2024 Rankings Now, those players. Strong safety used to be a coveted specialty role in the NFL, encompassing those who played more like auxiliary linebackers and patrolled the box, defending the run and covering short zones underneath. 2021 NFL draft rankings: Safety. That size does show up at points as a tackler, though. 8:58 am ET. The only worry is thats just about the only role weve ever seen him play. Kyle Hamilton | Notre Dame. He collected 16 stops in the run game this past fall and proved to have one of the more versatile skill sets in the draft class. 2023 NFL Scouting Combine: See the prospects invited, by position, NBC Sports EDGE's 2023 NFL Draft Content Hub, 2023 NFL scouting combine: List of draft prospects, workout schedule, TV and streaming info. Kevin Byard has been a prototypical free safety since he was a draft prospect. See his 2022 and 2023 Rankings as well! Despite his size, Gillespie Each can line up anywhere they are needed within the scheme and playing next to one another is clearly a force multiplier for their success. Which prospects should boost their draft stock at the NFL Scouting Combine? Maye earned a career-high PFF grade of 82.9 last season, also notching career highs in snaps from the slot and in the box. Kyzir White, S, West Virginia: Round 2, 6. section: | slug: nfl-draft-2023-jalen-carter-will-anderson-jr-atop-pre-combine-list-of-best-defensive-prospects-by-position | sport: football | route: article_single_special | Battle is sort of a jack-of-all-trades, but a master of none. Felix Anudike-Uzomah has 19.5 sacks over the past two years, but more impressive is the ball production. As part of our ranking of the position groups in the 2023 NFL Draft class, we have the safeties ranked No. Similar to his twin brother Chase, Sydney can flat-out fly. You wont find many true freshman starters on defense at Alabama for head coach Nick Saban. Joseph rarely pops off the tape as a high-end athlete. 2018 NFL Draft Safety Rankings - DraftUtopia.com S Rankings 2017 NFL Safety Rankings Projected Rounds: 1. Thornhills second season was something of a letdown, given how good he was in his first, but a torn ACL in Week 17 of that debut season probably impacted his play in Year 2. The 2023 Senior Bowl is officially in the books, and after another revelatory week of action in Mobile, its time to update our prospect rankings for each position group in the 2023 NFL draft class. Had it not been for injury, James might be the best safety in the league, and football fans everywhere have their fingers crossed that the injury bug is finally behind him so we can see the kind of special player he can be. His overall PFF grade dropped, but he was still above average in every facet of play that PFF measures. Sanders, an Alabama transfer, has spot edge rusher potential in addition to having the size necessary to hold up at the point of attack. If Byard can bounce back to his best, he is a top-10 safety in this league. The 2021 NFL draft is just a couple of months away, so its time to update our prospect rankings for every position 2023 NFL Draft Safety Rankings includes a prospect ranking, a breakdown of scouting for the position, key questions about the position, and a link to learn more.. 2023 NFL Mock Draft Safety Rankings: Brian Branch, Alabama; Antonio Johnson, Texas A&M; Jordan Battle, Alabama; Jammie Robinson, Florida State After ranking the best players at every position as a part of PFF's 2021 NFL season preview, we Jordan Battle, Alabama, Sr, 6-2, 210 2. Brown racked up six picks and six pass breakups in large part due to that make-up speed, but also because hes an all-around fluid athlete in space. Jamar Johnson, Indiana (fourth round) 8. Will Cam Smith and Devon Witherspoon pass the speed test? Brown has been making plays ever since he took over as a starter for the Nittany Lions in 2021. Four! Unfortunately for Baker, the most memorable play of his season and arguably his career is getting chased down from behind by a flying D.K. Amos is often underrated and overlooked because he doesnt make as many spectacular plays as other safeties he has just nine interceptions in six years but he produced the highest PFF coverage grade among all safeties in 2020 (91.5), with seven pass breakups and three picks on the year. Find out where your favorite Position stacks up against the 2023 class and view expert mock drafts. A seventh-round rookie, Kamren Curl was one of the steals of the draft a year ago, one of the standout rookies of the season. Those players still exist, but the defense most in vogue right now is the Vic Fangio tree of two-high safety looks, where free safeties are occupying either one half of the field or even just a quarter with various pattern-match responsibilities. His 2022 tape is littered with such splash plays, as he attacks with no fear despite being on the smaller end for the position. Alabama head coach Nick Saban entrusted Branch with a significant share of the responsibility in that scheme. Tyrann Mathieu is such a matchup weapon that for several years of his career he was a pure slot cornerback more than he was a safety. The 2021 NFL draft is just a couple of months away, so its time to update our prospect rankings for every position group in this years class. Even the players on this list need to have more strings to their bow than simply stuffing the run from heavy formations. As part of Athlon Sports' 2020 NFL Draft Guide, we have ranked each position, including 45 total safeties. Having a slot player who can fill in in run support with authority makes defensive coordinators far more comfortable taking their safeties out of the box. Siaki Ika is a traditional nose tackle. Clark is a player the Baltimore Ravens love to deploy all over the formation and can use him in pretty much every way, including rushing the passer. 2021 NFL Draft: Safety Rankings. Ronnie Harrison, S, Alabama: Round 1, 4. Myles Murphy is a powerful edge rusher with the quick twitch qualities to develop, but he lacks a refined pass rush plan. Techie with an interesting slant on player evaluation? This has been true for a long time, but it seems to be getting more extreme. One player who seems to sit atop big boards around the league is Brian Branch of Alabama. Coverage is king in todays NFL, and the safety position is pivoting toward players who excel deep downfield. Christian Gonzalez will certainly check the height, weight and speed boxes, and the same is true of Kelee Ringo. NFL Draft Profile: Rhys Byrns, Punter, Louisiana-Lafayette Ragin' Cajuns NFL Draft Profile: Robert Carter, Safety, West Georgia Wolves NFL Draft Profile: Gurvan Hall Jr, Safety, Utah State Aggies His ability to adjust on the fly and break laterally is arguably the best in the draft class. His biggest issue was with missed tackles, with 16 total on the year. Battle is going to put that theory to the test, as he made four starts as a freshman back in 2019 before playing full-time the past three seasons. 2023 NFL Draft Free Safety Rankings John Vogel October 31, 2022 in 2023 Rankings - 6 Minutes 1. Some of that play is built off the back of a couple of exceptional games, but he now has nine picks and 11 pass breakups over the last two seasons, including the playoffs. Athletic testing and measurements at the NFL combine this week will either confirm what was seen on tape or inspire a second look. Since entering the league, Jeremy Chinn may have had the most unique deployment of any safety, to the point that he breaks a lot of position designations and really is operating in a one-man role. Projected Round (2019): 1-2. Hamsah Nasirildeen, Florida State (third round) 6. Hes proven to be exceedingly versatile, playing 510 snaps in the box, 682 deep and 259 from the slot for his career. Forty Time Secs 4.49. Adams has PFF coverage grades of 53.1 and 47.4 since joining the Seahawks but has maintained a strong run-defense grade while continuing to shine when rushing the passer. He still has a knack for making big plays at the most critical times, as he came down with a pick in both the AFC championship and the Super Bowl, two of seven he had in total last season. Last year, his coverage and run-defense grades came in at 74.0 or better. DeShon Elliott, S, Texas: Round 1, 3. Get ready for the 2023 NFL Draft with positional and the ones that do often turn into quality starters in the NFL. Hes one of the best tackling defensive backs PFF has charted in college. Heres how we stack this years safety class: Mickey Welsh/The Montgomery Advertiser via USA TODAY Sports, Sign up for the The Draft Wire newsletter to get our top stories in your inbox every morning. If youve watched Kyle Hamilton in his role this season with the Ravens, thats a good idea of what we can expect from Johnson at the next level. This most recent season saw him post career-low marks in overall grade (65.8) and coverage grade (61.5), which drags him outside of the top 10, such is the strength of competition. Tier 1 consists of the players expected to be taken in the first round. 2023 NFL Draft S Rankings (Shane) by Shane Hallam August 17, 2022 0 1430. 2021 NFL Draft Safety Rankings 1. His man coverage skills are very good for a safety of his size, and hes a quality run defender as well. Cincinnati S James Wiggins is an under the radar G5 defensive prospect for the 2020 NFL Draft. Great read and closing speed here for the INT. pic.twitter.com/3Y9ouDvn4r Some believe Trevon Moehriq is the best safety in the nation. Production often translates and Anderson has the height, weight and speed to be a top-10 edge rusher in the NFL. Micah Hyde and Jordan Poyer each fit into this category for the Buffalo Bills and together may form the best safety duo in the league. That snap breakdown is precisely what most safeties at the next level will be asked to do. Coverage is king in todays NFL, and the safety position is pivoting toward players who excel deep downfield. His acceleration for a 6-foot-3 safety is what really makes him unique. Thats all well and good, but it's fairly meaningless if you cant cover. All Rights Reserved. One could not find a pass rusher more productive than Will Anderson Jr. over the past two seasons. Super informed fan? * No. WebOUR RATING 95.0 OG All Scouts Average Overall Rank 3.9 All Scouts Average Position Rank 1 Height Feet 6-7 Weight Lbs 350lbs College Junior Alabama Forty Time Secs 5.37 Player Summary Neal is the consensus #1 tackle in the 2022 NFL Draft and is viewed as an almost can't miss prospect by most scouts. Over the last two seasons, Simmons has the No. But when the team traded Adams to Seattle, Maye was able to step into that role and show that he can also do a bit of everything well. With the rise of two-high safety looks in the NFL, the slot position has evolved into an integral part of so many defenses around the league. Hes been instinctual ever since he stepped on the field at Alabama for 290 snaps as a true freshman. Was seen on tape or inspire a second look the No been ever... View expert mock drafts be asked to do a top-10 edge rusher the... Instinctual ever since he was still above average in every facet of that... 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