to what’s already on the roster.
The recent news that the team didn’t place a tender on Kalia Davis is a sign that defensive coordinator Raheem Morris’s voice will be heard during personnel conversations. Davis came into the NFL with his height in the 9th percentile, weight in the 31st percentile, and hand size in the 22nd percentile. That is what we call an outlier.
The 3 defensive tackles drafted under Raheem Morris’s watch
In the two years as a head coach, the Falcons drafted a defensive tackle in the second and fourth rounds of the 2024 draft. They were both high-end athletes. Like Davis, they were also undersized. Ruke Orhorho was the third pick of the second round at 6’4″, 294 pounds. That weight puts him in the 21st percentile, but his height is in the 72nd percentile.
His 34″ arms are also in the 78th percentile. Athletically, Orhorhoro’s broad jump put him in the 95th percentile, while his vertical jump and 10/40-yard times were in the 80th percentiles.
Atlanta selected Brandon Dorlus in the fourth round of the 2024 NFL Draft. He measured in at 6’3″(48th percentile) and 283 pounds (5th percentile). Dorlus’s wingspan was in the 70th percentile, which sounds like the metric we need to connect the dots with the 2026 draft class. Additionally, Dorlus’s 4.85 40 put him in the 93rd percentile, and his broad jump was in the 82nd percentile.
The Rams drafted Kobie Turner in Morris’s final year as a defensive coordinator. Surprise, surprise: Turner was sub-300 pounds and only 6’2″. The historical average for a defensive tackle, per MockDraftable’s database, is a shade over 6’3″ and 305 pounds. Turner would have crushed the NFL Combine in the 3-cone and short shuttle, but his broad jump was 9” below the mean.
What defensive tackles will be on the 49ers’ radar this year?
It’s a small sample size, but height and weight aren’t eliminating factors. arm length and wingspan seem to matter more in Morris’s eyes. We’ll focus on other measurables, like speed and the prospect’s jumps.
Seven defensive tackles ran a sub-5-second 40 this past weekend, and another seven ran 5.18 or faster. That group will give us a baseline of where to start. We’ll also look to find a defensive tackle who was at least in the 80th percentile in their jumps.
That narrows down the list to the following prospects:
Caleb Banks – Florida – 25th
Gracen Halton – Oklahoma – 92nd
Kaleb Proctor – Southeastern Louisiana – 108th
Zane Durant – Penn State – 142nd
DeMonte Capehart – Clemson – 168th
Albert Regis – Texas A&M – 188th
David Gusta – Kentucky – 230th
The number next to each prospect’s name is where they are currently listed on the consensus board. Let’s continue to make cuts from the list. Not many defensive tackles participated in the shuttle drills. The ones who did likely wished they hadn’t.
Let’s take Halton, for example. He had an otherworldly vertical jump of 36.5″ at 293 pounds. Unfortunately for him, an 8.09-second 3-cone drill gets a red line through his name. The historical average at the NFL Combine for the 3-cone is 7.66. You will not find many successful NFL players at any position who ran the 3-cone north of eight seconds. So, sorry, Halton, but your services are no longer needed. For what it’s worth, Halton’s 4.79 20-yard shuttle was also well below the historical average (4.66).
Two other players tested below average in the shuttle drills: Proctor and Regis, which sounds like a law firm. Thanks, kids. We’ll see you on the other side, but it won’t be in this locker room.
For my money, Banks is the prospect to bet on in this class at defensive tackle. I’ve seen some negative things about him said on social media that I can’t get behind. Some say his effort wanes. They said the same thing about Chris Jones coming out of Mississippi State.
Banks was limited to a few games in 2025, but in each of those games, he was a dominant force that couldn’t be blocked. Florida was getting blown out by Tennessee by halftime, but Banks was all over the field during that game and looked like a top pick. Defensive tackle in the first round may not be something the Niners want to do after their investments a year ago, but Banks, in this class, is worth the 27th overall selection.
Durant is listed as a Day 3 pick. It’s like Kevin Givens all over again. Same school and all. Durant is the superior athlete with a better first step, but the style of play is similar. More of a splashy rotational player who will occasionally cause chaos up the middle that will benefit your edge rushers.
That leaves Capehart and Gusta as Day 3 options.
If we see the 49ers invest in names like John Franklin-Myers in free agency, it’s because the team was not fond of this draft class at defensive tackle.