Ben Bell

Draft-Week Buzz

No verified pre-draft news items in the past 30 days for this prospect. See Day 2/3 Team Fits below for projected landing spots and /news.html for the cross-prospect timeline.

Background

Virginia Tech EDGE from Comfort (TX); Texas State transfer tested in ACC.

College Production

2022-24 TXST: 18 career sacks. 2025 VT: 6 sacks ACC debut.

Scouting Take

Power-first EDGE with 6-2, 250 frame. Bend is inconsistent; scheme-narrow 4-3 base.

Draft Projection

UDFA. EDGE rotational depth.

Sources

• ESPN Player Page
• Wikipedia
• 247Sports Profile

Our scouting profile is assembled from these primary sources + cross-checked against ESPN (Kiper / Reid / Miller), PFF's 2026 Big Board, Dane Brugler's The Beast 2026, and Daniel Jeremiah's top-50. See our full methodology and citations.

Day 2 / Day 3 Team Fits

NFL teams that lost a same-position veteran this offseason — and could target Ben Bell as a Day 2/3 replacement option.

• VERIFIED Kansas City Chiefs: moved on from Michael Danna (speed-rusher) on 2026-02-23. [verified]
  Picks held: R1 #9; R1 #29 via Los Angeles Rams; R2 #40
• REPORTED Miami Dolphins: moved on from Bradley Chubb (speed-rusher).
  Picks held: R1 #11; R1 #30 via Denver; R2 #43
• REPORTED Green Bay Packers: moved on from Rashan Gary (power-rusher).
  Picks held: R2 #52

Confidence: "VERIFIED" departures cite a publication URL (Spotrac, OverTheCap, ESPN, NFL.com, team transactions page) confirming the move and date. "REPORTED" entries come from public free-agency trackers without a single canonical source we could attach. Fits are archetype-and-position based; we are not claiming the team has expressed interest in the prospect.

NFL Scheme Fit

Scheme matches are bucketed from the prospect's height, weight, and (for WRs) archetype tag against a static lookup of which NFL teams currently run each scheme family.

Rookie Contract & Landing-Spot Outlook

Contract band uses the 2026 NFL CBA rookie wage scale projected from the prospect's expected pick range; guarantee % is the slot-default at that pick. Landing-spot best/worst case is derived from TEAMS data (positional needs + scheme overlap minus same-position R1 conflicts) — not a claim that either team has expressed interest.

Versatility, Limits & Roster Pathway

Derived from height/weight against the 2026 position cohort and the prospect's projected round. Versatility callouts identify alternate alignments NFL teams have historically used for similar size profiles. Limiting-trait notes flag the single most-cited measurable concern; severity reflects how often that flag ends a Day 1 starter projection. Roster-pathway notes describe the realistic Year 1 NFL role for Day 3 picks.

By the Numbers — 2026 Class Context

• Frame: Among 2026 EDGE prospects, his 6-2 / 250 lbs frame sits at the 11th percentile in height and 37th percentile in weight.
• Position class: Ben Bell is EDGE #26 of 27 ranked EDGEs in the 2026 class. Of those, 8 are projected in the R7/UDFA range.
• School pipeline: One of 5 Virginia Tech prospects in the 2026 NFL Draft — but the only EDGE.

Computed factually from the 2026 prospect class roster — height/weight percentiles benchmark this player against every other ranked prospect at the same position. Recruiting arc compares his high-school 247Sports/Rivals composite to his current projected round.

Ben Bell’s NFL Archetype: Haason Reddick

Haason Reddick (Philadelphia Eagles)

Closest EDGE physical profile in the modern NFL: 6-2/250 lbs. Same frame, same role bucket — NOT a talent or career-arc projection.

Note: this is a physical-profile match — frame, position, role bucket. Not a talent or career-arc projection.

Similar EDGE Rusher Prospects

Closest matches to Ben Bell (6-2 / 250 lbs, #26 EDGE) by ranking proximity and physical profile. SIZE MATCH = within 1″ height and 10 lbs; TIER MATCH = within 2 ranking spots.

• Keyshawn James-NewbySIZE MATCH New Mexico · 6-2/240 lbs · #25 EDGE · UDFA
• Eric O'NeillSIZE MATCH Rutgers · 6-2/245 lbs · #24 EDGE · R7-UDFA
• Aidan HubbardSIZE MATCH Northwestern · 6-3/255 lbs · #27 EDGE · UDFA
• Michael HeldmanSIZE MATCH Central Michigan · 6-3/255 lbs · #23 EDGE · R7-UDFA
• Vincent Anthony Jr.SIZE MATCH Duke · 6-3/250 lbs · #21 EDGE · R7

→ Full EDGE Rushers rankings

Virginia Tech & The 2026 Class