2025 NFL Draft Scouting Report: Louisville DT Thor Griffith

From now until the 2025 NFL Draft, we will 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, down to Day 3 selections and priority undrafted free agents. Today, a scouting report on Louisville defensive tackle Thor Griffith.

#50 THOR GRIFFITH/DT LOUISVILLE – 6020, 320 POUNDS. (RS SENIOR)

Measurements

THE GOOD

– Thick with good musculature and size on well-proportioned frame
– Good get-off with a quick reaction to the snap and accelerates off the ball well
– Very physical at the point of attack when taking on blocks
– Can reset the line of scrimmage with his power
– Plays with active, violent and strong hands
– Great backside pursuit to run down QBs and ball carriers
– Solid bend to anchor and it’s hard to knock him off his feet
– Really good play recognition and processer as a run defender
– Keeps his feet moving through contact
– Has good pad level to collapse the pocket as a bull rusher
– Nice arm-over as a counter off the bull rush
– Short-area athletic ability to move north to south in a hurry with force
– Flashed a solid push-pull move
– Very reliable tackler
– Wealth of experience playing the in A and B gaps
– Durable player who didn’t miss time at either school

THE BAD

– Short arms prevent consistent block command at point of attack
– Likes to take on blocks with his shoulder instead of hands, preventing him from consistently getting extension as a run defender
– Tends to lunge and overextend into his blocks
– Can get into more stalemates with bigger, faster interior blockers
– Has trouble shedding blocks quickly enough to tackle
– Narrow base when taking on blocks
– Will get washed inside versus down blocks
– Hips are a little stiff to clear his lower half when working finesse moves
– Lack of pass-rush moves, wins mostly with pure strength
– Questions about why he didn’t get more playing time at Louisville
– Dominant production came against Ivy League schools

BIO

– 1,573 total snaps (1,156 B gap, 326 A gap, 67 over tackle)
– 163 special teams snaps
– Appeared in 43 games with 19 starts (18 at Harvard through 2023 season, 1 at Louisville in 2024)
– No injury history
– Career: 152 total tackles (78 solo, 74 assisted), 103 pressures, 38 TFLs, 8 missed tackles, 21 sacks, 90 run stops, 1 batted pass, 3 forced fumbles, 0 INTs
– 2024 season: 20 tackles (14 solo, 6 assisted), 17 pressures, 4.5 TFLs, 1 missed tackle, 3 sacks, 16 run stops, 0 batted passes, 1 forced fumble, 0 INTs
– Born in Portsmouth, N.H.
– Played at Portsmouth High School
– 2022-23 first-team All-Ivy League pick
– 2023 FCS Football Central All-Ivy League first-team selection
– Was a two-time first-team all-state selection (2018-19) as a defensive tackle in HS
– All-American and team captain on the wrestling team in 2018
– Competed in shot put and discus events
– Won the 2017 Division II outdoor track and field state title
– Enjoys exotic fish keeping, weightlifting, and medieval samurai history
– Majored in economics and minored in Celtic Languages and Literature

TAPE BREAKDOWN

The most obvious thing that stands out when you watch Thor Griffith is his combination of speed-to-power for a guy his size. He can move blockers off the line of scrimmage with ease if he hits you first, and he can hold his ground against double teams. Griffith has a stout anchor and is a bear to move off his spot. He uses his strong hands to latch onto and manipulate linemen to go where he wants them to. He has a tendency to not shed quickly enough, but more often than not, guys moved backwards if he got into them pretty regularly.

Griffith shows high motor and effort every time he’s on the field. He has a desirable mentality for the position and brings energy, plays hard and gives terrific pursuit effort for a big man. He consistently hustles, whether it’s chasing guys from behind or fighting through multiple blockers to get into the backfield to make a play. His get-off at the snap is exceptional and he stays away from attacking opposing blockers upright. Griffith does a nice job of starting and staying low in his stance as a pass rusher and run defender.

Here he is No. 50 for Louisville:

The biggest issues I see from him on pass-rushing downs are his lack of moves, trying to win solely with power, and getting stuck on the outside shoulder of guys.

Griffith is always looking to bull rush guys and will occasionally throw out a spin move as a counter, but he often resorts to arm-overs, club-rips, and hard swipes to get upfield.

These moves often worked in college but probably won’t as consistently in the NFL. He’ll need to develop some better counters if he doesn’t win initially against guys. He’s also not very “twitchy” and isn’t able to show a lot of finesse to his movements. He won’t slide or glide past guys often. Griffith is never going to be a shifty guy and can look stiff in his play at times causing him to be more upright. However, the name of his game is power and lots of it, which has worked for him so far.

Despite his limited pass-rush technique arsenal, he consistently put up really good pressure and sack production when he saw the field. His power should translate, and he’s really well put together for his position with not a lot of unnecessary weight. He’s not a guy you would have to take off the field on every third down and I didn’t see any signs of slowing down as games went along. I wish that Louisville would have played him more this year to see him against better competition than he faced in the Ivy League (where he was absolutely dominant) and its decision to play other defensive tackles more was puzzling considering the production and experience Griffith had at Harvard in prior seasons.

He’s one of the best run defenders in this draft class to me with his combination of significant strength, low center of gravity, play recognition, stack-and-shed ability, and athleticism. He gets into the backfield with regularity and in a hurry. If you try to block him with one guy, you’ll be in trouble.

Griffith is at his best as a two-gapping stuffer where he can move the line of scrimmage south. Once he gets near guys, he’s really good at wrapping up and taking down ball carriers down where they are. This guy has violent hands and can really pop guys, but his hand usage could use some work. There were times when it was evident he struggled to disengage if he didn’t initiate first contact.

This is a guy who doesn’t give up on a play if he’s losing the hand battle or leverage. He’s a grinder and will keep wearing on opposing offensive linemen. Griffith also showed an ability to process and react quickly when plays weren’t in his gap to shoot over and flow to the ball. He can squeeze the gaps in a hurry if plays are run to his side to collapse the lane. There weren’t many weaknesses in this area of his game.

CONCLUSION

This is a young man who lives up to his mythical name and is an imposing force on the defensive line. Griffith lined up anywhere in the A or B gap positions at Harvard and Louisville. I see him more as a traditional nose tackle over the center in the NFL who can occasionally play as a 3-tech or 4i but is best utilized as a linear player to go straight-ahead as a wrecking ball of brute force. His biggest areas of development will be developing a variety of pass-rush moves, not lunging as much, and shedding blocks consistently.

There are only so many nose tackles who are built and move like he does in a straight-line manner with such power and explosiveness. His ceiling to me would be someone like B.J. Hill as the template for how to improve enough to win more consistently as a pass rusher while maintaining your level of run defense with his athletic abilities. The floor for him would be a guy like Khristian Boyd where he just only makes marginal improvement to be nothing more than a depth guy on a defensive line rotation.

I think Griffith is more likely to start as a rotational player who could become a starter at some point in his career with improvement. He’s someone I would bet on with his work ethic, consistent motor, power, and explosiveness translating to the NFL. He offers run-stuffing capability immediately and could have pass-rushing upside with the right development.

Projection: Late Day 3/UDFA
Depot Draft Grade: 7.1 – 4th Round (Rotational Player)
Games Watched: at Stanford (2024), at Washington (2024), at Yale (2023), at Princeton (2023)