INDIANAPOLIS — The stopwatch doesn’t lie, but at the 2026 NFL Combine, it looked like it was glitching. Ohio State linebackers Arvell Reese and Sonny Styles didn’t just participate in drills this week; they turned Lucas Oil Stadium into their personal track meet, both clocking an official 4.46 seconds in the 40-yard dash.
For context: That is receiver speed in linebacker bodies.
The performance forced an immediate pivot in draft war rooms across the league. The question is no longer “Are they first-rounders?” It is now the most heated debate on the Buckeye Talk podcast and NFL networks alike: Who comes off the board first?
Arvell Reese: The Heat-Seeking Missile
Reese arrived in Indianapolis with top-15 buzz and left as a potential top-five lock. At 6-foot-4 and 241 pounds, his 4.46 run confirmed what scouts saw on tape: a downhill disruptor who destroys blocking schemes. He isn’t just fast; he generates kinetic violence.
Stefan Krajisnik of Buckeye Talk noted that while the testing numbers were identical, the NFL generally pays a premium for edge rushers. Reese projects as a hybrid weapon who can rush the passer like a defensive end but chase down running backs like a traditional linebacker. In a league desperate for the next Micah Parsons, Reese fits the prototype perfectly.
Sonny Styles: The Alien in Cleats
If Reese confirmed his status, Sonny Styles entered the Matrix. Weighing in at a massive 244 pounds, Styles not only matched Reese’s 4.46 speed but shattered gravity with a 43.5-inch vertical jump—the highest ever recorded by a linebacker in Combine history.
Styles’ testing numbers are, frankly, absurd. He pairs defensive end size with safety athleticism (his original position). While Reese offers a clear path to sacks, Styles offers a defensive coordinator the ability to erase tight ends, spy mobile quarterbacks, and play deep safety—sometimes on the same drive.
The comparisons for Styles are getting out of hand, but the data backs them up. On the latest Buckeye Talk episode, Stephen Means broke down the dilemma scouts now face:
“I think if I was a scout and I was looking at Sonny Styles and what he just did this weekend, I wouldn’t just be going, ‘He’s Fred Warner,’ anymore. I’d be going, ‘Sure, you can be Fred Warner, but what if you’re also Micah Parsons? What if you’re also Kyle Hamilton?’”
— Stephen Means, Buckeye Talk Podcast
The Verdict: Who Goes First?
Krajisnik leans toward Reese. The logic holds water: NFL GMs lose their jobs if they don’t find guys who can sack the quarterback. Reese is the cleaner projection for teams needing immediate pass-rush help.
However, the gap has vanished. Styles proved he is a “1-of-1” athlete. In a passing league dominated by freaks like Josh Allen and Patrick Mahomes, a defender who can move like Styles is the ultimate counter-punch. Expect both Buckeyes to hear their names called within the first 15 picks in April, likely making Ohio State the first school in history to produce two linebackers with this athletic profile in the same class.