2026 Draft: D’Angelo Ponds Scouting Report

Measurables

Ponds plays like every snap is his last, with competitiveness akin to a starving predator fighting for its last meals.
Speed, quickness, agility; Ponds flies around the field really well.
Plays bigger than his size with his physicality and strong explosiveness to contest even in jump ball situations with most Wide Receivers.
His backpedal is one of the best in college football and can maintain it on deeper zones very well to shadow receivers while keeping his eyes on the QB, with an excellent hip flip and can explode out of it to disrupt passes downhill. Can follow the hip pocket of receivers very well by mirroring them.
Despite his size he contests very well. Allowed just ____% completions and had ____ Breakups.
Plays the run intensely with nice hits, strong awareness, and good tackling technique (just 3.3% missed tackle rate in 2025).
Highly instinctual, plays with great anticipation and understanding of route concepts. In Zone his eyes are disciplined on the QB can can read the opposing passer’s eyes well to make plays on the ball.

Will not hit some team’s size thresholds. Height is either 5’8 or 5’9 depending on the source and his weight is in the low to mid 170s.
He has 1,845 snaps as an outside corner. Some analysts believe Ponds should shift inside as a slot in the NFL, he only has 27 snaps inside at slot. Can he continue to succeed outside in the NFL or does he have to move inside? For some NFL teams the projection is unclear.
Can he contests the bigger and longer Wide Receivers in the NFL consistently?
Struggles to get off of blockers in the run, will lose matchups against pulling linemen or Tight Ends in space if they get their mitts on him, needs to go around them which isn’t always optimal to stop the run.