Kaleb Jackson RB North Carolina |
NFL Draft Profile & Scouting Report
| Jersey: #28 ROLE: DUAL-ROLE Back | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Last Updated: 08/03/2026 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Draft Year: 2027 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| FORTY time: 4.43 seconds (87%*) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Age: 21.2 DOB: 05/28/2005 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Jersey: #28 | |
| ROLE: DUAL-ROLE Back | |
| Last Updated: 08/03/2026 | |
| Draft Year: 2027 | |
| Forty time: 4.43 seconds (87%*) | |
| Age: 21.2 DOB: 05/28/2005 | |
| Overall Rating: |
67.3 / 100
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| Average rating of opposition Defense player has faced | ||
| Defense Rating: |
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76% |
| Click the links below to view how player ranks vs other prospects. | ||
| Rushing: |
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55% |
| Break Tackles: |
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50% |
| Receiving/Hands: |
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59% |
| Pass Blocking: |
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73% |
| Run Blocking: |
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46% |
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DRAFT PROJECTION:
UDFA
Overall Rank:
#679
Position rank:
#30 (RB)
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| College Games: 25 College Snaps: 232 | ||
ESPN RATING: 83/100
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247 RATING: 92/100
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RIVALS RATING: 5.8 (95%)
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| Player Comparison* (Similarity level) | ||
|---|---|---|
| Vavae Malepeai - USC |
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65% |
| Chris Evans - Michigan |
|
55% |
| Jermar Jefferson - Oregon State |
|
54% |
Draft Profile: Bio
As a freshman in 2023, Jackson ran for 165 yards and four touchdowns on 31 carries for LSU, averaging 5.3 yards per attempt and scoring twice in a 62-yard outing against Grambling. The Baton Rouge native had signed with the Tigers out of Liberty Magnet High School as a four-star recruit rated among the top running backs in Louisiana.In 2024 Jackson appeared in all 13 games, carrying 44 times for 150 yards while catching six passes for 46 yards and contributing on special teams. His role shrank further in 2025, when he logged seven carries for 16 yards and five receptions for 33 yards across four games, including a three-catch, 23-yard day against Southeastern Louisiana and a 10-yard run at Ole Miss.
In December 2025 Jackson announced he would enter the transfer portal, ending his LSU career with 331 rushing yards on 82 carries over three seasons and leaving with two years of eligibility remaining.
Scouting Report: Strengths
- Elite timed speed at 234 pounds, a size-velocity combination the league always times twice.
- Protection tape ranks among the best of any back in this group.
- Receiving marks held respectable across his limited career chances.
- Former top-100 recruit still carrying the frame that earned the billing.
Scouting Report: Weaknesses
- Seven carries in 2025; the season was a roster formality.
- His career rushing tape sits near the bottom of the position.
- Three LSU seasons never produced more than a bit part.
- Entered the December portal without a confirmed destination.
- The tools-versus-tape gap has now lasted his entire college career.
Scouting Report: Summary
The measurables read like a second-round pick: 234 pounds carrying elite timed speed, protection tape among the best of any back in this group, and respectable receiving marks whenever the chances arrived. The career reads like a clerical entry, seven carries in 2025, three LSU seasons without more than a bit part, and a December portal entry that has not yet produced a confirmed destination.Whatever explains the gap, scheme fit, depth charts, development, it has now lasted his entire college career, and the rushing tape that do exist sit near the bottom of the position. A big, fast back who blocks is the most employable profile in any backfield room, which makes the absence of carries the single strangest line in this tier of the class.
Somewhere out there is a coaching staff convinced it can be the one that finally unlocks this, because the protection skill alone is worth a camp look on its own merits and the size-speed combination is comfortably worth two more. A 2026 landing spot with real, sustained carry volume would give the league its first actual evidence either way; failing that, the projection stays undrafted, with a pro-day stopwatch guaranteed to briefly and tantalizingly reopen a file that his own game tape keeps quietly closing.
How other scouting services rate Kaleb Jackson (Overall Rank)
All Scouts AverageOverall Rank
536.0
All Scouts AveragePosition Rank
31.0
*Percentile Ranking in Player's Position Group (NFL Combine Historical Data): This percentile reflects how a player's specific statistics rank
in comparison to historical performances at the NFL Combine, specifically within their position group. A higher percentile indicates a better performance.
For instance, being in the 90th percentile for a particular stat means the player outperformed 90% of their peers in that category.
*Similarity Percentage: This percentage is calculated based on a comprehensive analysis of various factors, including height, weight, 40-yard dash times, on-field performance statistics, and overall player rating. The analysis is conducted against our database of draft prospects from 2021 to 2023. This similarity score helps in evaluating how closely a current prospect aligns with past prospects. It is important to note, however, that this score reflects similarities based on college production and attributes, and does not account for eventual success or performance in the NFL.
*Similarity Percentage: This percentage is calculated based on a comprehensive analysis of various factors, including height, weight, 40-yard dash times, on-field performance statistics, and overall player rating. The analysis is conducted against our database of draft prospects from 2021 to 2023. This similarity score helps in evaluating how closely a current prospect aligns with past prospects. It is important to note, however, that this score reflects similarities based on college production and attributes, and does not account for eventual success or performance in the NFL.