Tennessee Titans select Nick Singleton in 5th round round of 2026 NFL Draft

Former Penn State running back Nick Singleton has been selected by the Tennessee Titans in the 5th round of the 2026 NFL Draft. The Nittany Lions’ all-time touchdown leader gets his NFL shot despite being severely limited throughout the pre-draft process while recovering from a right foot injury suffered during Senior Bowl week in late January that required surgery.

Despite a difficult senior season, the 6-foot, 219-pound Singleton still finished his time in State College as Penn State’s career leader in all-purpose yards (5,586), total touchdowns (55), and rushing touchdowns (45). In four seasons, Singleton combined for 3,461 rushing yards and 45 touchdowns on 622 career carries. He also contributed 987 yards and nine touchdowns on 102 career receptions.

That’s despite a somewhat disappointing senior year, at least statistically, when Singleton posted career lows with 549 rushing yards on 123 carries to go along with a career-high 13 rushing touchdowns. In fact, Singleton rushed for at least 12 touchdowns in three of his four seasons at Penn State. He also twice topped the 1,000-yard rushing mark, including a career-best 1,099 rushing yards and 12 scores in 2024.

Singleton signed with Penn State as a Top 30 player in the 2022 recruiting cycle out of Governor Mifflin (Reading, Pa.), where he was ranked as the No. 1 player in Pennsylvania, the No. 1 running back in the class, and the No. 27 player overall, according to the Rivals Industry Ranking, a weighted composite of all three major recruiting media services.

What NFL Draft analysts are saying about Nick Singleton

Once projected to be among the first ‘backs off the board following a strong junior season, Singleton is now considered a late Day 2 or early Day 3 selection at best, especially coming off a troubling senior season and his broken right foot. That injury sidelined Singleton throughout the entire pre-draft process, including keeping him from participating in February’s NFL Combine in Indianapolis.

Nevertheless, a healthy Singleton still presents plenty of impressive traits, including what NFL.com analyst Lance Zierlein described as an “enticing blend of size, speed, and overall explosiveness.” Singleton also provides a “dangerous pass-catching option on angle and wheel routes,” as well as experience as a kick returner during his first three seasons at Penn State.

“Well-built back with explosive speed, whose 2025 season was flat after a strong 2024. Singleton is a linear runner who plays like his brake lines have been cut, affecting his ability to gather and elude tacklers or cut on demand,” Zierlein wrote of Singleton. “He has the speed to make defenses pay but displayed a lack of vision and instincts to put himself in position to do so, relative to his teammate Kaytron Allen. His size and speed will get attention, but his ability to return kicks and play on third downs could ultimately earn him a roster spot as a RB3.”