Keldric Faulk 2026 NFL Draft: scouting report for Auburn Tigers edge rusher

Keldric Faulk is a dominant defender, but his NFL Draft evaluation is one of the trickier, yet fascinating, cases to study this year.

AJ Schulte — College Football Trending News Writer

Feb 4, 2026 2:31 PM EST

Auburn Tigers defensive end Keldric Faulk (15) blitzes as Auburn Tigers take on Ball State Cardinals at Jordan-Hare Stadium in Auburn, Ala. on Saturday, Sept. 6, 2025. Auburn Tigers defeated Ball State Cardinals 42-3. — Jake Crandall/ Advertiser / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Height: 6060
Weight: 288
Year: Junior
Pro Comparison: DeForest Buckner

2026 NFL Combine Results

Keldric Faulk, EDGE, Auburn

Hand Size: 9 7/8″
Arm Length: 34 3/8″
40-Yard Dash: N/A
Vertical Leap: 35″
Broad Jump: 117″
20-Yard Shuttle: N/A
3-Cone: N/A

Pros of Keldric Faulk

Elite motor: I’m always going to be a sucker for players that simply do not take plays off, and Faulk doesn’t take a second off of any rep. He’s constantly flying to the ball, trying to cause havoc, create disruption, and be a very large nuisance for opposing offenses.
Very good overall athleticism: There are some doubts about Faulk’s athleticism from many analysts, but to me, his movement skills stand out across the entirety of his game, especially if you evaluate him as an interior player. He’s fluid laterally and I think he changes directions well for a 288-pound athlete. There are glimpses of eye-catching explosiveness to go along with the rest of his tools.
Very good power: Faulk’s not a speed-to-power rusher, but he can convert power-to-speed like a madman. He often overwhelms blockers with his natural upper and lower body strength and can collapse the pocket with ease. There are several instances on film where he simply uproots blockers as soon as he establishes contact.
Very good run defense: Faulk is nearly impossible to move when he sets his pad level up square to the play. His natural lower body strength blends well into taking on and holding up against double teams on the inside, and he had plays on film of smashing blockers back into rushing lanes with heavy hands or stopping plays simply by being an immovable force at the point of attack. When the run goes away from him, he’s constantly chasing and working to the ball. Faulk leads the FBS in run stops since 2023 with 62(!). He’s violent shedding off contact
Versatility: We talk a lot about how a prospect could play a different position at the next level, but Faulk does play multiple positions at Auburn. The Tigers deployed him inside anywhere from 2-4i to far outside as a nine, and there wasn’t much drop off from position to position.

Cons of Keldric Faulk

Average use of hands as a pass rusher: Faulk has different moves he’ll try, and you don’t necessarily need a large bag of moves as a pass rusher to succeed. However, I do think his accuracy with his hands has to improve, and I’d like to see him develop his counters at the top of his rush before I’d call him a technician.
Below-average snap timing: Faulk’s athleticism is limited by his struggles to time the snap. There are several plays where Faulk will be slightly late off the ball, negating his natural tools.
Below-average pad level: Faulk is naturally a massive human being, so he has to constantly work at dropping to fix his leverage. Far too often, he popped straight up on film, exposing his chest and negating his leverage. That tendency is going to get picked on routinely in the NFL, and takes away from his excellent run defense.

Background

A former four-star recruit and one of the top defensive linemen from the 2023 class, Faulk elected to stay home in Alabama and committed to the Auburn Tigers shortly after former head coach Hugh Freeze was hired. He quickly made an impact, earning Freshman All-SEC honors before becoming a team captain as a sophomore, a trend that continued into his junior season.

Faulk finished his career without many accolades, but he did finish the 2025 season as a Third-Team All-SEC member, and was placed on the Bronko Nagurski Watch List and Bednarik Award Watch List.

Player Evaluation

I think the biggest disconnect when it comes to Faulk’s evaluation is scouting his position. The number one thing I always try to do with prospects is envision what type of role would best suit his skillset, as that’s what the NFL will ask him to do. When watching Faulk, it’s clear to me that he’s not an NFL edge rusher, something he’s been labeled, and it’s affecting his evaluation for many, in my eyes.

If you, instead, view him through the lens of an interior defensive lineman, his game becomes much more appealing, if not outright coveted. He’s young, he’s powerful, he’s smart, he’s long, downright impossible to move at the POA, and his motor causes plenty of disruption on its own. It’s not hard to see the upside here on the inside, particularly if he bulks up just a smidgen more. This type of move, of course, does require him to buy in on making the move, but he’s a high character player by all accounts.

His power-to-speed ability as a rusher could be a tremendous asset, and his excellent run defense makes him an easy three-down caliber player a team can deploy anywhere on the defensive line. If he can correct his pad level to an acceptable level (it may never be something he excels at just off of his sheer size alone) and bulk up a bit more in the NFL, I have a hard time not seeing Faulk succeed at the NFL level.