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.
Scouting Nugget: GT speed back; pass-catching utility
Expanded bio coming soon. This prospect is Running Back #24 in the 2026 class.
Background
Georgia Tech RB from Atlanta (GA); homegrown Jacket with three-year rotational role.
College Production
2022-25 GT: 2,100+ rush yds combined + 70 rec — pass-game involved profile.
Scouting Take
Explosive scat-back style (5-9, 195) with receiving chops. Size + pass-pro limitations cap lead-back projection.
Draft Projection
Round 7-UDFA. Third-down specialist role.
Sources
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.
NFL Scheme Fit
NFL Scheme Fit
- Wide-zone outside-rush attack
San Francisco 49ers · Detroit Lions · Miami Dolphins · Atlanta Falcons - 12/13-personnel passing / 3rd-down RB role
Detroit Lions · Kansas City Chiefs · Cincinnati Bengals · Los Angeles Chargers
Scheme Misfit Notes
- Pure between-the-tackles power schemes
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
Projected Rookie Contract Value
~$0.84M base + bonus (1-yr) · Pick range: UDFA · ~0% guaranteed
UDFA 1-yr deal: $840K base + ~$10K-$25K signing bonus
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
Position Versatility & Alternative Roles
- Receiving back / 3rd-down only — Sub-195 frame likely caps between-the-tackles carries; pass-game / screen / motion work is the survival path.
Biggest Limiting Trait HIGH
Sub-195 frame — Workload ceiling concern — modern NFL bell-cows average 215+; pass-game-only role narrows the path to a 53-man roster.
Day-3 NFL Roster Pathway
Day 3 projection means a 53-man roster spot is not guaranteed — special-teams contribution (kick/punt coverage, gunner, return-game blocking) is the typical first-year survival path.
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 RB prospects, his 5-9 / 195 lbs frame sits at the 18th percentile in height and 18th percentile in weight.
- Position class: Jamal Haynes is RB #24 of 28 ranked RBs in the 2026 class. Of those, 10 are projected in the R7/UDFA range.
- School pipeline: One of 6 Georgia Tech prospects in the 2026 NFL Draft — but the only RB.
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.
Jamal Haynes’s NFL Archetype: De'Von Achane
De'Von Achane (Miami Dolphins)
Closest RB physical profile in the modern NFL: 5-9/195 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 Running Back Prospects
Closest matches to Jamal Haynes (5-9 / 195 lbs, #24 RB) by ranking proximity and physical profile. SIZE MATCH = within 1″ height and 10 lbs; TIER MATCH = within 2 ranking spots.
- Noah WhittingtonSIZE MATCH Oregon · 5-9/195 lbs · #25 RB · UDFA
- Rahsul FaisonSIZE MATCH South Carolina · 5-10/205 lbs · #23 RB · R7
- Terion StewartTIER MATCH Virginia Tech · 5-10/215 lbs · #22 RB · R7
- Robert Henry Jr.SIZE MATCH UTSA · 5-10/200 lbs · #19 RB · UDFA
- Davon BoothSIZE MATCH Mississippi State · 5-9/205 lbs · #18 RB · R7-UDFA
Georgia Tech & The 2026 Class
More from Georgia Tech
- Ahmari Harvey · CB #13 · R6
- Jordan van den Berg · IDL #18 · R7
- Keylan Rutledge · IOL #4 · R2-R3
- Haynes King · QB #21 · UDFA
- Eric Rivers · WR #23 · R5-R6
Other R7-UDFA prospects in the 2026 class
Different positions, same projected draft tier as Jamal Haynes.
- Garrison Grimes · LS · BYU
- Luke Altmyer · QB · Illinois
- Caullin Lacy · WR · Louisville
- Dillon Bell · WR · Georgia
- Sage Surratt · WR · Wake Forest
- Max Bredeson · TE · Michigan