Going into the 2025 campaign, Clemson edge rusher T.J. Parker was routinely projected to be a first-round pick in the 2026 NFL Draft, but his stock took a hit during the season as his play and production slipped, with his sack total dropping from 11 in 2024 to five in 2025.

However, Parker finished the 2025 season with a flourish, as he was named ACC Defensive Lineman of the Week after collecting four tackles (three for loss), three sacks and a fumble recovery in the rivalry finale at South Carolina.

Parker continued that momentum with a monster week at the Senior Bowl while dominating during the practices in Mobile, Ala., last month. And he followed that up with a strong performance during on-field workouts at the 2026 NFL Scouting Combine at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis on Thursday.

It’s widely believed that Parker has boosted his stock back up and put himself squarely back in the first-round conversation ahead of this spring’s draft, which is set to take place from April 23-25 in Pittsburgh.

NFL Network draft guru and former NFL scout Daniel Jeremiah is among those who are high on Parker, and Jeremiah had plenty of praise for him during NFL Network’s coverage of the combine. Jeremiah currently ranks Parker as the No. 32 overall prospect in this year’s draft class, regardless of position, and the seventh-best edge rusher.

“I’m gonna take him at his best, and what we saw was that sandwich, right — ’24, and then the way he finished ’25 and into the Senior Bowl and how we’re seeing him move out here,” Jeremiah said Thursday. “He is a really good player, and I’m going to judge him off of his best. He’s my 32nd player right now, and I think as he’s come through this whole process, he’s really going to solidify himself as a first-round pick.”

“I’m a fan,” Jeremiah added. “I’m a fan of what you see in the ’24 film. I’m a fan of what you see late in ’25 and what we’ve seen at the Senior Bowl, and he’s had a great workout so far today. And he’s young and I think he’s still improving.”

Diving into Parker’s tape, Jeremiah explained multiple reasons why he thinks Parker is in the mix as a first-round player – being a rugged rusher, his quick hands, ability to line up over a guard and rush from the interior as well, and what he showed during Senior Bowl 1-on-1s.

“He’s real rugged off the edge,” Jeremiah said. “He’s real strong and firm. You see his ability to win, get to the chest, close and finish. His quick hands I was talking about, feet and hands – he’s got both. You see the ability to get those hands off of him and close. As an interior rusher, you want to kick him over a guard, very active… And then the Senior Bowl, how about that long-arm [move]. Inside long-arm, and dump you on the ground.”

Jeremiah had a lofty comparison for Parker, likening him to Cincinnati Bengals star edge rusher Trey Hendrickson – a four-time Pro Bowler and 2024 first-team All-Pro who entered the NFL in 2017 as a third-round pick of the New Orleans Saints out of Florida Atlantic.

“Hendrickson obviously has been a great player in this league for a long time, since he came in, in 2017,” Jeremiah said. “… You’ll see very similar get-off times and how they play. They’ve both got great size, 260-plus pounds. And I think TJ Parker’s got more room. I think he’s got more room to grow as a player, and there’s some upside there.”

A 2023 freshman All-American and 2024 All-ACC selection, Parker piled up 144 tackles (41.5 for loss), 21.5 sacks, six forced fumbles, six fumble recoveries and five pass breakups over 39 games (29 starts) in his Clemson career from 2023-25. He leaves Tigertown ranked 10th in career sacks and tied for fourth in career fumble recoveries, and he set the Clemson record for forced fumbles in a single season with six in 2024.