Nose tackle was widely considered one of the biggest holes on the Las Vegas Raiders’ roster heading into the 2026 NFL draft. However, the Raiders didn’t address the position until the seventh round, selecting NC State defensive tackle Brandon Cleveland.
Despite his draft status, the 229th pick has a unique opportunity to have a role in Las Vegas right away or at least early on. The defense could use a gap-filler in the middle of the line, and the competition should be wide open during training camp.
But beyond not having a proven player for that role, Cleveland is a stout run defender and is coming off a good campaign for the Wolfpack to help solve the Raiders’ problem. He earned a solid 75.2 run defense grade from Pro Football Focus and recorded 19 ‘defensive stops’ against the run, which ranked tied for fourth among ACC defensive tackles. Additionally, that was the same amount as the Kansas City Chiefs’ first-round pick Peter Woods, and Cleveland had a 1.5-yard average depth of tackle as a run defender in 2025.
The tape backs that up as the NC State product shows heavy hands to defeat blocks and make plenty of plays near the line of scrimmage.
In full disclosure, Cleveland’s best game last season came in Week 4 against Duke, which is where the majority of our clips come from. So, rewatch that game if you’re looking to sell yourself on the seventh-round pick.
He lines up over the guard on this play, but is going to slant into the A-gap and take on the center while the WILL linebacker blitzes in the B-gap. Post-snap, Cleveland attacks the center, is quick to get his hands up and keeps his feet moving to reset the line of scrimmage. That allows him to play in the offense’s backfield and get extension on the block to gain control of the rep.
While engaged with the center, the defensive tackle shades into the weakside A-gap to take that rushing lane away from the running back. Then, when the back cuts to the other side of the formation, Cleveland can shed the block and cross the center’s face to make the tackle near the line of scrimmage.
He’s technically not playing nose tackle here since he started the play in a 2-technique, but the NC State product ends up getting to the middle of the defensive line post-snap and does a great job executing a two-gap technique.
Against outside zone runs, the 6-foot-3, 307-pounder is susceptible to getting reached or scooped out of his gap due to his limited lateral movement skills and overall athleticism. But when he has a linebacker outside of him to help protect the edge and allow Cleveland to attack the offensive lineman inside of him instead of having to run his feet laterally, he can play to his strengths and be effective.
On this rep, the seventh-rounder lines up as a 2i-technique and is reading the guard initially. But once he sees the guard work wide, he shifts his eyes and hands to take on the center. That’s where Cleveland’s strength and heavy hands come into play, allowing him to reset the line of scrimmage and cut the field in half to force the running back to go backside.
That sets up one of the Raiders’ undrafted free agent signings, Cian Slone, to make the tackle as the unblocked read man on the backside of Miami’s read option.
Here, we’ll get to see Cleveland as a true 0-technique nose tackle and do a solid job of executing a two-gap technique.
Duke runs inside zone and leaves the center one-on-one with Cleveland. The latter’s upper-body strength and knockback power allow him to gain control of the block, helping him sit at the line of scrimmage and be a boulder in the trenches. Similar to the first rep, the defensive tackle shows a presence in one A-gap to take away that rushing lane and then crosses the center’s face to make the tackle in the adjacent A-gap.
This clip does highlight a potential concern with the NC State product, though. He has below-average arm length at 32⅜ inches, which is in the 23rd percentile for a defensive tackle, according to MockDraftable. That can make it tough to escape blocks consistently, and the offensive lineman stays engaged here to prevent Cleveland from making a clean tackle.
That’s the difference between a zero- or one-yard gain and a gain of about four or five yards. So, it’s going to be very important for him to keep his hands tight and inside of the offensive lineman’s, as the margin for error is smaller in that department with shorter arms.
This time, we’ll get another look at some excellent block recognition and at Cleveland playing nose tackle.
The Blue Devils run counter to the wide side of the field, which puts the center on a down block against the backside 3-technique defensive tackle while the left guard blocks down on the nose. Once Cleveland sees the center work inside, he shifts his eyes and hands to the guard. That’s where his strength and power come into play, winning at the point of attack by resetting the line of scrimmage.
Now, the nose tackle does get some unintentional help since the 4i-technique defensive end is getting washed inside pretty hard by the double team from the left tackle and tight end. That, plus the linebacker beating the pulling tackle to the spot, helps him make the tackle. But all of that doesn’t matter if Cleveland doesn’t win at the point of attack, and this was a dominant win against the guard.
To be clear, Cleveland is a little light for a typical nose tackle, weighing in below 320 pounds. That impacts how consistently he can anchor and avoid getting pushed out of his gap against double teams and combo blocks. However, he did show a handful of good reps to build on in that department, and the clip above comes against quality competition.
Miami is running duo where the slot receiver motions across the formation and helps protect the edge, so the play call essentially turns into one-back power where the receiver serves as the puller. That means the nose tackle has to take on a combo block from the center (Atlanta Falcons’ UDFA signing James Brockermeyer) and the right guard (New York Jets sixth-round pick Anez Cooper).
Cleveland does a great job of attacking the center, playing with a wide base and bracing for contact on this rep. That allows him to stay in his gap and avoid getting washed inside when the guard comes to help the center.
Once the guard releases to the second level, it’s just a one-on-one block against the center. Since the defender prioritized attacking the man he’s lined up across from, he’s in position to lock out the blocker and escape to make the tackle when the running back tries to cut up the field.
Overall, nose tackle is such a wide-open competition for the Raiders that Cleveland has a legitimate shot to contribute as a rookie. The recent addition of Benito Jones makes that more difficult, but Jones has been in the NFL since 2020 and hasn’t posted a PFF run defense grade above 50 since his rookie year, when he only played 47 total snaps and posted a 52.3 mark.
Also, the rest of the competition is 2025 sixth-round pick JJ Pegues, a guy who has barely played football in Laki Tasi, and Adam Butler, who is more of a pass-rushing nose tackle than an every-down player. So, if the seventh-round pick can prove himself as a run defender in training camp, he could get a lot of playing time in the fall.
