Sonny Styles is a linebacker from Ohio State who is ranked No. 13 on my NFL Draft Top 100 Big Board. This comprehensive scouting report analyzes Styles’s draft potential, current mock draft trends, and where he ranks among the top prospects.
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Sonny Styles’s NFL Draft Potential
Sonny Styles has at times been overshadowed by the emergence of Arvell Reese as a blue-chip prospect, but make no mistake: Styles is still a first-round LB prospect, and in fact, he’s my LB2 behind Reese, with a Top 15 grade. Styles and Reese are much different players who’ll play different roles in the NFL; despite his similar raw measurables, Styles doesn’t have Reese’s raw power or strength. However, Styles is still a competent block engager, and he’s more refined and reliable in the traditional aspects of three-down LB play.
Styles is a fast processor and a rangy closer in run support, and his safety background grants him elite coverage depth feel and route relationship management skills. A well-rounded WILL LB with a particular affinity for coverage and space pursuit, Styles can be an instant starter and eventual impact NFL player.
CFB Week 9 Update
Ohio State was on a bye in Week 9, but they’ll return to action against the reeling Penn State Nittany Lions in Week 10. Penn State’s passing game shouldn’t pose much of a threat, but the running game is still a respectable outfit. Kaytron Allen has found his stride as of late, and the Nittany Lions have two potential early-round picks on their offensive line in Drew Shelton and Olaivavega Ioane.
Styles is an instinctive, high-level processor, a natural coverage player, and a true size-speed specimen at 6’4″, 243 pounds — but one potential knock on his profile is that he isn’t as consistent as his teammate Arvell Reese when engaging, stacking, and shedding run blocks, particularly against climbing offensive linemen. In Week 10, Styles will have to focus on dictating and winning initial contact, as well as keeping leverage and base load, to hold up and help bottle up the Lions’ ground game.
CFB Week 10 Update
Styles was stellar in Ohio State’s dismantling of the Penn State Nittany Lions. While he didn’t provide the pass-rush infusion that his teammate Reese did, Styles played a complete three-down game. In the run game, he brought great vision, patience, and willing physicality, encumbering gaps and muddying rush looks.
Meanwhile, in the passing game, his depth discipline showed up again over the middle of the field, and he used his long-strider range to erase flat threats and offensive check-downs on more than one occasion — notching a pass breakup with his length in one such instance. It’s rare to see a former safety morph into such a complete three-down LB, but Styles has realized that potential in the best way, and is a likely first-round pick as a result.
Where Is Styles Being Selected Most Often in the PFSN Mock Draft Simulator?
Styles currently holds the No. 19 overall rank among prospects, placing him among the first-round caliber prospects. His most recent Average Draft Position (ADP) of 21.5 as of October 27 reflects that he is typically being selected in the first round.
This small gap between rank and ADP suggests he’s consistently valued among evaluators, even amid fluctuations in player evaluations at this stage of the draft cycle.
Users controlling the Baltimore Ravens have been the team that selected Styles the most frequently over the past week, accounting for 4.4% of their picks across all seven rounds. Notably, 11.7% of the Baltimore Ravens’ first-round selections over that same period were used on Styles, underscoring users’ strong preference for him as a potential immediate-impact linebacker.
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Where Does Sonny Styles Rank Amongst Other NFL Draft Prospects?
Styles is currently ranked No. 13 overall in my October 2026 NFL Draft Big Board. Among LB prospects, Styles ranks 1st at the position, making him the top-rated LB in this draft class. As a first-round caliber prospect, Styles is among the top-tier players in this draft class.
Want to see how we rank all the draft prospects in the PFSN Mock Draft Simulator? Check out our NFL Draft Prospect Rankings page, which includes more than 750 prospects.
