From now until the 2025 NFL Draft, we hope to scout and create profiles for as many prospects as possible, examining their strengths, weaknesses, and what they can bring to an NFL franchise. These players could be potential top-10 picks, Day 3 selections, or priority undrafted free agents. Today, a scouting report on Oklahoma linebacker Danny Stutsman.
No. 28, DANNY STUTSMAN, LB, OKLAHOMA (Graduate Senior) — 6-4, 243 POUNDS
MEASUREMENTS
| Player | Ht/Wt | Hand Size | Arm Length | Wingspan |
| Danny Stutsman | 6-4, 243 | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| 40-Yard Dash | 10-Yard Dash | Short Shuttle | 3-Cone | |
| N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | |
| Broad Jump | Vertical | Bench Press | ||
| N/A | N/A | N/A |
THE GOOD
-Great size with well-proportioned frame for the position; thick, powerful build top to bottom
-Intense player who plays with a relentless motor that burns hot; shows great effort time and time again
-Tackling machine; always around the football, making plays sideline to sideline
-Consistent performer year after year
-Good length that allows him to make plays as a tackler outside of his frame in space
-Comfort spot-dropping in zone coverage with good eyes and feel for space
-Quick processor with good eyes to sift through traffic and find the football
-Effective blitzer that can shoot gaps and make plays; flashes a nice rip-through to get after QB
THE BAD
-Not as physical taking on blocks and dishing out hits as tackler with his size
-Slow to disengage off of blocks against the run; doesn’t use hands well to stay clean and stack/shed
-Tight hips and clunky footwork in man coverage on underneath routes
-Finds himself around the football a lot but misses tackles often with poor technique
-Tends to play with a high pad level and can get caught with eyes in the backfield, allowing blockers to reach second-level
-Lacks some play strength despite size; can get overwhelmed in run game
BIO
-Played in 47 career games at Oklahoma, starting 37
-Finished Sooners’ career with 376 tackles, 40 tackles for loss 8.0 sacks, three interceptions, four forced fumbles, one fumble recovery, one touchdown, and eight pass breakups
-Ranked ninth all-time in Oklahoma history in tackles
-Consensus Second-Team All-American for Sooners in 2024 from Associated Press and Football Writers Association of America
-Named First-Team All-SEC; was First-Team All-Big 12 in 2023
-Voted a Butkus Award finalist in 2024
-Named the recipient of the Sooners’ Don Key Award in 2024, which best exemplifies the many superior qualities of Key, both on the field and in the classroom
-Used his NIL money to help fund scholarships for his walk-on teammates
-Former 4-star recruit out of Orlando who chose Oklahoma over Oklahoma State, Texas A&M, West Virginia
-Father, Steve, played football at Baylor as a TE/WR from 1987-91
TAPE BREAKDOWN
One of the most productive tacklers at the linebacker position in the 2025 NFL Draft and a first-team all-conference linebacker in both the Big 12 and the SEC in back-to-back seasons, Oklahoma’s Danny Stutsman brings quite the resume to the table entering the NFL Draft.
Listed at 6-foot-4, 243 pounds, Stutsman has a great frame that helped him rack up plays left and right over four seasons with the Sooners. In his career, Stutsman recorded 376 tackles, 40 tackles for loss, and 8.5 sacks in 47 career games, starting 37 for Oklahoma.
Those numbers put him ninth all-time in Sooners’ history in tackles, which is quite a historic group to be part of.
He’s a tackling machine on tape, making plays all over the field. He processes well and can sift through traffic to find the ball and make plays.
Here against Tulane in 2024, Stutsman shows off his ability to process quickly with his eyes, read the linemen in front of him, and put himself in position to make the stop. His feet keep moving here, too, allowing him to work laterally and downhill to make it harder for the lineman to climb to him at his spot.
Good job of staying square in the hole, too, making the play for the run stop.
Similar rep here against Houston in 2024.
He never stops moving, keeps his eyes in the backfield, and is able to find the football and attack downhill for the run stop.
The effort is high, and the motor runs hot. He has a nose for the ball constantly and is always around the football, making stops like he did here. He’s not all that good at taking on blockers, stacking, and shedding, but he has shown the ability to stay clean from blockers by slipping around them, which will help him at the next level, even with his impressive size.
Stutsman is at his best when he’s asked to work downhill.
Too often, you see linebackers hesitate and try to read and react. With Stutsman, there are times when he’s stationary, and he’s a tick slow to click and close. But his instincts take over when he’s moving pre-snap and triggering downhill at the snap like he was here against Texas in 2023.
In these situations, he will find himself around the football, and more often than not, he will make the tackle. Though he has a lot of missed tackles on his docket (missed tackles rate of 12.2% last season), his length allows him to make plays outside of his frame, which shows up in the tackles sheet.
Stutsman attacks downhill well and can be a force in that aspect, which is why I think he can be a good two-down linebacker who triggers downhill and is an effective blitzer in certain instances.
During his time at Oklahoma, he showed the ability to fire through gaps and make plays, particularly against the run, much like he did here against Texas in 2023.
Big-time tackle for loss coming out of the half. Again, you can see him moving downhill before the snap, and then his click and close is impressive, all while working underneath a block. He stays square, too, which is key to making these types of plays against the run.
While there are some splash plays on tape and a lot of good against the run, there are some bad ones that are concerning regarding his move to the next level.
Stutsman’s aggression can sometimes be a bit too much, which can take him out of plays. That showed up in back-to-back years with the Sooners.
Here in 2023 against Texas, he scrapes too far over and takes himself out of the play, making for an easier block from the climbing tight end, who is able to seal Stutsman off for the chunk gain.
It’s a similar thing here against South Carolina in 2024. He’s just a tick slow in processing and then tries to recover by coming downhill. But in the process, he picks a lane and takes himself out of the play, and then he is slow to get off the block.
It’s a concern, especially for a linebacker his size, that he doesn’t stack and shed well and can get swallowed up.
As far as coverage goes, he’s a guy who can spot drop and get into throwing lanes, but he’s not a guy who will handle carrying linebackers or slot receivers over the middle. He’s just too stiff in that sense in man coverage, which will hinder his ability to be a three-down linebacker. If he’s going to be a three-down linebacker, he might be a guy who can experiment with dropping to the EDGE to rush the passer with his size and speed.
CONCLUSION
Overall, there’s a lot to like with Oklahoma’s Danny Stutsman. He’s a sound run-defender who is usually assignment and gap-sound, racks up the tackles, and is consistently on the field. He has missed just one game due to injury since 2021, and that was an elbow issue in 2023. He did skip the bowl game in 2024 against Navy, but that wasn’t injury-related.
Stutsman is a good processor against the run, works well sideline to sideline to make plays, and can shoot gaps and create splash near the line of scrimmage in that sense. He’s also flashed the ability to generate pressure as a blitzer with a good rip move to beat linemen and can shoot gaps and wreak havoc behind the line against the run. While he’s fine as a spot dropper in zone, he’s not a guy who can handle man coverage roles as a three-down guy.
Ideally, he’s a MIKE LB in a 4-3 defense that can drop to the EDGE and rush the passer in passing situations to take advantage of some mismatches. He reminds me a lot of Robert Spillane from toughness and run-defending ability, though he’s not as adept in coverage as Spillane has become in his career.
Still, there’s a lot to like with Stutsman. At worst, if he doesn’t click on defense, he’ll be a great special teams player with his relentless motor and drive.
Projection: Late Day 2
Depot Draft Grade: 7.6 – Third Round (Potential Starter/Good Backup)
Games Watched: Texas (2023), Houston (2024), Tulane (2024), South Carolina (2024), Missouri (2024), LSU (2024)
