Grade

4th Round - 5th Round

2026 Draft Class

Nicholas Singleton

Status

DraftedR5 • P165Tennessee Titans

Penn State

6'0 1/4"

219lbs

Jun 5, 2026

Executive Summary

Nicholas Singleton is an explosive, downhill runner whose combination of burst, long-speed, physicality, and ball security gives him the tools to become a productive NFL back.

Strengths

Straight-Line Speed, Ball Security, and Athleticism / Frame

Weaknesses

Vision / Instincts, and Pass Protection

Full Scouting Report

15px

Vision / Instincts

Pros:

•Gets from point A to point B fast

•Very much an upfield runner

•Reads the backs of his blockers well

•Flashes patience behind the LOS

Cons:

•Not gonna look to get to the sideline for the house calls

•Not a cutback runner

•Really needs to look to the outside on inside zone runs if nothing is available

•Best when he is running laterally and can explode upfield on outside zones, and tosses, yet he rarely looks to do it

•Don’t see second-level manipulation enough

Burst / Acceleration / Agility

Pros:

•Gets upfield quickly with good burst

•Rapid accelerator that flip into a speed demon before you can blink

•Explosive runner

•Can juke out a defender every now and then

Cons:

•Really struggles to make guys miss when they go low on him

•Doesn’t string cuts together that well

•Overall, twitch and wiggle are not quite there

Straight-Line Speed

Pros:

•Rumored to run a 4.38-4.40ish unofficially

•Best when he gets to the outside and lets his speed take over

Cons:

•None

Physicality / Contact Balance

Pros:

•Runs low and absorbs contact well

•Bounces off of tackles

•Physical at the point of attack and can make running lanes when there aren’t any

•Falls forward consistently

•Finishes runs well and seeks out contact

•Above average in short yardage situations

Cons:

•Struggles to break tackles behind the LOS

•Thinks he can truck everyone when sometimes cutting to the outside and getting skinny is the better option

Athleticism / Frame

Pros:

•Good height at 6’0”

•Decent weight at 219lbs

•Home run speed, and is rumored to run a 4.38

•A ton of raw burst and athleticism

•Good hip mobility

Cons:

•Could fill out his frame by around 5 pounds

Ball Security

Pros:

•Super reliable with the ball

•0 fumbles in 2025

Cons:

•None

Receiving Ability

Pros:

•Finds soft spots in zones in the scramble drill and within the confines of the play

•Gets upfield quickly after the catch

•Really solid hands

•Very reliable, only had 1 drop on 29 targets

Cons:

•His one drop was a really bad concentration drop for a TD against Northwestern

Pass Protection

Pros:

•Shows decent effort

Cons:

•Hits with his head down, which leads to bad whiffs

•Bad overall technique

Games Watched:

•Week 4 vs ORE, Week 5 vs UCLA, Week 7 vs OSU, Week 6 vs NU, Week 8 vs OSU

Ideal Situation:

•Nicholas Singleton was expected to be one of the top RB prospects in the class before the 2025 season. Especially after he had 4 straight seasons of unmatched production in a split backfield. In 2024, he rushed for 1,099 on 172 carries and averaged 6.4 yards per carry. I thought he had the chance to go in the first round before the season. Nonetheless, he had a disappointing season in 2025, finishing with 549 rushing yards on 123 carries and 4.5 yards per attempt. One thing that never seems to be a problem in his career is finding the endzone. In 2025, he set his career-best with 15 TDs. Singleton has a ton of strengths in his game, and I was truly surprised he went so far in the draft for all the upside he has. Singleton has amazing burst and explosiveness. Plenty of physicality and trucking mentality. No problems with his frame or athleticism. His home run speed and 40-time are rumored to be a 4.35-4.39, which would put him near the top of his class. A ton of upside as a receiver, and he doesn’t fumble. Singleton isn’t perfect, as his vision, juking/cutting ability, and pass protection are extremely limited. Singleton can’t really create for himself or carve out his own running lanes. More often than not, if there wasn’t an immediate path in an inside zone run, he would wind up getting a max of 3 yards, and more often than not, it would be 1-2. Singleton struggled to find his way to the sideline or outside, where he is best. Something that Jadarian Price and Jeremiyah Love do extremely well. When an interior lineman or edge defender got into the backfield, you could almost always count on Singleton going down on first contact. Singleton is best on HB Toss, outside zone, gap schemes, and out in space, where he can rely on his speed and explosiveness to burst through the LOS and get out and run. The Tennessee Titans drafted Singleton in Round 5 with the 165th pick. Singleton instantly could solidify himself as a contributor in this backfield. It could be tough, as Tony Pollard and Tyjae Spears already had a good combo in the backfield. In 2026, I could see his attempts falling to around 30-40. In 2027, I could easily see a breakout season. Tyjae Spears and Tony Pollard are free agents in 2027 (unless the Titans pick up Spears 5th option). Pollard will hit the big 30, and I don’t see the Titans resigning him. I do believe Singleton will be RB1 next season, or at least be a two-headed backfield with Spears. For now, I think he will have to try to find space as a red-zone rusher and 3rd-down back. It could be hard for him to be a 3rd down back, as his pass blocking is pretty hard to watch, but I think it will improve, and he was already a tremendous receiver on screens and dump-offs. I could see fantasy managers getting mad at him because I do anticipate he will take red-zone snaps away from Pollard, and Spears both have less weight, muscle mass, and physicality than Singleton, who is sure to score at least 4-5 rushing TDs this season. Overall, Singleton, if he can improve his vision and pass blocking, could easily find himself taking over this backfield as the primary ball carrier, as he is only 22 years old.

Ratings:

•Vision / Instincts - 5.5/10

•Burst / Acceleration / Agility - 8.0/10

•Physicality / Contact Balance - 8.7/10

•Athleticism / Frame - 8.8/10

•Straight-Line Speed - 8.8/10

•Receiving Ability - 8.4/10

•Ball Security - 9.1/10

•Pass Protection - 5.5/10

Total: 80.5/100 Late 2nd or Early 3rd

Combine Testing

Height

6'1"

Weight

219lbs

63thAbove Average

40-Yard Dash

—

Vertical

—

Bench

—

Broad Jump

—

Three-Cone

—

Shuttle

—

DPH Proprietary Scores

Frame Score

Measures a prospect's physical build and size relative to historical NFL positional standards.

DPH Athlete

Diamond Prospects' proprietary athletic score that evaluates a player's overall athletic profile using combine testing and positional percentiles.

Total Score

The combined athletic evaluation generated from Frame Score and DPH Athlete Score.

Combine Year: 2026 • Data from DPH Combine Database

Andrés Griñe

Founder of DiamondProspects and Head NFL Scout View Full Bio

I am an Assistant in Player Personnel/Scouting for Washington State Football with over six years of experience scouting NFL prospects and evaluating talent. I previously covered high school baseball as a writer for NMPreps and now run DiamondProspects, where I publish scouting reports, prospect evaluations, and draft analysis. I am currently a junior pursuing a degree in Sports Management and am originally from Albuquerque, New Mexico.

Comments

Subscribers only — join for free to leave a comment.

No comments yet. Be the first to share your take!