A one-time five-star recruit out of Belleville, Michigan, defensive lineman Damon Payne Jr. is hoping to hear his name called during the 2026 NFL Draft.
Payne was heavily recruited by all the national powers before going to Alabama for four years. He then spent his graduate year at Michigan, where he was a rotational lineman for the Wolverines.
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Quick Facts
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Career Stats: 46 tackles, 1 pass deflection, 0.5 sacks
Strengths
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Payne displays a low pad-level and can hold up to double-teams
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Explosive lower-body strength allows him to stay off the ground
Weaknesses
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He’s more of a run-stuffer who is not a pass-rushing threat
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Payne struggles to disengage from blockers.
Summary
Payne was an elite prospect coming out of high school. A five-star out of Belleville High School in Belleville, Michigan, he was just one spot behind TreVeyon Henderson and one spot ahead of J.J. McCarthy in 247Sports’ rankings of the class of 2021. Payne was the No. 24 overall player in the class and the No. 1 player in the state of Michigan, just ahead of Donovan Edwards.
The Wolverines were one of a multitude of programs trying to get Payne to enroll in their program, but he ultimately chose Nick Saban and the Crimson Tide. He redshirted as a freshman and played sparingly as a sophomore, but he did appear in six games on defense that year.
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As a junior in 2023, Payne’s playing time climbed dramatically. He appeared in all 14 of Alabama’s contests and collected nine tackles and 0.5 sacks. Stats don’t tell the whole story for defensive tackles, but he was a solid rotational player on a team that played in and lost the Rose Bowl.
In 2024, Payne tallied 14 tackles and recovered a fumble as a starter. He was a quality lineman for Kalen DeBoer in his first year at Alabama, but then transferred to Michigan to play his graduate year in Ann Arbor.
Payne’s final year of college football was probably his best. Over 13 games, he racked up 16 tackles, two tackles for loss and one pass deflection. He was named Michigan’s Defensive Player of the Week twice. While certainly not a star for the Wolverines, he provided a constant, steady voice in the room and gave the interior of the Wolverine defensive line a high floor.
With the requisite size to play in the NFL, Payne has a shot to be drafted this spring. However, it’s by no means guaranteed, as he never fully emerged as a star player. He was a serviceable nose tackle who could stuff the run and hold up to double-teams but posed no pass-rushing threat whatsoever.
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Expect Payne to be either a late Day 3 pick or to be a UDFA who should latch onto a team quickly.
