Our final major positional group big board is here just in time for Thursday night’s NFL Draft festivities, and while there’s expected to be a run on corners on Thursday, expect to see at least one safety, if not two, taken in the first round.
This year’s safety class is an interesting one, with some big names from big programs, and a few non FBS players that have risen up boards during the process and figure to hear their name get called this weekend.
Tier 1
Grant Delpit: Beast. It’s pretty well-documented that Delpit’s tackling needs to improve — he needed collarbone surgery in 2018 and it can seem like that’s stuck with him — but he plays hard and is a breathtaking center fielder. His instincts and nose for the ball when it’s in the air is something you cannot teach, but at the same time, he’s willing to do what’s asked of him in coverage. The tackling stuff really is perplexing, because if he shores that up, he could legitimately be one of the best safeties in all of football. He’s also a two-time consensus All-American and won the Jim Thorpe Award last year, so he’s surely doing something right.
Xavier McKinney: Alabama safeties are given lots of responsibility in Nick Saban’s defense, adn McKinney’s production is representative of that. He led the Tide with 95 tackles, including 5.5 for loss and three sacks. He had three picks, one of which he took to the house, and tacked on five pass breakups, five QB hurries, four forced fumbles, and a block on special teams. He’s a special, versatile player and likely will be the first safety taken in this year’s draft.
Antoine Winfield Jr: He’s had some injuries that limited him to four games in 2017 and 2018. He’s not huge (5’9, 203). I do not care, I love this guy. He battles on every single possession and has the instincts, football IQ, and confidence to trust them that can only come when you are raised by a Pro Bowl defensive back. His senior year was special: 83 tackles, 3.5 TFLs, three sacks, and seven interceptions. Was a unanimous All-American and the Big Ten’s Defensive Back of the Year, the latter of which is doubly impressive when you consider that a top-3 pick played corner in the conference.
Big plays are in his genes, but Antoine Winfield Jr. (@AntoineWJr11) has made a name for himself.
Where do you want to see the @GopherFootball star land in the @NFL? pic.twitter.com/0P5UaSp9yo
— Minnesota on BTN (@MinnesotaOnBTN) April 22, 2020
Tier 2
Jeremy Chinn: Chinn is a freak athlete and there are some that see him as a first round talent. He’s 6’3, 221 pounds, runs a 4.45, threw up 20 reps on the bench, and jumped out of the gym with a 41 inch vert and 11’6 broad jump. He comes from FCS Southern Illinois where he had 71 tackles and four picks a year ago. He provides positional versatility as well as such an intriguing skillset that it’s easy to see why he’s been a riser on boards throughout the process.
Ashtyn Davis: Like this dude’s game. He plays hard and isn’t afraid of anything, and seems like he could end up being quite the free safety in the league. Walked on at Cal and turned himself into a two-time all-conference selection, a first-team pick in 2018 and a second-team selection in 2019. Certainly plays with a former walk-on’s edge. A fast dude who processes the game well, Davis is a good last line of defense. Returned kicks, too, and was an NCAA Indoor All-American as a hurdler.
Tier 3
Kyle Dugger: As we’ve always said here at Uproxx Sports: Do not sleep on prospects coming out of Lenoir-Rhyne University. Dugger put on a show at a combine, running a 4.49 40 with a position-best 42-inch vertical and a 134-inch broad jump at 6’1 and 217 pounds. Obviously the big issue is the jump from Division II football to the NFL, but thanks to his special athleticism, he’s a big ball of clay that is worth taking on as a project.
Terrell Burgess: Hi, here again to spread the good news of a Utah guy. Burgess is a corner turned safety, so he’s got some coverage ability running a 4.46 at the Combine, and he’s a Utah guy, so while he’s not the hardest hitter, he’s not afraid of physicality. He could go late Day 2 or early Day 3 and will be beloved by whatever DC lands him.
Alohi Gilman: The Notre Dame product isn’t an athlete that wows you, but he’s a physical presence in the run game and his best attribute is his non-stop motor. He’s going to be a Day 3 pick, but will stick somewhere because of what he can do as a box safety playing against the run and because he’ll be a great special teams player.
K’Von Wallace: Starting to think Clemson’s pretty good at churning out potential pros! Wallace was a productive player the last few years for the Tigers and had a nice (albeit not earth-shattering) combine, coming in at 5’11, 206. Unsure whether or not he can be a consistent starting safety in the league — doesn’t quite have the length or the kind of speed where he can serve as a last line of defense — but he plays with a chip on his shoulder and is not concerned about being physical.