Cashius Howell

● Thick, compact frame, with tapered waist and athletic lower half ● Quick initial burst and acceleration to stress tackles vertically ● Bendy at the top of his rush, with ankle flexion on plant foot for tight corners ● Skilled transitioning from his cross-chop move into a dip to win the corner ● Gets blockers off balance by staying square and using shifty feet and shoulder fakes while stemming his rush ● Dropped at times to help create blitz pressures elsewhere ● Comfortable dropping on third downs, covering tight ends or spot dropping ● Despite lack of length, shows a knack for finding passing lanes (combined 14 pass breakups over past two seasons) ● Miami’s Francis Mauigoa called Howell the toughest opponent he faced in 2025 ● Competes with a chip; NFL scouts describe him as a “self-starter” who is “all about ball” in his training and prep

● Short-armed athlete who can be out-reached ● Inconsistent edge setter — can be engulfed and dumped by size ● Needs to improve his gap integrity and not surrender the edge when trying to escape blocks ● Secondary moves, especially high side, are underdeveloped ● Flagged for defensive holding after dropping into flat against Missouri in 2025 ● Just 3.5 tackles for loss (excluding sacks) in 2025 ● Least-impactful outings came in final two games of 2025, when it meant the most (vs. Texas, vs. Miami)

A one-year starter at Texas A&M, Howell was a boundary edge rusher (mostly stand-up) in head coach Mike Elko’s versatile front. After producing in the MAC, he transferred up to the SEC to prove himself and subsequently became the ninth unanimous All-American in Texas A&M history, with an SEC-best 11 sacks in 2025. He also became Texas A&M’s first SEC Defensive Player of the Year since the team joined the conference in 2012 (and the first Aggie to win top defensive player in any conference since Dat Nguyen in 1998). The NFL covets dynamic space athletes, and Howell brings plenty of juice off the edge. With his get-off burst, he eats up the tackle’s cushion and uses his agility, hip flexibility and aggressive hands to get blockers off balance using his rush sequencing. Though more 345 Back to table of contents -- 349 of 629 -- physical than his size suggests, he can find himself swallowed up and sealed when attempting to contain, and his run game instincts must catch up with his physical gifts. Overall, Howell needs to expand the consistency of his impact beyond winning as a high-side rusher, but his athletic twitch, play speed and violent demeanor make for the type of package you bet on at the position. At worst, he should be a designated pass rusher, with the ceiling of a versatile NFL starter (like Haason Reddick) who can be moved around the front. EDGE10 R Mason Thomas Oklahoma GRADE OVR. RANK YEAR BIRTHDAY AGE HT WT JERSEY 2nd round 44 4SR Aug 25, 2004 21.66 6'2" 241 lbs. No. 32