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: Michigan transfer
Expanded bio coming soon. This prospect is Offensive Tackle #17 in the 2026 class.
Background
Pittsburgh OT from Mission Viejo (CA); Michigan transfer — fifth-year senior.
College Production
2021-24 Michigan: rotational OT. 2025 Pitt: 11 starts at LT.
Scouting Take
Technique-clean swing tackle; intelligent communicator. Athletic ceiling capped; one-year starter at Pitt.
Draft Projection
UDFA. Tackle rotation depth.
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.
Day 2 / Day 3 Team Fits
NFL teams that lost a same-position veteran this offseason — and could target Jeff Persi as a Day 2/3 replacement option.
- VERIFIED Kansas City Chiefs: moved on from Jawaan Taylor (power-LT) on 2026-03-04. [verified]
Picks held: R1 #9; R1 #29 via Los Angeles Rams; R2 #40 - REPORTED Detroit Lions: moved on from Taylor Decker (outside-zone-LT).
Picks held: R1 #17; R2 #50 - REPORTED Washington Commanders: moved on from Cornelius Lucas (swing-tackle).
Picks held: R1 #7
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
NFL Scheme Fit
- Outside-zone / wide-zone OL system
San Francisco 49ers · Los Angeles Rams · Detroit Lions · Miami Dolphins
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
Day-3 NFL Roster Pathway
Day 3 OL projection means inactive-on-gameday is the default — versatility across multiple OL spots (swing-T, G/C flex) is the typical roster differentiator.
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 OT prospects, his 6-7 / 315 lbs frame sits at the 88th percentile in height and 53rd percentile in weight.
- Position class: Jeff Persi is OT #17 of 17 ranked OTs in the 2026 class. Of those, 5 are projected in the R7/UDFA range.
- School pipeline: One of 3 Pittsburgh prospects in the 2026 NFL Draft — but the only OT.
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.
Jeff Persi’s NFL Archetype: Trent Williams
Trent Williams (San Francisco 49ers)
Closest OT physical profile in the modern NFL: 6-7/315 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 Offensive Tackle Prospects
Closest matches to Jeff Persi (6-7 / 315 lbs, #17 OT) by ranking proximity and physical profile. SIZE MATCH = within 1″ height and 10 lbs; TIER MATCH = within 2 ranking spots.
- Micah PettusSIZE MATCH Florida State · 6-7/320 lbs · #16 OT · UDFA
- Travis BurkeSIZE MATCH Memphis · 6-6/305 lbs · #15 OT · R7-UDFA
- Riley MahlmanSIZE MATCH Wisconsin · 6-8/320 lbs · #14 OT · R7-UDFA
- Kellen DieschSIZE MATCH Washington State · 6-7/310 lbs · #12 OT · R6-R7
- Alan HerronSIZE MATCH Maryland · 6-6/315 lbs · #11 OT · R5
Pittsburgh & The 2026 Class
Other UDFA prospects in the 2026 class
Different positions, same projected draft tier as Jeff Persi.
- Jacolby Criswell · QB · Louisville
- Robert Henry Jr. · RB · UTSA
- Jalen McMillan · WR · Louisville
- Jalen Nailor · WR · Michigan State
- Jaren Kanak · TE · Oklahoma
- Garrett DiGiorgio · IOL · UCLA