Daxton Hill, SAF, Michigan, 6-0, 192, 4.35, JR … Third-year junior with exceptional athletic ability has reportedly run in the low 4.3s with a 43-inch vertical. He’s also a very versatile player who can work as both a nickel safety as well as a straight-up corner in a pinch. He’s also a physical player who is very aggressive coming up to make plays in the box despite the fact that at a tad over 190 pounds, he’s not necessarily all that big for a safety; he’s also effective jamming receivers at the line of scrimmage. However, despite the fact that he’s really fast and can run with just about any receiver out there, he is somewhat tight in the hips, isn’t particularly agile and has barely average change of direction skills. In zone, he sees the field well and breaks crisply on the ball, although he isn’t necessarily that instinctive and tends to react primarily to what’s in front of him rather than anticipating developing situations. Bottom line: Hill is going to be one of those players that really tests NFL scouts. On the one hand, there’s a lot of upside there based on the fact that he’s a physical, aggressive player with elite speed and plenty of versatility. At the same time, though, he’s not the smoothest or most instinctive player out there, but in a year in which the safety class isn’t all that talented, at least after Notre Dame’s Kyle Hamilton, teams looking to upgrade at safety are going to be intrigued by that upside.
Kerby Joseph, SAF, Illinois, 6-1, 200, 4.55, SR … After three rather undistinguished years in which he only had a couple of starts with the Illini, the fourth-year senior had a breakout year in 2021 when he posted 57 tackles and picked off 5 passes while making the Big Ten’s first-unit all-conference team. He also had a solid week of practice at the Senior Bowl. He’s a good sized safety with relatively long (33 inches) arms for the position. And while most of the other top safeties in the 2022 class are primarily in-the-box type players known primarily for their physicality, Joseph is a ball-hawker who played the majority of his snaps in the deep secondary. He doesn’t necessarily have track speed, but is a long strider who is quick off the mark; he also has good body control, tracks the ball well and has good ball skills, although he doesn’t always trust his eyes and will hesitate on occasion before reacting in zone. Can also be trusted in man coverage where he uses his long arms and strong hands to disrupt routes and will battle for the ball in the air. And while not known as a thumper in run support per se, he is a solid enough run defender who reads the play well and is a reliable wrap-up tackler. Bottom line: One of the better pass defending safeties in the 2022 draft. Joseph has excellent length and range over the top; he’s also fluid in space and has good ball skills, but needs to have played with better anticipation and awareness to earn a higher grade, particularly given that he only had one true elite year of production.
Lewis Cine, SAF, Georgia, 6-1, 200, 4.45, JR … Third-year junior became one of the leaders on the UGA defense that powered the Dawgs to this year’s national championship. Indeed, his calling card is that he’s a super aggressive, physical tackler, whether coming up in run support or trying to separate receivers coming over the middle from the ball. In fact, he led the team in tackles this season, although he can be too aggressive at times which has resulted in unnecessary targeting calls. Plus he tends to come in high and will occasionally fail to wrap up and slides off the tackle. Has decent size and very good length for a safety. Also a very good athlete with a projected 40 time in the 4.45 range that he combines with good quickness, body control and lateral range, although he isn’t quite as dominant in coverage as in run support. However, he does have enough athleticism to play a lot of man, although he doesn’t always track balls over his head all that well. More comfortable in zone where he reads the field and anticipates routes well and has a great break on the ball. And as noted above, he delivers a pop when he gets there. Smart player who made most of the calls in the secondary although he was only a 3rd-year guy. Bottom line: Rising junior safety prospect with decent size, good athleticism and a nasty demeanor is probably best suited to playing in the box close to the line of scrimmage, but does have the tools to be effective farther on downfield, although there are some coachable elements in his deep game that need to be cleaned up.
Verone McKinley, SAF, Oregon, 5-11, 196, 4.50, JR … Emerging fourth-year junior played in the shadow of Duck defensive stars like Kayvon Thibodeaux and Noah Sewell, but was arguably the most consistently productive player on the unit. Indeed, he had 78 tackles in 2021 along with 6 picks and 6 other pass breakups, with the half dozen interceptions giving him 11 for his career. He’s not all that big or long, but is a solid enough run defender who does not shy away from contact. McKinley closes quickly on the ball and is a dependable wrap-up tackler. Also does a good job of reacting and closing the space to the ball-carrier. What makes McKinley really intriguing to the NFL are his coverage skills. He’s got good speed and better quickness, plus he’s a smooth athlete who can turn and run with ease and is comfortable changing directions. He also does a nice job tracking the ball in the air and has good ball skills. In zone, he reads the quarterback’s eyes well and does a good job of undercutting routes. What truly sets McKinley apart, though, are his instincts and route anticipation. He is something of a QB on the defense with a rare football IQ who sees the field really well, processes that information quickly and is often able to pass it on to others on the defense as the play is developing. Bottom line: Under-rated coverage safety who isn’t all that big and lacks elite speed, but is still a really productive kid who understands the game and wins with quickness, agility and outstanding anticipation.
Jaquan Brisker, SAF, Penn State, 6-1, 200, 4.50, SR+ … Experienced super senior safety with five years of college football under his belt including three at Penn State and two at the junior college level. He’s also a three-time All-American including twice at PSU and once in JC. Brisker is a physical safety with good size, length, speed and overall athleticism. He is an aggressive runner and defender in the box who reads the play quickly, has a burst to the ball, and uses his length effectively to shed blocks. He is also a very physical tackler, although he will overrun the odd play when he isn’t under control going for the highlight reel hit. And whether in run support or coverage, he has excellent awareness and anticipation and is very smooth changing direction which results in sideline-to-sideline range. Still better in zone where he has a good feel for what’s going on around him, breaks crisply on the ball and has good ball skills when he gets there. However, while he has decent straight-line speed with a projected 40 time of around 4.50 seconds, he will struggle to run with faster receivers. He also doesn’t track the ball all that well on passes over his head. Given that he played 5 years in college, it should be no surprise that he is a somewhat older player who will turn 23 the week before the draft. However, he’s also a pretty mature guy who went thru a tough time after his older brother was killed when he was 15. Bottom line: Another quality in-the-box safety with good size, athleticism and energy who figures to be very much in the debate to be the second safety off the board this coming April.
Jalen Pitre, SAF, Baylor, 5-11, 196, 4.45, SR … Rising fifth-year senior who spent 3 rather undistinguished years with the Bears, but then blossomed into one of the more productive safeties in the country in his final two seasons in the program including 2021 when he was a finalist for both the Thorpe (best defensive back) and Big XII Defensive Player of the Year. He then put an exclamation point on his emergence with an excellent week at this year’s Senior Bowl. Actually played a kind of a hybrid S/LB role with the Bears in which he usually lined up in the box near the line of scrimmage as a third LB in a 4-2 scheme. He’s not all that big or physical, but he is quick and instinctive with excellent lateral range. He’s also a sure wrap-up tackler who was really adept at beating the blockers to the point of attack and getting into the backfield. Indeed, he had 18.5 tackles for loss this past season. However, he could do a better job getting off blocks if he doesn’t beat the offense to the point of attack. He’s also an effective blitzer who had 6 sacks over the past two seasons that can bend on the edge and knife through the line to make plays. There are some questions about how well Pitre will hold up in coverage at the next level as he just didn’t do much of that at Baylor, but he does have good speed and was very good in zone in college where he sees the field well and breaks crisply on the ball. Also held up well enough covering RBs and TEs in man, but manning up against faster, quicker WRs was another story, although he did show better than advertised coverage skills at the Senior Bowl. Of note, he did suffer a knee injury as a junior in high school that will have to be checked out. Bottom line: Experienced in-the-box safety who isn’t all that big, but has big-time speed and quickness, agility and range, instincts and competitiveness. Is something of a tweener on paper, but is a playmaker on the field who given a chance in the right scheme could quite easily become a very good pro.
Bubba Bolden, SAF, Miami, 6-2, 206, 4.55, SR … Fifth-year senior has had something of an up-and-down career. Was a big-time recruit who originally signed with Southern California in 2017, but didn’t played much as a true freshman and then was suspended for the 2018 season after running afoul with the law over a wild party. He transferred to Miami and had an excellent season in 2020 when he was a Thorpe Award semi-finalist after leading the Canes with 74 tackles. However, he missed much of both the 2019 (ankle) and 2021 (shoulder) seasons which will no doubt lead to some questions about his durability. The fact that he injured the ankle in 2019 celebrating an interception could also have some teams red flagging him for maturity concerns. When he has played, Bolden has proven to be a versatile safety with good size and length who is a physical, downhill run-first defender who makes quick reads, is strong at the point of attack, and is an aggressive tackler, although he has had a few too many missed tackles after failing to wrap up; he also always take the best angles to the ball. He does have the size and speed to run with most TEs in coverage, but overall he’s not as comfortable playing the pass, where he’s made little impact, as he tends to lack vision and awareness, while there are also concerns about his deep speed and agility. In fact, over the past two seasons, he had a total of just 1 pick and 6 other pass break-ups. He does have decent straight-line speed for a safety, but is stiff in the hips and doesn’t turn or change direction all that fluidly. Bottom line: Interesting prospect who does have some physical tools including good size and length, along with adequate speed and athleticism, but he would appear to be more of a developmental type prospect as there are some inconsistencies in his game.
