NFL Draft 2026 Scouting Report for Notre Dame S Jalen Stroman

Jalen Stroman has a physical mindset and plays downhill with aggression, throwing his body around with reckless abandon. He does his best work in the box, as he prefers to be around the action and sift through traffic around the football.

Stroman showed solid man-coverage skills against tight ends at the Senior Bowl and can drop into a big nickel look.

The 3-star recruit and transfer from Virginia Tech had limited ball production throughout his collegiate career, but he started to showcase more downhill instincts at Notre Dame with his first collegiate interception.

Dan has covered the Kansas City Chiefs and the NFL Draft since 2019 while contributing for RGR Football. Most recently, he spent the 2025 draft cycle at The Draft Network and is entering his first season in our scouting department.

Where He Wins

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— Click-and-close downhill hitter with bad intentions. Excels with his eyes on the quarterback to read and react to the play.

— Identifies run plays quickly and triggers to the football.

— Best from a two-high or box alignment. Has a good handle on maintaining zone discipline and reading out half-field route concepts.

— Man coverage leads with physicality. Takes on bigger receivers and tight ends as a big nickel.

— Plays with exceptional competitive edge and flies around the field, particularly to drive through ball-carriers and take on blocks.

Areas of Improvement

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— Aggressive playstyle yields mixed results.

— Needs to clean up tackling technique. Often throws his body at the ball-carrier, leads with his head or dives at the ankles.

— Lacks the overall range to play center field and when asked to turn and run to make a play on the ball. Struggles to locate the ball in the air. Doesn't have the ball skills to consistently impact pass-catchers.

— Takes too many false steps when attempting to anticipate where the ball is going. Can be taken out of the play if the quarterback holds it and moves his eyes.

Grade, Rank and Pro Comparison

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GRADE: 6.4 (Developmental Prospect — 5th Round)

COMPARABLE GRADE: S Dan Jackson, Georgia (6.4 in 2025), S Tykee Smith, Georgia (6.5 in 2024), S Antonio Johnson, Texas A&M (6.4 in 2023)

OVERALL RANK: 181

POSITION RANK: S16

PRO COMPARISON: Beau Brade

Measurables and Testing Data

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Height: 6'1"
Weight: 201
Hand Size: N/A
Arm Length: N/A
Wingspan: N/A

40-yard dash: N/A
10-yard split: N/A
Vertical: N/A
Broad: N/A
3 cone: N/A
Shuttle: N/A
Bench: N/A

Workout numbers and data will be added at a later date.