Caleb Banks 2026 NFL draft prospect profile, grades, rank, measurements

Florida's massive defensive tackle Caleb Banks is one of the toughest prospects to clearly understand in this draft cycle. He has a unique frame for an interior defensive lineman and unfortunately missed most of 2025 with a foot injury.

Banks was a four-star defensive line recruit out of Michigan in the 2021 recruiting class. He played sparingly for two seasons at Louisville before transferring to Florida for the 2023 season.

In 2024, Banks generated significant hype for his future with phenomenal games to close out the year against LSU and Ole Miss. In those two games alone, he notched three sacks and 15 total pressures. He looked like a dominant force and a future first round draft pick.

The games against LSU and Ole Miss accounted for more than 50 percent of his pressure totals for the season and he only had one sack outside of those two games all year. The appeared that he might be putting it all together towards the end of the season.

Banks' finish to 2024 left draft evaluators excited and clamoring to see how his development would unfold in 2025 before heading to the NFL. Unfortunately, he suffered a foot injury in training camp that caused him to miss the first two games of the season before breaking the same foot in his first game back. He would not return until week 13 to play the final two games of the season.

Banks appears to still be learning how to use his massive frame. He is very tall for an interior defensive lineman which often hurts him in leverage battles. He has very long arms which helps him reach out where others cant and even catch quarterbacks off guard in the pocket.

Florida DT Caleb Banks turned a lot of heads at the Senior Bowl (including Jim Harbaugh)
He has ridiculously long arms for a DT and uses them to create space and has the ability to reach the quarterback from multiple angles like he does here for the strip sack. pic.twitter.com/Ee1EwgePVu
— Thomas Martinez (@BoltsDraftTalk) February 1, 2026

A finally healthy Banks competed at the Senior Bowl and he had several wow moments in one on one drills. His inconsistencies with his pad level continued to show up in team drills but having played so little football over the past year, it's hard to judge whether it was rust or bad habits with pad level.

He has every trait an NFL defensive line coach would love to work with but he has yet to put it all together consistently. His traits are undeniable but every team may value him differently based on their scheme and expectations from their interior defensive lineman.

Measurables

Name: Caleb Banks
Height/weight/class: 6'5 325lbs, Defensive Tackle, Redshirt Senior
Awards: SEC Defensive Lineman of the Week (Nov 2024)

What Caleb Banks does well

Florida Gators defensive lineman Caleb Banks — Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union / USA TODAY NETWORK / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Very quick for his size and height
Has the ability to use to arm length to fully separate from offensive lineman and disrupt rush lanes
Has a quick first step and utilizes his quickness to create angles against interior offensive lineman

Where Caleb Downs can improve

Plays with inconsistent pad level and loses leverage battles and is moved off his spot
Has a rough missed tackle rate of 25.5 percent but almost is entirely due to technique

Grade, position rank, expected draft round

Grade: B
Position rank: #5 Defensive tackle
Expected draft round: Second

Summary

Caleb Banks is a wildcard in this class. He has unique and rare traits but has been inconsistent so far in his career. At the Senior Bowl, he was also very vocal and competitive but also very brash and talking trash to offensive lineman. If he lands with veteran leadership and a good defensive line coach, the sky is the limit for him.

Banks had several awesome moments at the senior bowl that reignited the hype over his potential. His traits and athleticism will get him drafted fairly high. He is still inconsistent and will need to harness and refine his natural talent to reach his ceiling.