Caleb Banks Is The 2026 NFL Draft Prospect That We Need To Be Talking About...

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00:00Florida's Caleb Banks is the defensive tackle prospect that no one is talking about.

00:05Stay tuned to find out why he has freaky upside and could end up being a top five pick.

00:14Ryan, I don't understand how more people are not talking about Caleb Banks from Florida.

00:19He has the best tape, the most exciting tape out of any of these 2026 defensive tackles.

00:24What do folks need to know about this kid?

00:26I mean, he's the most physically gifted defensive lineman that I have watched so far in the 2026 NFL Draft.

00:32He even almost entered the 2025 cycle because he is so sought after by NFL teams.

00:38It's the athleticism combined with the raw size, Joe.

00:41I mean, we're talking about a 6'6", 325-pound kid that is so athletic that at times, for whatever reason,

00:47Florida throws him at nine tech because he's just such a gifted and easy mover.

00:51The movement skills and just overall explosiveness for a guy his size is about as rare as you're going to find.

00:57The translation to the NFL is very visible, but it's also unique.

01:02You just mentioned the fact that he was rushing the outside track for Florida in some games.

01:08You were able to align him in different spots and move him around because he can play as a one tech.

01:14He can play as a three tech because he's got the speed.

01:16He's got the quick-footedness.

01:17To move further down the line of scrimmage, which you wouldn't expect for a player who's listed at 325-plus pounds at 6'5".

01:26It was almost one of those things where you kind of had to readjust your eyes as you're watching him

01:31because you keep watching him and then you think, hold on, how big is he?

01:34How big is he for moving this way?

01:36And I even wrote this down.

01:37He almost looks like when he's standing up straight at the 329 that he was listed at by Florida,

01:43he looks like a darn out Washington, the tight end from Georgia a couple years ago,

01:50who was a massive human being as well.

01:52He doesn't look fat.

01:54He is the leanest 330 pounds I have ever seen on a defensive tackle.

01:58More people need to realize that this dude is going to be the craziest athlete potentially in the 2026 class.

02:05Yeah, man, you've got to recalibrate your eyes sometimes, right?

02:08I think that begs for me, Joe, the rareness of this football player is something that we cannot undersell.

02:16And I know that some people get a little bit too hyperbolic, especially in summer scouting,

02:20but we're talking about a 325-plus pound kid that was used everywhere from a 0 all the way out to a 9 at times.

02:27Literally, if you pop on the Georgia tape, there was a play where Benjamin Yurasek had to contend with him on the backside of a play,

02:33and he was playing outside shoulder of Yurasek.

02:36It was a very appalling thing, to be honest, because guys that size just shouldn't be doing that type of stuff.

02:43People love comps out there.

02:45They love them naturally.

02:46I am not afraid to put this one out there, even though it is aggressive.

02:50It's very aggressive.

02:50But he reminds me of Chris Jones, man.

02:52And when you kind of look at what Chris Jones was coming out of Mississippi State a few years ago,

02:57drafted by the Kansas City Chiefs, now becoming All-Pro,

03:00he was viewed as a raw, toolsy kid who the production had not quite matched the talent,

03:06which is why he ended up slipping to the second round in that cycle.

03:09Caleb Banks, when you look at their stats next to each other, very, very similar.

03:13When you look at the athleticism and the body type next to each other, very, very similar.

03:18This kid reminds me a whole lot of what you're getting to see on a daily week from Chris Jones,

03:23what he's been doing in Kansas City.

03:25And I would argue that he's a little further along than Chris Jones was when he was coming out of Mississippi State,

03:31where you see him understanding how to win with length.

03:34You see him understanding how to use his hands effectively as a pass rusher.

03:39I think that there's so much that we could learn from him this season on film.

03:44He's kind of like what everyone was hoping to get from Deion Walker this year,

03:48except he plays with a lot better pad level.

03:50He plays a lot more smoothly than Walker did to just identify some weak points.

03:56One thing that stood out to me before you share any weak points that you noticed,

03:59I didn't think he was great at anchoring against double teams for this big, massive guy.

04:04There were a couple of times on film where I watched him get scooped out,

04:07moved off the ball at the point of attack against a double team.

04:10I think that it's just one area where he could just anchor a little bit

04:13and hold the line of scrimmage a little better.

04:16Well, and it's interrelated because why are you poor to anchoring?

04:18It's usually because you're playing too tall, right?

04:20You're not playing with a good base overall,

04:22and I think that he doesn't consistently play with a good base.

04:25He's a 6'6 kid, so naturally he's a little bit high cut,

04:28and he's a guy that's going to play a little bit tall.

04:30I think he needs to play with a little bit center of gravity.

04:32And ultimately, Joe, I want to see him take a step as a pass rusher this year

04:36because all the tools are there.

04:37I need his hands to be a little bit better.

04:39I need his pass rush process to be a little bit better.

04:41If they come, then I think this kid is a huge pass rush threat from the interior,

04:45which is always going to be wanted on the NFL level.

04:48So, Caleb Banks' background is super unique

04:53because we have to go back to when he was coming out of high school

04:56where he didn't actually start with the Florida Gators.

04:59He was originally a three-star coming out of Southfield, Michigan,

05:04where per the composite ranking on 247 Sports

05:06was the 117th-ranked defensive lineman,

05:09the 26th-ranked recruit in Michigan,

05:12the 969th-ranked recruit nationally.

05:16He entered the transfer portal.

05:18He ends up heading to Florida.

05:20And I don't want to say that the rest is history,

05:22but as he goes to Florida, he's much more highly sought after

05:25as he bumps up to a four-star portal kid

05:28and was the ninth-ranked defensive lineman.

05:31His progression and his growth on a year-by-year basis

05:34has been super noticeable.

05:36And frankly, I think it plays into why there's so much optimism

05:41and excitement coming from us because whenever we talk about a kid

05:45getting better, getting bigger, getting stronger, getting more physical,

05:48all those things each season,

05:50it paints the picture of what will happen once he gets to the NFL.

05:54I mean, he's the ultimate symbol of a late bloomer, right?

05:57Like he was 250-something pounds coming out of high school,

06:00and he's now blossomed into the 325-pound behemoth that we see before us.

06:05And Louisville wasn't incredibly productive during his Louisville time,

06:09but then he comes to Florida,

06:10and I think he's really starting to tap into those physical tools.

06:13He just gives me the pulse, Joe, of a kid that had not yet grown into his body

06:17and had not quite realized his potential,

06:19and now he's starting to see that come more and more onto the table

06:22the last couple years.

06:23Folks, comment below.

06:24Let us know what you think of Caleb Banks.

06:27Hit that like button and subscribe.

06:28We'll talk to you later.

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