2027 Draft: Safety

[mayoclinic]

Rod Moore Paints Another Troubling Picture of Past Michigan Culture, Praises Jay Hill

With Rod Moore facing injuries the past two seasons, the two-time Michigan captain paints another poor picture of Sherrone Moore.

www.si.com

 

[mayoclinic]

 

[mayoclinic]

Zach Lutmer is a nickelback out of Iowa who I have heard some buzz about from people I trust, but I did not see it on film. He plays the Cooper DeJean role we saw when DeJean was a true sophomore at Iowa, working a lot in the slot with some versatility. I did not see a great caliber of athlete. When he was pressed in man coverage, his transitional quickness and explosiveness were lacking. When he had to turn and run, he labored. I also thought his run game instincts were hit or miss, with some bad angles on his film. He is getting top-100 buzz, but I did not see that caliber of player right now.

2027 NFL Draft Scouting Notebook: Clemson's early round WRs, another Iowa defender, and a massive linebacker riser

Several top 2027 NFL Draft prospects jumped off the film this week. Here are some more early names to know.

atozsports.com

 

[manxman2601]

Tao Johnson, UCLA (formerly Utah)
6-1, 200

Let's get the negative out of the way. He needs to sort out his tackling to be considered a Patriot possibility. He had a 21% missed tackle rate last year and a very average 59 run defense grade.

But look where he ranked on several coverage stats last season to see why I'm interested. These are end of season FBS rankings, not just conference rankings.

 

[mayoclinic]

Jaylen McClain really intriguing me, shows up on your 2nd list with a 0.21 coverage yards/snap. Reported 4.35 speed. Pair him with Craig Woodson and use Dashawn Spears as a star.

 

[manxman2601]

Jaylen McClain really intriguing me, shows up on your 2nd list with a 0.21 coverage yards/snap. Reported 4.35 speed. Pair him with Craig Woodson and use Dashawn Spears as a star.

My biggest concern with McClain is zero interceptions in his two years at Ohio State. I need to see him get his hands on the ball next year if he's going to play CF safety in the NFL. I don't deny that speed is intriguing though.

 

[manxman2601]

With his size, athleticism, good grades and coming from a big school, I'm surprised Jelani McDonald doesn't get more love/hype.

 

[mayoclinic]

Still on my binky list.

 

[manxman2601]

With his size, athleticism, good grades and coming from a big school, I'm surprised Jelani McDonald doesn't get more love/hype.

 

[manxman2601]

 

[Clonamery]

Can't wait to see him play.

 

[manxman2601]

Can't wait to see him play.

Agreed. He was getting pre-season hype last year and then missed the whole season. If Ohio State come calling, that's a pretty good sign.

 

[manxman2601]

Why i'm not sold on Ty Benefield or Koi Peirich yet for the Pats.

As we know, Genesis Smith was notorious last year for his poor run defense. Below are his numbers. It should be noted that Genesis Smith fell to the back of round 4 despite being highly touted as a CF coverage safety.

63 run defense grade, 11 missed tackles, 20% missed tackle rate.

Here are Benefield's and Peirich's numbers.

Ty Benefield, LSU (frmly Boise St) - 64.8 run defense, 18 missed tackles!, 23.7 missed tackle rate
Koi Peirich, Oregon (frmly Minnesota) - 64.9 run defense, 17 missed tackles!, 25% missed tackle rate

I'll add in a third - Ohio State's new safety Earl Little Jr

Earl Little Jr, Ohio State (frmly Florida State) - 64.3 run defense, 14 missed tackles, 23.3 missed tackle rate

All three are worse tacklers than Genesis Smith. They will need to increase significantly before I think Vrabel would consider them for his defense.

Also, add the following. All have worse missed tackle rates than Genesis Smith.

Jackson Bennee, Utah
Tao Johnson, UCLA
Dalton Johnson, Texas A&M
Zechariah Poyser, Miami