Cashius Howell given unsettling designation by Pro Football Focus for 2026 NFL Draft

The 2025 season for Texas A&M's best pure pass-rusher, Cashius Howell, could not have gone much better than it did— no one thought coming into the year that he would lead the conference in sacks and earn the Defensive Player of the Year award, but that's exactly what happened.

Coming out of Bowling Green, Howell was not exactly a heralded transfer prospect, despite leading the MAC in sacks during his final year in the conference. Yet, thanks to two years at Texas A&M under Mike Elko's development, Howell has developed into a prospective first-round selection in the upcoming NFL Draft— quite the honor for a player who didn't crack the top 2,000 recruiting rankings out of high school.

And yet, there is still a little bit of doubt on the part of some draft experts when it comes to Howell. A recent list put together by Pro Football Focus's Max Chadwick shows that Howell will still have some things to overcome as he looks to break into the league next year.

Cashius Howell named a top "boom-or-bust" prospect for 2026 NFL Draft by Pro Football Focus

Howell appeared on a list of "boom-or-bust" prospects put out by PFF recently, alongside players like Ohio State's Arvell Reese, Georgia's Zach Branch, and Alabama's Ty Simpson.

The reason given for Howell's appearance on the list was his size, the same thing that kept him from being a top recruit coming out of high school. PFF credits him as 6'2" and 248 LBs, which would certainly make him undersized for an NFL edge defender.

However, this would put him right around the same size as Micah Parsons, who is listed as 6'3" and 250 LBs. Parsons has done well for himself as an every-down player, though his strength is obviously pass rushing, and Howell could develop the same way.

That said, I don't think the physical measurements here will do Howell any favors in the leadup to the draft, and this could be a bellwether of where things are headed on that front. After the season, people have four months to talk themselves into and out of prospects, so hopefully Howell's tape will continue to speak for itself here.