Rayshaun
Benny.
Rayshaun
Benny.
Michigan· 6'3"· 298 lb
R7 · #250 · Baltimore Ravens"A length-and-anchor rotational base end in the Broderick Washington mold: the arms, gap discipline and scheme familiarity make him a dependable early-down piece from day one, and the absence of any pass-rush production is what caps him as a two-down role player."Pre-draft read
This interior defender aligns from nose to five-technique and plays with hands inside and eyes in the backfield. He utilizes his length to extend and keep blockers off his frame. He reads pull or fold blocks before committing to a gap, and against double teams, he anchors and occupies two bodies, resisting displacement. He is a reliable tackler at the point of attack, maintaining gap integrity, and his primary individual move is a quick swim.
He does not offer a pass-rush element; his first step lacks burst, and his bull rush stalls when his pads rise. On wide zone plays, he can be reach-blocked if his initial movement is lateral rather than vertical. Without a counter if his swim move fails, he primarily absorbs blocks, indicating a limited array of pass-rush techniques.
One-gap 4-3 penetrating front
Rotational two-gap run defender Year 1 with a ceiling as an early-down starter at DT in both even and odd fronts.
Benny is a poor fit for a two-high safety scheme where the defensive line is asked to generate organic pressure in four-man rushes against pass-heavy teams.
Benny will be a valuable asset to run schemes that allow interior linemen to be situationally moved to take on different roles along the defensive front.
2026 NFL DRAFT HIGHLIGHTS: DL Rayshaun Benny | Michigan Football
The conference-produced draft cut-up and the cleanest single look at the hand usage, the extension with 33 3/8-inch arms and the work against doubles.
Rayshaun Benny 2025 Highlights
The only full starting season of his career condensed: 13 starts, 35 tackles and the third-team All-Big Ten tape.
Rayshaun Benny 2023 Highlights
His most disruptive per-snap year on the national championship defense, where the 5.5 tackles for loss came in a rotational role behind three future high picks.
Rayshaun Benny 2024 Highlights
The post-title season Jesse Minter said the fibula injury lingered through - useful for judging how much explosiveness came back and how quickly.
New Baltimore Ravens DL Rayshaun Benny Highlights - 2026 Panini Senior Bowl
The Mobile one-on-ones that made him a Senior Bowl riser, against better competition than the Big Ten regularly gave him.
Michigan Defensive Lineman Rayshaun Benny Meets the Media at the NFL Combine
His Indianapolis podium session, from the Combine where he measured in but completed no timed athletic drills.
Inside the Ravens' Draft Call to Rayshaun Benny
The draft call at No. 250, with Eric DeCosta describing the five-technique frame and the staff familiarity from Michigan.
He projects as a rotational base-down interior defender, offering reliable gap integrity. His length and anchoring ability against double teams provide a clear role for schemes prioritizing blocker occupation and inside run defense. His fit within a defensive system that values run-stuffing over consistent pass-rush production is key to his NFL projection.
He spent several seasons in Michigan's deep defensive line rotation, contributing to a national championship in 2023, before earning a full-time starting role in 2025. In his senior year, he started 13 games and collected third-team All-Big Ten honors. He sustained a fibula injury in the 2023 Rose Bowl that reportedly lingered into the 2024 season, limiting his contribution in his first year with significant playing time.
Concerns centered on his limited pass-rush production, with only 4.0 career sacks, and absence from athletic testing at the Combine, which left questions regarding his functional athleticism unanswered. Despite being viewed as high as a fourth-round pick on some pre-draft boards after a strong Senior Bowl week, he was selected by the Baltimore Ravens as the 250th overall pick, benefiting from existing coaching staff familiarity.
- 01
Interior Length
Rare 33 3/8-inch arms and 81 5/8-inch wingspan allow him to extend and keep blockers off his frame effectively.
- 02
Anchor Ability
Anchors effectively against double teams, resisting displacement and consistently occupying space.
- 03
Gap Discipline
Displays strong gap discipline, remaining assignment-sound and rarely out of position against run actions.
- 04
Reliable Tackler
A reliable tackler who recorded 107 career tackles, securing plays at the point of attack.
- 05
Senior Bowl Performance
Showed quickness and power in one-on-one drills, noted as a winner at defensive tackle during Senior Bowl week.
- 01
Limited Pass Rush
Lacks a consistent pass rush presence, totaling only 4.0 sacks and 12.0 tackles for loss across 54 career games.
- 02
First Step Burst
Exhibits a heavy first step and lacks closing burst, causing his bull rush to stall against linemen.
- 03
Untested Athleticism
Did not complete any timed or measured drills at the 2026 NFL Combine, leaving athletic questions unanswered.
- 04
Lateral Movement
Can be reach-blocked on wide zone concepts when his initial movement is lateral rather than vertical.
| Yr | Team | G | Tkl | Sk | Int | PD | FF |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | Michigan | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2022 | Michigan | 13 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2023 | Michigan | 14 | 27 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 2024 | Michigan | 11 | 29 | 1.5 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 2025 | Michigan | 13 | 35 | 1.5 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| Career | — | 54 | 104 | 4 | 0 | 5 | 0 |
A dash means the figure is not published by a source we trust — never a zero we invented.
Honors
- CFP National Champion (2023) and honorary captain for the title game after his Rose Bowl injury
- Third-team All-Big Ten (2025)
- Three consecutive Big Ten championships during his tenure (2021, 2022, 2023)
- Shared in six Michigan defensive player of the week honors (2025)
- Named one of the biggest winners at defensive tackle at the 2026 Senior Bowl by Dane Brugler
- Four-star recruit and the No. 6 overall prospect in the state of Michigan in the 2021 class
- Two-time Detroit News Dream Team selection (2019, 2020)
The realistic path, and a Ravens precedent: a late-round interior lineman who makes his living on base downs, holds his gap against doubles, never posts numbers, and plays six or seven years because the run defense is always trustworthy.
The ceiling, and the comp ESPN's Matt Miller actually floated on draft weekend: a quick interior penetrator who grows into a full-time starter and a double-digit-sack season once the pass-rush plan catches up to the length. Aspirational rather than projected.
The floor, and another Michigan interior precedent: a well-coached, well-liked defensive tackle whose lack of pass-rush juice keeps him on practice squads and preseason rosters without a regular-season role.
Everything above is the pre-draft evaluation. This section is what actually happened — updated year over year.
The Ravens did not draft a stranger. The staff knew the player well from his college tape. Baltimore valued the 6-3, 305-pound frame as a five-technique body that is difficult to find and described the pick as plug-and-play, which is unusual language for the 250th selection and is really a statement about how little projection is involved when your staff has already coached the player for three years.
The fall itself is easy to explain and slightly harder to justify. He was buried, then he was hurt, then he was good, then he did not test. CFBD frames the good part clearly: the 2023 Michigan defense he came up on allowed a -0.009 PPA with a 34.3 percent success rate, a 19.9 percent stuff rate and 21.5 percent havoc, the best combination in the country and the environment in which his 5.5 tackles for loss were earned.
By 2025, with Graham, Grant and Jenkins all gone and Benny finally the starter, the same defense allowed a 0.113 PPA with a 41.8 percent success rate, its front-seven havoc down to 10.0 percent and its passing-downs PPA allowed spiking to 0.385 against -0.005 on standard downs. Read carefully, that split is the whole scouting report: this front still stopped normal-down runs at a 2.642 line-yards clip, and it could not get to the quarterback when everybody knew a pass was coming.
Benny was the most responsible player on the first half of that sentence and part of the problem in the second. What Baltimore is buying is a rotational base-down interior body who knows the calls, holds a gap against doubles, and does not have to be a pass rusher on a defensive line built around other people doing that. ESPN's Matt Miller floated Nnamdi Madubuike as a player-type comp, which is generous and worth noting because the Ravens genuinely had a Madubuike-shaped hole. The realistic version is smaller and still useful: a fifty-snap-a-week run defender who plays six years because he is never in the wrong place.