Craig Woodson 2025 NFL Draft Profile

Craig Woodson is a safety prospect in the 2025 NFL Draft out of Cal. Woodson enters the draft with loads of experience after spending six years with the Golden Bears. In college, Woodson showed the versatility and production to earn himself a spot on an NFL roster. However, he doesn’t project as cleanly to the NFL due to some reservations with his size and athleticism as a safety.

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Craig Woodson 2025 NFL Draft Scouting Report

Measurables:

Height: 6’0″
Weight: 200 pounds
Arms: 30 1/2″
Hands: 8 3/4″
40-yard dash: 4.45 seconds
Vertical jump: 36″
Broad jump: 10’7″

Craig Woodson Background

Woodson made his way to Cal way back in 2019. In his first season at Cal, Woodson appeared in four games and redshirted. He also played four games in the COVID-shortened 2020 season. Woodson would then miss the 2021 season due to a knee injury he suffered in the offseason. Finally, 2022 is when Woodson was able to establish himself as a standout player. Over his final three collegiate seasons, Woodson totaled 226 tackles, five interceptions, and seven pass breakups in 38 games. He earned All-Pac 12 Honorable Mention selections in 2022 and 2023, and culminated his career with a Third-Team All-ACC honor in 2024.

Strengths

On tape, there were a lot of things to like about Woodson at the collegiate level. For starters, he played all over the field on Cal’s defense and was productive regardless of his alignment. According to PFF, Woodson played 335 snaps as a free safety, 266 as a box safety, and 146 as a slot cornerback. Having the experience and instincts to succeed in multiple alignments is always a boost to a prospect’s draft stock. Rather than being drafted to play in a specific scheme, any team that needs help in the secondary can draft Woodson, knowing he has experience all over the place.

Though Craig Woodson enters the draft as a bit of a Swiss army knife, he is most suited to be more of a box safety in the NFL. He can play deep or in the slot, but his tackling abilities and general physicality will serve him very well in the box. Woodson has the ball skills and playmaking abilities to break up passes in a deep safety or slot cornerback role. He will likely be less versatile in the NFL than in college, but teams will still have confidence in him to move around their defense.

Weaknesses

Starting in the context of playing box safety, Woodson’s biggest weakness in the NFL will be his size. Though he’s physical, he’s certainly on the smaller side to line up near the line of scrimmage and take on offensive linemen. Bigger running backs will have a significant size advantage over him. In coverage, Woodson’s lack of size will hurt him in one-on-one matchups with tight ends, which is a common task for a strong safety. Though he’s fundamentally sound, which will help him win his fair share of reps, Woodson will get beaten in the NFL simply due to being at a physical disadvantage.

As a deep safety, Woodson has a few things working against him. First, he might not have the speed to keep up with NFL receivers down the field. Woodson also processes plays a hair too slow for an NFL-caliber deep safety. Whether he’s biting on a pump fake or late to recognize a route, NFL quarterbacks will be quick to pounce. This is especially concerning when he doesn’t have elite speed to fall back on and cover up some mistakes. Finally, though he’s a strong run defender and tackler in the box, Woodson doesn’t get downfield and help out in the run game very well from a deep safety position.

Potential Team Fits

• Carolina Panthers
• Cincinnati Bengals
• Philadelphia Eagles

Craig Woodson NFL Projection

Look for Craig Woodson to come off the board early on Day 3 of the draft. He has the experience and positional versatility to be an intriguing option for teams in the fourth or fifth round. What will keep Woodson from being drafted earlier is his relatively low ceiling. While he’s an impressive prospect, he might not have much room to develop further, especially due to him entering the draft at 24 years old. Still, Woodson has a high floor. Even if he doesn’t get much better, he still has the ability to be a strong contributor on special teams and a decent rotational depth piece.