Zion Young Prospect Profile
Background
Zion Young grew up in Atlanta, Georgia, the youngest of eleven children. He attended Westlake High School, where he helped the program to a 30-9 record and three consecutive playoff appearances, but flunked every class as a freshman, sat out football the entire year, and retook his coursework to earn his way back onto the field. Having committed to Michigan State in 2022 as a three-star recruit and subsequently serving a four-game suspension after a tunnel altercation following a significant loss to Michigan during his freshman year, he ultimately entered the transfer portal two seasons later. He committed to Missouri, another school that had recruited him out of high school before he chose the Spartans. In 2024, he started all 13 games, and in 2025, his teammates voted him team captain; he posted a team-high nine sacks and earned Second-Team All-SEC recognition. After his season ended, authorities arrested him and charged him with a misdemeanor DWI before he won Senior Bowl Defensive MVP and declared for the 2026 NFL Draft.
Physical Attributes
RAS:
Young is more of a big, lumbering EDGE than he is a quick or fast one. You take that for someone who is nearly 6'6" and 262 lbs. He has great strength in his upper body and has a strong ability to anchor against run blocking as well. Young is not agile and struggles to change direction quickly. Overall, not an impressive athlete, but one who clears most basic physical thresholds.
Data and Tape Analysis
If you are unfamiliar with my EDGE radar charts, you can find more information here
Zion Young's best season by far was his senior year. In fact, he made improvements in nearly every aspect of his game throughout his college career. That shows his willingness to work and learn from coaches, a quality many analysts like to see. Is there more juice to be squeezed here? I am not entirely sure.
One thing I do not worry about translating, or needing much improvement is Young's work as a run defender. In fact, he was PFF's 12th-ranked EDGE against the run last year. He leverages his arms with good hand placement to keep linemen off of him and is good at identifying when to make a move at the ball carrier, or when to plug up a hole. He has no issues throwing run blocks off of himself and does not get pushed around.
His pass rushing is another story, though. Power works in the NFL, and Young has it, so I do not count out that in an NFL environment he will put it together into more production. I am not sure if he will, though. The lack of bend and agility means he is a one-trick pony. And while he pushes linemen back every play, the better linemen lose slow enough to make sure he does not affect the play.
He tries to bend around the outside and it is okay, but he would need some serious work to make it better. His combine was a mediocre one. The dominant theme throughout all of his drills was that he was stiff and did not know how to fully use his body. This is not a death sentence; it just means he either has to learn to get significantly better in this aspect or become such an elite power rusher that it does not matter. The likelihood of either is slim.
Grade and Outlook
Zion Young has power and strength that will translate to the NFL. Run-stopping EDGE defenders are important, but they do not get paid like pass rushers. I am not sure if I see Zion Young ever getting paid for his pass-rushing ability as his primary trait. He looks to be a solid player who will get sacks, but never more than a handful.
Grade: 5.7 (Late 2nd Rounder / Early 3rd Rounder)