AJ Holmes Jr
Texas Tech#43 overallDraft Movement
Down 12 spots since Jun 8
Scouting Report
Holmes is the kind of interior anchor a defense builds its run front around, and 2025 gave that base a pass-rush dimension that lifts the whole profile. He wins early with leverage, gets his hands inside quickly, and resets the line of scrimmage against single blocks before the tackle can settle. Against doubles he holds the point without surrendering his gap, which is why his run-defense grade sat near the top of the position over heavy snaps. The leap in 2025 was disruption: five sacks and thirty-seven pressures from inside for a player who had never been a rusher. He wrecked the Kansas game with two sacks and eight total pressures, then strip-sacked BYU in the Big 12 Championship. He also batted four passes at the line, so the length and awareness show up even when he is not getting home. His game is built on power, and he converts that power into consistent pocket push that collapses the launch point. The motor runs across a full workload; he logged 564 snaps in fourteen games without fading late in the season. Ideal NFL size at 6-3 and 300 pounds means he can step in and win reps on early downs right away. His father played running back and linebacker at Northwestern State, and the pro-body athleticism shows in how he moves for a man his size. The cleanup areas are honest but minor. His tackle finish is ordinary and the grade took a hit from four misses on the year. The timed speed is average, so his range and back-side pursuit are limited, and the rush still leans on power more than a sequenced hand plan when the bull stalls. He is also a sixth-year prospect whose disruption only fully arrived last fall, so the pass-rush resume is one season deep and the eligibility has to check out. None of it undercuts the core, which is a productive three-down interior presence who wins the run rep and now chips in real pressure. Slot him as an early-down cornerstone who earns sub-package snaps, a Day 2 interior defender whose tape backs the grade rather than the projection
The Tape
Strengths
- Elite run defender graded near the top of the position over heavy snaps
- real interior pass rush with five sacks and thirty-seven pressures in 2025
- quick, active hands that reset the line against single blocks
- holds the point against double teams without losing gap integrity
- wins early with leverage and converts power into consistent pocket push
- durable and productive across 564 snaps in fourteen games without fading late
- splash production including a two-sack, eight-pressure game vs Kansas and a strip-sack of BYU in the Big 12 title game
- batted four passes at the line, showing length and awareness
Weaknesses
- Ordinary tackle finish with four missed tackles on the year
- average timed speed limits range and back-side pursuit
- wins more on power than a varied, sequenced hand plan when the bull rush stalls
- sixth-year prospect whose eligibility has to check out
- late breakout with the pass-rush resume only one season deep
- limited as a backfield chaser once the play strings away from him
- needs added rush counters to stay disruptive against NFL doubles
NFL Comparison
Poona Ford (stout, leverage-and-hands interior anchor who wins the run rep despite unremarkable timed speed); Maliek Collins (power-based interior rusher who converts a bull rush into steady pocket push); Larrell Murchison (older, production-over-upside three-down tackle who earns sub-package snaps)
College Stats
2024 (Houston, Jr): 40 tackles, 8.5 TFL, 2.0 sacks; 2025 (Texas Tech): 38 tackles (19 solo), 4.5-5.0 sacks, 37 pressures, 23 run stops, 1 forced fumble, 4 passes batted, 14 games, 564 snaps; Career entering 2026: 105 tackles, 22.5 TFL, 11 sacks, 70 QB hurries, 66 defensive stops, 15.7% pass-rush win rate
Measurables
Awards & Honors
PFF First-team All-American (2025); Second-team All-Big 12 (2025); SIS College Football All-American Team (2025); District 14-6A MVP (Westfield HS)