Ajani Cornelius, Oregon: 2025 NFL Draft Profile & Scouting Report

Cornelius was a recruit from Archbishop Stepinac High School in White Plains, N.Y. in the class of 2020

Oregon right tackle Ajani Cornelius impressed me during his time at Rhode Island, and he continued to excel after transferring to the West Coast. He’s not as gifted as his teammate Josh Conerly Jr. at left tackle, but Cornelius is squarely in contention for a top 80 selection in the 2025 NFL Draft.

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Ajani Cornelius, RT Oregon: 2025 NFL Draft Profile

Classification: Redshirt senior right tackle from Harlem, N.Y.

Background: Cornelius was a recruit from Archbishop Stepinac High School in White Plains, N.Y. in the class of 2020. He didn’t receive a star rating from 247Sports or a grade out of 100 from ESPN. Cornelius originally committed to Howard before flipping to Rhode Island. He transferred from Rhode Island to Oregon ahead of the 2023 season. He led Archbishop Stepinac to back-to-back state and league championships in 2018 and 2019. Cornelius lettered three times while playing both tackle and guard. He was a team captain as a senior and was named the CHSFLAAA 2019 Offensive Lineman of the Year.

Injuries & Off-Field: N/A

Awards: 2022 First Team All-CAA, 2023 Honorable Mention All-Pac-12

Pros: Experience playing guard in high school, sturdy upper body to absorb body blows, upper body channels power to overwhelm smaller rushers, punches channel pop, first punch to stall pass rush attempt on contact, powerful arm extensions, excellent grip strength, powerful lower half to anchor vs. power rushes, rushers struggle to power through his frame, unbothered by ZTF’s power (2023), drives defenders up and around the pocket, able to recovery when ZTF jumped early in his rush (2023), identifies and picks up stunts, core strength to turn and torque defenders, keeps legs driving in the run game, big time people mover on down blocks, comfortable working to the second level to pick off linebackers, a little heavy-footed in space but he can get out to lead block, looks for opportunities to maul defenders, looks for pancakes in the run game

Cons: Committed 19 penalties over the past two years, penalized five times vs. Washington State (2023), frequent false starter, arm length is good but not elite, inconsistent pad level, some waist bending leads to balance concerns in pass pro, waist bending makes him vulnerable to spin moves, lost to Jonah Elliss’ spin move (2023), first step lacks suddenness and explosiveness, allows defenders to cross his face into the B-gap, agility to redirect suddenly for B-gap counters is inconsistent, questionable foot speed, hand usage is underdeveloped, carries hands low in pass pro, initial hand placement is wide and sometimes high enough to hit defender’s helmet, needs to refit and replace hands more often, lacks counter to long-arm, struggles to control momentum when blocking on the move in space, misses blocks on gap pulls

Overview: Cornelius has almost exclusively played right tackle in college, but he has experience playing guard dating back to high school. He has a sturdy upper body to absorb body blows and channels impressive power through his arms and hands. Cornelius’ first punch is strong enough to make pass rush reps stall, and his grip strength really stands out on tape. The Rhode Island transfer’s powerful lower half allows him to anchor against power rushers who can’t play through his frame. His foot speed up the arc is inconsistent and is challenged by explosive or speed rushers, but he's quick enough to drive defenders up and around the pocket. Washington’s Zion Tupuola-Fetui got a few early jumps on plays in 2023, but Cornelius showcased the recovery speed to still win the reps. There’s room for his first step to improve because it isn’t explosive right now. The redshirt senior occasionally allows defenders to cross his face into the B-gap and doesn’t showcase the best agility to redirect and cut off these interior rushes. His arm length is questionable and causes issues because he lacks developed hand usage. Cornelius carries his hands too low in pass protection, and his initial placement is wide and high. This allows easy access to his chest. The New York native doesn’t refit or replace his hands quickly enough when they miss their mark. He also hasn’t showcased a consistent counter for the long-arm move against Pac-12 opponents. His hand usage and counters flashed more during his final season at Rhode Island than in 2023. Cornelius plays with a high pad level at times and resorts to waist bending. This can mess with his balance and make him vulnerable to spin moves. In the run game, the All-Pac-12 honorable mention has the core strength and power in his upper body to turn or torque defenders out of their gaps. He keeps his legs driving throughout blocks to generate displacement. Cornelius is comfortable climbing on combo blocks. Despite being somewhat heavy-footed in space, Cornelius has the mobility to pull and lead block. He is constantly looking for pancake opportunities against both defensive linemen and smaller second level defenders. Cornelius struggles to control his momentum in space, which leads to him overrunning blocks. He committed 19 penalties over the past two seasons, but five of his nine from this past year all came against Washington State. His penalty numbers for 2023 would look fine if you throw out that one game.

Overall, Cornelius showcased he belonged in his first season of Power Five football by making the most of his powerful frame. A lot of the technical elements of his game are still raw, but his success despite these flaws points toward long-term success with better coaching. Cornelius athletically might benefit from kicking into guard at the next level.

Role & Scheme Fit: Right tackle or right guard in an inside zone scheme

Round Projection: Third Round

Size: 6'5", 308 lbs. (Unofficial)

Submitted: 05-02-24