Nicholas Singleton

● Built like an NFL back with a strong lower body and thick quads (squats 570 pounds) ● Outstanding speed to scoot through holes and complicate pursuit angles in open field ● At his best on tosses and outside runs, where he can capture the corner and turn on the jets ● When he continues to pump his legs, runs with forward momentum to power through inside contact ● Effective in screen game, with strong hands and adjustment skills (can also line up in the slot or wide) ● Averaged 23.7 yards per kick return, including a 100-yard touchdown return as a freshman ● Made clear effort to improve ball security (one fumble over final 29 games) ● High character person and worker (NFL scout: “Introverted guy and more of a quiet leader. … The staff says he is one of the best workers in the building.”) ● First Big Ten player since Wisconsin’s Jonathan Taylor with 5,000-plus all-purpose yards and 50-plus touchdowns in a career

● Runs with tunnel vision and must be led to the hole ● Inconsistent pacing at the line and impatiently commits instead of adjusting to blocking 49 Back to table of contents -- 53 of 629 -- ● Plays with head-down mentality as an inside runner and needs to improve feel for finding creases ● Low elusiveness rating and lack of agility hinder ability to make late cuts away from incoming tacklers ● Slow to get head turned mid-route; needs to make himself more available as pass catcher ● Below-average technique in pass protection leads to negative plays ● Production and volume dropped off a cliff his senior season (plays of 10-plus yards down from 46 as a junior to 22 as a senior) ● Broke fifth metatarsal in right foot during Senior Bowl practices (Jan. 2026), which required surgery and sidelined him for the rest of the draft process; underwent surgery to repair a torn ligament in thumb (Jan. 2025)

A four-year starter at Penn State, Singleton was part of a committee backfield with Kaytron Allen in former offensive coordinator Andy Kotelnicki’s gap scheme. Despite his workload decreasing over the second half of his senior season as Allen became the team’s top back, Singleton passed Saquon Barkley in the Penn State record book for most career rushing touchdowns (45), total touchdowns (55) and all-purpose yards (5,586). Singleton is muscled up with the explosive speed to be a one-cut runner and home-run threat. Though he’s one of the most impressive pound-for-pound athletes in the class, he is an inconsistent decision-maker at the line of scrimmage and more likely to run into contact rather than gear down, anticipate and find an escape route. Overall, Singleton can be a frustrating watch because of his inconsistent run discipline and vision, but he offers big-play potential with an exceptional blend of size and speed. From day one, his pass-catching and kick-return skills will expand the ways in which an NFL team can utilize his talent.