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 State transfer
Expanded bio coming soon. This prospect is EDGE Rusher #9 in the 2026 class.
Scouting Profile
Combine / Pro Day Measurables (reported)
| 40-yard dash | 4.78 |
| Vertical jump (in) | 33.5 |
| Broad jump | 9'7" |
| Bench press (225 reps) | 24 reps |
| 3-cone drill | 7.20 |
| 20-yard shuttle | 4.32 |
| Wingspan | 80.5" |
| Hand size | 10 1/8" |
Numbers compiled from NFL Scouting Combine results, Pro Day box scores, and beat-writer reports. "Reported" means cross-referenced against multiple sources; verify on nfl.com/combine for definitive marks.
College Career Stats
- 2022 Michigan State (Fr): 18 tackles, 2 TFL
- 2023 MSU (So): 37 tackles, 6 TFL, 3 sacks
- 2024 MSU (Jr): 48 tackles, 9 TFL, 6 sacks
- 2025 Missouri (Sr, transfer): 56 tackles, 11 TFL, 8 sacks — 1st-team All-SEC
Strengths
- Power-edge who converts speed to bull rush
- Four-year starter across Big Ten + SEC — competition tested
- Three-down body at 6-5, 255 — sets edges in run defense
- Improved sack production each year through college
Weaknesses / Areas to Develop
- Lateral agility limits him in space
- Stiff hips — bend around arc below average
- Counter-move development still needed
NFL Pro Comparison
Azeez Ojulari — solid power-edge with starter floor, 8-sack ceiling in his best years
Mock-Draft Consensus
| ESPN (Jordan Reid) | PFF Big Board | Jeremiah Top 50 | Consensus Avg | Realistic Range |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #41 | #40 | — | #40.5 | Picks 28-55 |
30-day trend: Stable
Ranks cross-referenced from ESPN's Jordan Reid top-500, PFF's 2026 Big Board top-200, and Daniel Jeremiah's top-50 (NFL.com). Realistic draft-night range reflects projected team fit and trade scenarios, not just big-board placement.
Outcome Range
- Floor: Rotational EDGE, 5-6 sacks/yr
- Median: Starter, 8 sacks/yr
- Ceiling: Pro Bowl base end with 10+ sacks
Scheme Fit
4-3 RDE or 3-4 base end in a gap-control scheme
Pre-Draft Visits
Top-30 visits with the Seattle Seahawks, Chicago Bears, and New Orleans Saints
Signature College Game
2025 vs Texas A&M: 2 sacks, 4 TFL — Mizzou's defensive tone-setter in a 31-27 SEC upset
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 Zion Young 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
NFL Scheme Fit
- 3-4 OLB / sub-package speed rusher
Pittsburgh Steelers · Dallas Cowboys · Los Angeles Chargers · Houston Texans
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
~$8.0M – $13.0M (4-year deal) · Pick range: #33-64 · ~85% guaranteed
Mid-pick band — guarantee % varies pick-to-pick
Best-Case / Worst-Case Landing Spot
Why: EDGE listed in their top-5 positional needs; runs a scheme that maximizes his profile.
Year-1 arc: Day-1 starter window with cap-controlled rookie-contract production.
Why: runs a scheme that doesn't naturally amplify his profile.
Year-1 arc: Depth-chart competition + special-teams reps as Year-1 baseline.
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.
By the Numbers — 2026 Class Context
- Frame: Among 2026 EDGE prospects, his 6-5 / 255 lbs frame sits at the 100th percentile in height and 63rd percentile in weight.
- Position class: Zion Young is EDGE #9 of 27 ranked EDGEs in the 2026 class. Of those, 6 are projected in the R2 range.
- School pipeline: One of 9 Missouri 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.
Zion Young’s NFL Archetype: Micah Parsons
Micah Parsons (Dallas Cowboys)
Closest EDGE physical profile in the modern NFL: 6-5/255 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 Zion Young (6-5 / 255 lbs, #9 EDGE) by ranking proximity and physical profile. SIZE MATCH = within 1″ height and 10 lbs; TIER MATCH = within 2 ranking spots.
- Gabe JacasSIZE MATCH Illinois · 6-4/255 lbs · #8 EDGE · R1-R2
- Joshua JosephsSIZE MATCH Tennessee · 6-4/260 lbs · #11 EDGE · R2
- Malachi LawrenceTIER MATCH UCF · 6-3/260 lbs · #10 EDGE · R2
- Cashius HowellTIER MATCH Texas A&M · 6-3/255 lbs · #7 EDGE · R1
- Dani Dennis-SuttonSIZE MATCH Penn State · 6-5/260 lbs · #14 EDGE · R2-R3
Missouri & The 2026 Class
More from Missouri
- Toriano Pride Jr. · CB #20 · R7-UDFA
- Stephen Hall · CB #29 · UDFA
- Keagen Trost · IOL #29 · UDFA
- Connor Tollison · IOL #30 · UDFA
- Josiah Trotter · LB #4 · R2
Other R2 prospects in the 2026 class
Different positions, same projected draft tier as Zion Young.
- Garrett Nussmeier · QB · LSU
- Jadarian Price · RB · Notre Dame
- KC Concepcion · WR · Texas A&M
- Chris Bell · WR · Louisville
- Germie Bernard · WR · Alabama
- Eli Stowers · TE · Vanderbilt