Caleb Banks puts Bronny James to shame at NFL Combine

Florida defensive lineman Caleb Banks answered plenty of questions regarding his athletic abilities at the NFL Combine on Thursday. Despite an injury-riddled 2025 campaign, Banks clocked in with marks that should ease any fears an NFL GM might have about his recovery from those injuries.

And one mark in particular looks even more impressive when it is compared with one of the NBA’s more controversial players.

Gator DT Caleb Banks jumps as high as Bronny James

Banks ran the 40-yard dash in 5.04 seconds. It wasn’t the best time of the day among DTs, but it was good enough to showcase that he is ready and recovered. Banks later did the vertical jump and logged a mark of 32 inches, tied for the 6th best among DTs. But then, factoring in that most of the DTs who ran faster or jumped higher than Banks came in at under 300 pounds, while Banks weighed in at 327 pounds, his explosiveness is off the charts.

Even more comical, when NBA player Bronny James, the nepotism offspring of Lebron James, took part in the NBA Combine, he too had a vertical leap of 32 inches.

So if you are keeping score at home, the 210-pound Bronny James and the 327-pound Caleb Banks both jumped the same height, and one of those two plays in a sport where jumping is a key component of the game.

Hint, it’s not the sport that Banks plays.

As much as Florida’s weight room has come under fire from the Billy Napier Era, it’s a flashback to last season when Desmond Watson outjumped Auburn basketball star Johni Broome.

Banks had a solid Combine performance that should keep him in the first round of the NFL Draft. Despite only playing in three games in 2025, Banks has measurables that almost no one else can touch, including the largest wingspan recorded for a DT at the Combine since 1999.