Tahj Brooks 2025 NFL Draft Profile

Tahj Brooks quietly had one of the most productive running back careers in Big 12 history, and his scouting report evaluates how productive he might be in the NFL.

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2025 NFL Draft Scouting Report and Film Analysis of Texas Tech Running Back Tahj Brooks

Measurables:

Height- 5’9″

Weight- 214 lbs

Player Background:

Brooks attended Manor High School in Texas, where he ran for over 4,400 yards and 65 total touchdowns during his high school career. He was a three-star recruit and committed to Texas Tech, where he immediately made an impact, appearing in all 10 games as a freshman in 2020. Brooks only appeared in nine games with four starts as a sophomore but still led the team in rushing yards with 568 yards. He became Texas Tech’s workhorse running back in 2023 and had a breakout season rushing for the fourth most yards in the country with 1,538 rushing yards. Brooks followed up his impressive 2023 season with another 1,500+ rushing yards season with 18 total touchdowns to earn Second Team All-Big 12 honors. He earned Academic All-Big 12 honors four times and finished his career fourth all-time in Big 12 career rushing yards.

Strengths:

Brooks is a very patient runner with excellent vision. He patiently lets plays develop, makes good jump cuts, and consistently finds cutback lanes. Brooks was an incredibly efficient runner at Texas Tech and ran for over 100 yards in every game in 2024. He does a great job at consistently making positive plays on every carry and finding ways to create extra yards on plays. He is a powerful runner who runs hard and low. Brooks has a good contact balance and is able to pick up yards consistently after contact.

In the passing game, Brooks is strong in pass protection and has reliable hands as a receiver. He was incredibly productive at the college level for multiple seasons, rushing for over 1,500 yards in back-to-back seasons. He also tested really well in agility drills at the combine with a 4.06 20-yard shuttle time and 6.90 3-cone drill time.

Weaknesses:

Brooks doesn’t possess great breakaway speed and has just average burst. While Brooks is an incredibly efficient running back, he lacks a high amount of explosive plays. He isn’t a highly dangerous running back in the open field and isn’t able to consistently make defenders miss with great elusiveness in open space. 

While Brooks has reliable hands, he is not a big play threat in the receiving game and is mostly a check-down or screen pass target. He is an older high-mileage running back prospect. Brooks had 879 carries and 981 touches during his five-year college career and took a lot of hard hits with his physical play style. 

Potential Team Fits:

Baltimore Ravens

Dallas Cowboys

Las Vegas Raiders

NFL Projection:

Brooks has the potential to be a great value pick for an NFL team on Day 3 of the draft. His lack of home run ability and high number of carries will likely cause him to fall later in the draft in a stacked running back draft class. However, his vision, patience, footwork, power, balance, and consistency can add a lot of value to an NFL team. He has the potential to be a very good starting running back or great RB2 for an NFL team.

Prospect Grade:

Late Third Round