Zane Durant

Penn State

· age 22.0

Consensus Rank

139

Colors: elite (top 10%)·strong·weak·bottom 10%all within DL cohort (n=0)

NFL.com

5.98

ACS

—

4.75

6'1"

290

Arm

31.9

PFF Col

—

Mock→

—

Flags

Visits

Bench —

Vert —

Broad —

3c —

Shut —

Hand 10.6

Age 22.0

Measurables

HT (in)73.13

WT (lb)290

Arm31.88

Hand10.63

404.75

Bench—

Vert—

Broad—

3-cone—

Shuttle—

By Source

brugler

age21.96

armInches31.88

forty4.75

handInches10.63

heightInches73.13

tenYardSplit1.66

weightLbs290

wingspanInches77.88

nfl.com

armInches31.88

athleticismScore92.39

forty4.75

handInches10.63

heightInches73.13

weightLbs203

redflag-injury

CTE-11

All-Star Game Performance

Senior Bowl 2026
www.espn.com
Payton remains a late-round prospect on my board, but he's trending up while standing out among a crowd of passers that were all ranked ahead of him when the week began. -- Miller Day 2 standout prospects Zane Durant, DT, Penn State Durant's first-step explosiveness has continued to show during practices. The guard prospect had a rough rep against Hunter early before settling down and winning with leverage and power against Zane Durant (Penn State) and others in one-on-ones. The guard prospect had a rough rep against Hunter early before settling down and winning with leverage and power against

Red Flags (1)

Extracted from Brugler background/weakness sections.

injury

One of the most respected voices in the program.

Scouting Dossier

PFF

Strengths

● Compactly built, with low body fat and thick lower half ● Above-average pound-for-pound play strength ● Most wins are a result of his big, physical hands ● Moves well on his feet with balance and agility ● Adequate initial quickness to throw his hips in the hole and leverage blocks ● Rangy big man — makes plays outside the numbers ● Voted a 2025 team captain and described as a “favorite” among the coaching staff because of his alpha presence and football passion (NFL scout: “His ‘give-a-shit’ factor is high. Always taking notes in meetings. Warrior in the weight room. One of the most respected voices in the program.”) ● Durable — started a combined 40 games over the past three seasons

Weaknesses

● Lacks ideal height and length; frame is likely maxed out ● Inconsistent instincts reacting to blocking pressure, and can be reached by athletic blockers ● Struggles to put down roots post-contact and can be redirected away from run lanes ● Below-average anchor in goal-line and short-yardage situations ● Has a tough time staying square if he isn’t first off the snap ● Completely overwhelmed and washed by double teams ● Below-average senior production 424 Back to table of contents -- 428 of 629 --

Projection

A three-year starter at Penn State, Durant lined up as the three-technique in former defensive coordinator Jim Knowles’ scheme. A running back and defensive end in high school, he weighed 250 pounds when he enrolled before moving to defensive tackle and showing high-end flashes from the interior. He played under three different defensive coordinators in four seasons with the Nittany Lions. Durant is undersized for the trenches, which is both an advantage and a disadvantage. He uses natural leverage and lower-body strength to anchor or play underneath blocks. He is quick off the ball but can get pinballed and becomes a nonfactor. He needs to develop more ways to get around blocks when he doesn’t win quickly, but his pursuit effort and competitive toughness are translatable qualities. Overall, Durant wins with play strength and violent hands, but you don’t feel his impact consistently on tape or in the box score. The team that drafts him will hope to bottle his disruptive flashes.

Mock Ranks (1)

MDD-consensus139

Freak Notes

Feldman-Freaks-2025 · #8
This is his third season on the Freaks List. “Zane is the best D-tackle I’ve played against,” said Penn State center Nick Dawkins, who has faced several top 50 draft picks in his college career. Among them: Oregon first-rounder Derrick Harmon and Ohio State’s Tyleik Williams. “I’ve played against some dang good defensive linemen, but Zane Durant is the best. It’s the twitchiness off the ball. It’s the lateral movement. It’s the combination and recovery of being able to have a counter move that is a counter to power and/or speed. It’s his IQ. Being able to pick up screens, picking out stretch plays, picking up gap schemes and calling it out before the play, and it’s his killer mentality. I could go on for two hours about this stuff. He’s just a different cat.” In 2024, Durant had 42 tackles, 11 TFLs and three sacks. The 6-1, 290-pound senior from Florida has run a 4.66 40 and hit a max velocity of 21.1 mph. He clocked a 4.43 shuttle time, broad jumped 9-10 and vertical jumped 30 1/2 inches. He’s bench pressed 425 pounds and squatted 660. This offseason, he power cleaned 345 pounds. Ty Blanding is another Freaky DT; at 6-1, 292 pounds, the sophomore ran a 4.82 40 this offseason and s

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