CornerBack ~ Jalen Tabor ~ Florida Gators
6003/198
Old Roles are getting dramatically transformed, and virtually every Front 7 ~ or Front 6!! ~ Defensive Job Description is transitioning into an Hybrid Role where the Defender is asked to excel in multiple Roles and in multiple Fronts.
For that reason, and in order to offer NomenClature that speaks not to archaic, obsolete "Positions", but rather to Skill Sets that accurately reflect the dynamic Changes of the 21st Century Game and the Roles they have spawned, I have undertaken to craft Terminology that is designed to break Skill Sets down as they really are.
Defensive Coordinators have, since Time Immemorial, employed highly creative terminology in devising Defenses and in designating Assignments. In that Spirit, I have admittedly indulged myself considerably in devising the following NomenClature. It is undeniably colorful, but I like to think that there's an underlying Logic, as well:
CornerBacks ~ I find it quite amusing that the very last Skill Set on my list is the only Defensive Skill Set ~ so far!! ~ for whom I haven't adapted or invented a new Term. The Prototype would be about 6000/195.
CornerBacks are of course Pass Defense Specialists, but I will include Run Defense in my Evaluations. But I will note, of course, that as with Blocking as it pertains to WideOuts, it is desirable, yes, but its absence is no Red Flag.
This is how I break down CornerBacks:
Agility: Acceleration, Ricochet, Fluidity, and Verticity ~ that's Turn & Burn Acuity, to you Earthlings!!
Processing Speed: How quickly and effectively one Reads & Reacts to the developing Play.
Run Defense: Power, Agility, Combat Skills, Processing Speed, Motor, and Tackling.
Pass Coverage: Agility, Processing Speed, and Field Vision.
CatchPoint Capacity: Tracking, Timing, Combat Skills, and WingSpan.
Broken down into SubCategories, it'd go something like this:
Agility
* Fluidity, above all things: Core Agility & Flexibility makes everything possible.
* Ricochet ~ How crisply and how rapidly one breaks in a new direction.
* Acceleration ~ Short Speed or Quickness. Closing Speed.
* Verticity ~ The Ability ~ or lack thereof ~ to Flips Hips and Turn & Burn in Pass Coverage.
Processing Speed
* How quickly and effectively one Reads & Reacts to the developing Play.
Run Defense
* Power
* Agility
* Combat Skills
* Processing Speed
* Motor
* Tackling
Pass Coverage
* Agility ~ Fluidity, Ricochet, Acceleration, and Speed, baby!!
* Processing Speed ~ Reading and Reacting with Speed & Precision to Offensive Tactics.
* Field Vision ~ Processing Speed with an emphasis on the Tactical LandScape.
CatchPoint Capacity
* Tracking
* Timing
* Combat Skills
* WingSpan
* Vertical Agility
Agility: Heh. Well, that's an interesting Subject, isn't it??
Rarely have The Tape and The Combine diverged so dramatically.
I read somewhere that 40's are thought by many ~ by none no more so than by me ~ to be significantly overrated...but that when it comes to CornerBacks, above all Positions or Roles...the 40 Time is absolutely crucial.
Yep.
Agility?? Awful. Tabor's Fluidity ~ which I absolutely value higher than Speed, even with CornerBacks ~ is exceptional, his horrible Short Shuttle and 3 Cone Times notwithstanding...But his Speed is nightmarishly slow.
And I ain't buying his Claim that he was dealing with a Hammy when he ran those Times.
Donkey Shit, I say.
Processing Speed: Exceptional. Tabor's an Ass...But he ain't dumb.
Run Defense: Marginal. Thinks he's a CornerBack. Plays Run Defense like a CornerBack. Should reconsider.
Pass Coverage: I'll grade'm in Bail & Trail, which is his best Deployment: Competitive. Bail & Trail, my term for Off Man, is basically set up to initially impede the WideOut's Stem by squatting at the Stem...and thence to improvise.
That matches up well with a Prospect like Tabor, who's slow as a SlugSloth, but who's quick and serpentine.
But if he lets'm get a Yard of Separation, he's Toast.
Catch Point Capacity: Excellent. Marginal Vertical Agility, but terrific Tracking & Timing and a tremendous WingSpan.
In any case: While I love Fallen Angels and almost always commence my Research with a Prejudice towards finding them to be Sleepers ~ as indeed I did in Tabor's Case ~ I cannot persuade myself that he is a Bargain.
Quite the Opposite.
I like Tabor's Savvy, and I like his Bravado...But I detest his Prima Donna Vibe, his Indifference to Run Defense, his horrific 40 Time...and he seems too given to Acting The Fool for me to consider'm a Good Bet to Do What It Takes.
He may quite possibly become all that he can be...But I sure's Hell wouldn't want to invest a lot to find out. Sell.
Grateful Thanks, as always, for the invaluable Work done by the folks at Draft BreakDown!!
OverRated!!
Market Value #53 | Yankee Grade 5th Round!! |
None of this is even remotely a Complaint, mind you, but rather a Warning!! Caveat Emptor!