Bruce Feldman opposing coaching intel:
“Dude’s a freak. I thought he had good awareness of the ball. He was very natural at everything he did. Was impressed even at Colorado. He just got better and better and took a big jump at Oregon. In his man-technique, he’s very physical, good at squeezing guys to the sideline.”
“He’s talented with his size and movement skills. I thought he lacked some technique. He has a receiver-type body. When the ball is in the air, he transitioned well. He’s gotta lock in and be more technique-based. For him to be that big, you want him to be more physical, but he’s not soft.”
“I was surprised to see that he was so high (in pre-draft media evaluations). I thought he was a late first (type). He’s big enough to play in the slot at nickel and he does have enough coverage skills outside to be intriguing. I wondered about his natural change of direction (COD). How is his short-area quickness? We didn’t have anyone who could really test him. Having that length and that straight-line speed obviously is helpful, but if you don’t have really good short-area quickness when you’re facing
Justin Jefferson and
Ja’Marr Chase, who are so good laterally in and out of change cuts and have more long speed … it’s getting scarier.”
“I thought he was a good player, but we did not think ‘Let’s not go at this guy.’ He played tight, got in bump-and-run, but he wasn’t one of those dominant guys, where we felt like we needed to stay away from him or motion him. He’s not
Sauce Gardner. At the line of scrimmage, we thought we could beat him release-wise, and it’s not like we had a great receiving corps. He has the right measurables and the tools, you just were never wowed by the film.”
Bruce Feldman NFL DB coaches intel:
Defensive coordinator 1: “He probably has the best measurables in a corner to come out since maybe
Jalen Ramsey. He’s not an absolute savage and doesn’t have that cornerback attitude, but the coaches at Oregon say he’s a no-brainer and is gonna work hard.”
Defensive backs coach 1: “I think he’s unbelievable. He’s so talented. The most ready-made guy out here. His technique is really sound.”
Defensive backs coach 2: “I’m a little fearful of his demeanor. He’s not really wired like a corner. Against his best competition, he struggled. Against
Georgia, he struggled. Drake London the year before really got after him. I think he’s really good in press. The other thing about him is (that) the wide receiver appears covered all the time because he’s so big and long, and he does have great recovery speed. His judgment and winning at the top of the route isn’t as great, and you’ll see him misjudging balls a little when he’s in position. Not gonna be a physical tackler at all.”