Keldric Faulk

Summary

Keldric Faulk (20 years old) is a strong defensive end who has played his entire college career at Auburn. In 2025, Faulk recorded 45 total tackles, 13.0 tackles for loss, and 8.5 sacks, earning him First-Team All-SEC recognition and All-America consideration, building on Freshman All-SEC honors earlier in his career as he quickly developed into a full-time starter. Faulk has maintained solid academic standing and is widely viewed as a high-upside, team-first competitor whose length, power, and practice intensity consistently draw praise from coaches, with no publicly reported significant off-field incidents. Teammates frequently point to his rapid physical development and willingness to embrace coaching as indicators of his maturity despite his age. From an injury standpoint, Faulk has been durable across his career, with no major injuries causing extended absences with 32 consecutive starts since his freshman season.

Strengths

• Vines for Arms: Wins early with long 34 3/8” arms and separation ability and natural knock-back. When he locks out, tackles struggle to get into his chest. Frame and power translate well to kicking inside on passing downs against guards.

• True Edge-Setter: Plays square, squeezes gaps, and doesn’t give up his outside shoulder easily. Understands rush lane integrity. Strong-side run defender right now, not just projection.

• Bricks for Hands: When he lands first strike, you see visible jolt. Can reset the line of scrimmage and collapse tight edges.

• Linear Power Builds momentum through contact and can forklift tackles backward with a long-arm or inside hand stab. Rarely uprooted by tight ends and maintains base and absorbs down blocks without caving.

Weaknesses

• Flexibility: Wins more vertically than around the arc and doesn’t consistently flatten tight enough to stress high-level tackles. When tackles redirect or short-set, he can look a half-beat stiff adjusting his path.

• Ramp Up: More buildup power than twitch. Tackles can get into position before feeling true speed stress. Projects more as a hand-in-dirt 4-3 end than a stand-up 3-4 OLB with coverage flexibility.

• Stagnant: If the initial long-arm/power rush stalls, he doesn’t always layer a quick counter to finish the rep. Needs a consistent secondary (cross-chop, inside spin, club-rip sequencing) to become more than a power-compression edge.

• Physical vs. Production: The frame suggests dominant disruption, but snap-to-snap takeover stretches haven’t always matched that ceiling.

Outlook

Faulk projects as a long, powerful edge defender with a thick frame, heavy hands, and the ability to set a firm edge while collapsing the pocket with strength and effort. He fits best in 4-3 or hybrid multiple fronts that value strong-side defensive ends who can play through tight ends, reduce inside on passing downs, and win with power-to-speed rather than purely relying on bend around the arc. Faulk is trending as a Round 1 prospect with realistic top-25 upside in the 2026 NFL Draft, particularly because of his size, age, and developmental ceiling.

Pro Comparison: Travon Walker

Team Fits: LV, CAR, CLE, SF, TEN