Packers draft pick profiles: Dani Dennis-Sutton teases big potential

The Green Bay Packers made arguably one of the best value picks in the entire draft by selecting Penn State’s Dani Dennis-Sutton, an edge rusher who could have gone as early as Round 2, in the fourth round of the 2026 NFL Draft.

Dennis-Sutton should help bolster a Packers pass rush in need of more juice as Micah Parsons recovers from an ACL tear. Here is the lowdown on Green Bay’s new edge defender:

The Basics

Dani (pronounced: Deny) Dennis-Sutton grew up in Millsboro, Delaware, but went to high school at a private boarding school 125 miles away in Owings Mills, Maryland to boost his recruiting prospects. It paid off, as he was a highly coveted recruit; ranked first in the state of Maryland and 29th nationally.

After narrowing down a whole host of offers to a final two of Penn State and Georgia, he chose the Nittany Lions. Something of a rarity in today’s college football landscape, Dennis-Sutton spent his entire college career in Happy Valley, playing 55 games there and starting 30.

He is a big edge rusher, listed at 6-5 ½, 261 pounds at his pro day, and played between 260 and 265 pounds. Dennis-Sutton also has good length with 33 ½” arms, and big hands (10 ⅜”). He will turn 23 in December.

From a testing standpoint, he is one of the most athletic players to ever enter the NFL at his position. He posted a 9.96 Relative Athletic Score (RAS) out of a possible 10, producing elite scores for speed (4.63 in the 40 with a 1.63 10-yard split) and explosion (39.5” vert, 10-11 broad).

Dennis-Sutton did not do the shuttle drill, but his 6.90 3-cone is a 97th percentile score all-time among defensive ends. His overall RAS ranks 9th out of 2,255 prospects since 1987. His closest athletic comp is Danielle Hunter.

His snap count went up every year at Penn State, ending with 641 snaps last year, and he finished with a career-best PFF grade of 80.1 in 2025, featuring a run defense grade of 77.1 (also a career-best mark), a tackle grade of 49.6 (a career low) and a pass rush grade of 79.7.

The Stats

As Dennis-Sutton’s snap count increased, so did his production in terms of counting stats. His pressure total went from 21 to 30 to 45 to 51, while his run stop tally (tackles resulting in a failure for the offense) increased from eight to 16 to 27 to 29.

He had 17 sacks in his final two seasons per PFF, as well as five career forced fumbles, two interceptions, and he also blocked three punts in 2025, which tied a school record.

His 15.8% pass rush win rate ranked in the 85th percentile among draft-eligible EDGEs, and he also ranked in the 88th percentile in PFFs Pass Rush Productivity (PRP) metric. When facing true pass sets he ranked in the 77th and 71st percentile respectively.

Dennis-Sutton was less impactful in the run game, ranking in the 45th percentile in run stop rate, the 31st percentile in missed tackle rate and the 30th in average depth of tackle.

The reason for his below average PFF tackle grade is his bloated missed tackle rate, which exceeded 21% in three out of his four seasons, including both 2024 and 2025. He also was a bit of a flag magnet in college, committing 18 penalties, with 16 coming in his final three campaigns.

The Tape

Dennis-Sutton’s athleticism best shows up in his first step, where his juice and explosiveness is clear as he gets up on offensive tackles in a hurry as a pass rusher. He pairs that quick first step with regular attempts to guess the snap count to give him even more of an advantage.

He shows quickness to be able to cross the face of offensive linemen, and his speed is evident when chasing quarterbacks in the open field.

When rushing the passer, Dennis-Sutton shows the ability to win by going around, through, or inside of opponents.

He has the speed to get to the corner quickly, and can use stutters or hesitation before gearing up to stress a tackle’s outside edge. When he gets to the edge, he has good core strength and can use a rip move to prevent opponents from washing him behind the quarterback.

Dennis-Sutton can use his hands to win at the corner, chopping a tackle’s hands down or swiping them aside, and also has a ghost move where he flashes his hands to get opponents leaning, then pulls his hands away and shoots past them. He can also win with a swim/arm over move.

After getting clear of a tackle, he has enough bend to flatten to the quarterback. Dennis-Sutton can convert his speed to power and create knock back on contact with offensive linemen, although he needs a bit more of a runway. His hands stay active to help him keep generating push.

His best pass rush move is his spin, which works especially well when he lines up inside over guards. It is lethal at times, giving him clean wins, and also serves as an effective counter at the top of his rush on the outside.

He has the size to rush inside, able to barrel or squeeze through gaps, and also uses a cross chop move to cross the face of interior O-linemen.

Against the run he can be dangerous if left unblocked on the back side, as he is able to fire downhill and make tackles. He can also shoot past offensive tackles needing to fan out to him before they can get there.

Dennis-Sutton has the size to set firm edges in run game, as well as long arms to keep opponents off him once he gets latched on. He is able to hold the point of attack, even when having to move laterally against outside runs at times, and funnel the ball back inside.

There are plenty of times he bounces off or easily gets rid of blockers in the run game, especially if he is working against a tight end. He can beat tackles with a push/pull move to send them flying to the turf.

He shows the ability to wrap up as a tackler, regularly attempts to punch the ball out and has had plenty of success.

His movement ability means he looks fairly comfortable dropping into coverage, which should help in Jonathan Gannon’s 3-4 defense. He has been used as a spy and was able to track quarterbacks down in the open field.

Dennis-Sutton plays with great effort and motor, frequently making plays late in the rep due to his sticktoitiveness. His experience on punt returns and success in blocking them, partly due to his length, will come in handy.

Spinning to the negatives, there is not much Dennis-Sutton is incapable of doing, but it is hard to escape the feeling that there is something missing when watching his tape. It leaves you asking the question: “What are you waiting for?”

He clearly has all the athleticism he needs and plays hard, but he disappears for long stretches and doesn’t impact the game as much as he should. He is a ‘nearly’ player, getting close to the QB without truly affecting him or getting into the backfield but not making the tackle.

While the testing athleticism is undeniable, it does not always show up on tape. For one of the most athletic players to ever enter the league at his position, there are not many ‘wow’ moments where he shows it off.

Despite the incredible 3-cone score, his biggest athletic deficiency is that he looks tight when trying to finish to the football. There are many instances of him not being able to close and get ball carriers on the ground, especially if they change direction late.

He is a big man, but may actually need to add some weight and functional strength. 260 pounds is not light by any means, but on a 6-5 frame it is not a lot.

Too often he is playing patty cake with tight ends rather than dominating them, and he can run into a brick wall as a pass rusher at times, with his power not showing as you might expect.

When rushing the passer he regularly just runs around the arc or is taken past the quarterback with little counter to work back inside or constrict the pocket. He lacks rush lane discipline and can rush upfield without thought, allowing the quarterback a huge lane to escape.

Dennis-Sutton has less success with his spin move as plan A. It works much better as plan B, and he is not as dangerous on loops and stunts as he should be given his athleticism.

The run game is his biggest issue from a technique standpoint. He really lacks patience, looking to get around his blocker by any means necessary rather than holding the point, which leaves run lanes open.

He attacks the mesh point on read options recklessly, with no real care to wait and see who actually has the ball, and he also takes bad angles at times. Dennis-Sutton can be trapped inside or walled out when opposing offenses scheme to take him away, and does not anticipate it.

Playing the game at 100 mph is admirable, but not always beneficial. Dennis-Sutton plays like it’s a race and is out of control at times. He will fail to sniff out screens and his ability to time up the snap count is inconsistent, evidenced by his four offside penalties in 2025.

The ‘why’ behind his bloated missed tackle rate is that he is often diving at ball carriers from behind or the side and is not quite able to get to them. He also slips off tackles, letting opponents squirm away when he looks to have them in his grasp.

Overall, Dennis-Sutton’s bright flashes in both phases, elite testing and hot motor are what made him a projected day two pick, and the Packers found great value by getting him in the fourth round, but there is still a lot of work to do if he is to put it together consistently and be a steady contributor.

This article originally appeared on Packers Wire: Packers draft pick profiles: Dani Dennis-Sutton teases big potential