Oregon’s 2024-25 football team will go down as one of the most talented rosters in program history. As a result, a program-best 12 Ducks were invited to the 2025 NFL Scouting Combine in February, where attendees made their case for selection in April 24-26’s NFL Draft.
With the 2025 NFL Draft only 10 days away, it’s time to count down the 10 Ducks who I think have the best chance of being drafted. This series will work backwards, starting with probable Day 3 picks and ending with the Ducks most likely to be first-round selections. Today, we begin my draft countdown with offensive tackle Ajani Cornelius.
Cornelius, a fifth-year senior from Harlem, NY, built up a wealth of experience during four full seasons as a collegiate starter. Though he won two state championships and league titles with Archbishop Stepinac, Cornelius was an unranked prospect coming out of high school.
He ultimately landed at the University of Rhode Island, an FCS school. He redshirted the 2020-2021 season before spending two seasons as the Rams’ right tackle, where he’d earn first-team all-conference honors as a sophomore.
Unsatisfied with FCS competition, Cornelius decided to transfer before his junior year. This time, Cornelius got FBS attention. 247Sports listed Cornelius as the No. 40 overall transfer and the third-ranked offensive tackle. However, Oregon offensive line coach A’Lique Terry saw even more in the 6’5, 315-pound Cornelius.
“As soon as you started to watch the film, it was clear that (Cornelius) might be literally the best offensive lineman in college football,” Terry told CBS Sports.
Head coach Dan Lanning clearly felt a similar way, and brought the Cornelius family out to Eugene for a visit. A commitment to the Ducks soon followed.
“It just felt like home,” Cornelius said of Eugene and the Oregon football program.
Cornelius made that feeling stick by locking up Oregon’s starting right tackle spot for the 2023 season. He started all 14 games – 899 offensive snaps – on his way to an All-Pac-12 honorable mention. He allowed no sacks and only one QB hit, which resulted in an impressive 85.3 PFF Pass Block Grade.
Cornelius could have reasonably departed Oregon for the NFL Draft as a junior. As a result, his decision to return to Eugene for a final season turned some heads. Fox Sports Analyst Jake Butt listed Cornelius at No. 18 in a list of the Big Ten’s best players ahead of the 2024 season.
Unfortunately, Cornelius saw less success in his senior season. Defending the blindside of left-handed transfer quarterback Dillon Gabriel clearly required an adjustment period, as Cornelius allowed two sacks and earned two illegal formation penalties in the season opener against FCS opponent Idaho.
Cornelius wouldn’t allow another sack until the Rose Bowl against Ohio State in January, but his overall numbers dropped noticeably in 2024. He finished the season with three sacks and four hits allowed, which dropped his PFF Pass Block grade to a less impressive 73.4.
Analysts like the NFL’s Lance Zierlein and PFF’s Mason Cameron listed such struggles in pass protection as the primary weakness in Cornelius’ game. Both analysts project Cornelius as a Day 3 pick who will likely find more professional success as a guard.
“He can cover up defenders with size but is frequently out-leveraged at the point of attack,” Zierlein wrote. “His average body control and slide quickness should be mitigated in smaller spaces but those issues will still be concerning against explosive interior rushers.”
Zierlein projected Cornelius as a sixth or seventh-round pick whose ceiling may be that of a backup. Cameron also projected Cornelius as a Day 3 pick, but noted his upside as a run-blocker, particularly as a puller. Switching to guard would maximize Cornelius’ ability as a pulling blocker.
Personally, I like Cornelius as a Day 3 pick and a future guard. His size and frame (33.5inch arms) are good enough for tackle, but he lacks the hand and foot quickness needed to reliably deal with the NFL’s premier edge threats. His late struggles against elite competition (he averaged a 43.4 PFF Pass Block grade in the 2024 postseason) are indication enough of that.
However, it’s worth noting that Cornelius found three years of consistent success with right-handed quarterbacks. His senior season – while slightly less successful – involved blocking for a left-hander against Big Ten defenses, the stiffest competition of his career.
It’s also worth noting that Cornelius has already excelled in the face of doubters. Five years ago, Cornelius was an unknown redshirt freshman on an FCS program. Now, he’s got four years of starting experience, two of which came for one of the country’s leading college football programs.
Cornelius’ future may lie at tackle, or it may lie at guard. However, it almost certainly lies in the National Football League. Cornelius has displayed the ability to contribute across four seasons of college football. No matter where he goes, what position he plays, or how much time he gets as a starter, I expect to see Cornelius contribute as a professional for the foreseeable future.
Tomorrow, Parsons’ Profiles will examine another transfer Duck who’s hoping their contributions at the line of scrimmage have earned them a spot in the NFL.
