Slot Corner ~ Will Redmond ~ Mississippi State BullDogs ~ 5106/182
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:
Slot Corners ~ Upon Further Review, I confess that I believe that I went A Bridge Too Far with this Business of rebranding Slot Corners as CenterFielders. CenterFielders ~ "Free Safeties" to you Earthlings!! ~ are optimally Hybrids capable of Direct Coverage, anyway, and my premise that Slot Corners ought to be able to manifest the Processing Speed that CenterFielders need, as well as the Run Defense Aspect of a CenterFielder was pushing Evolution too fast.
It would be terrific for Defenses if Slot Corners were all spry yet beefy 5090/210 Pounders whose Frames could stand up to the rigors of the Run Defense that is an important Aspect of a CenterFielder's Game.
But even then, their Height would be a Liability in surveying the Tactical LandScape.
Slot Corners 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.
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, Navigating Traffic, Processing Speed, Motor, and Tackling.
Pass Coverage: Combat Skills, Agility, Processing Speed, and Catch Point Capacity.
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
* Navigating Traffic
* Processing Speed
* Motor
* Tackling
Pass Coverage
* Combat Skills
* Agility
* Processing Speed
* Catch Point Capacity
Processing Speed: Impressive, both in Pass Coverage and in Run Defense.
Run Defense: Impressive, which is shocking. Mediocre Combat Skills and Tackling, because of his short Arms, but impressive Field Vision, impressive Click & Close Speed, and a tremendous Appetite for Combat.
Pass Coverage: His moderate Fluidity is a Liability at Slot Corner, but while he's not smooth, he is very Quick, extremely Sharp, and sensationally Fast. He is not the Perfect Fit at Slot Corner, but with those Attributes and his impressive Processing Speed, he should match up very nicely with many Receiver both Inside and Outside.
The Sub Package Is The New Base, baby!!
Even though he's almost 5110, Redmond is definitely a Slot Corner, I think, because he's inhibited not only by being Short, but also by his short Arms. He would therefore be a Liability against taller WideOuts as a Boundary Corner ~ or against Flex Ends as a Slot Corner, for that matter ~ I believe. But while I'm calling Slot Corner his Skill Set, I'll add that he's definitely got the Speed and Fluidity to match up with many WideOuts as a Boundary Corner.
He's a tricky Evaluation, because his moderate Fluidity greatly inhibits his Efficacy as a Slot Corner who'll of course be tasked with trying to mirror SlotBacks and other Spry Flies, yet his combination of short Arms and short Height are a Liability as a Boundary Corner...What I come up with is a Prospect who, through no fault of'is own, is what I'll call a Tactically High Maintenance Prospect: A guy you have to deploy carefully, but who can pay of richly if you do.
Match him up against a Super Serpentine SlotBack, and he'll get burned all day long.
Match'm up against a quality Split End on the Boundary, and he'll get burned...all day long.
But I believe that he can nevertheless match up nicely against many SlotBacks, most Slot Ends, and virtually every Zoomer Flanker. Yes, against the Fastest of the Fast, I believe that Will Redmond's Team has an extraordinary Weapon.
Yes, even though I profile'm as a Slot Corner, I believe that if things work out best for'm, half'f'is Snaps and probably his most crucial Work will come as a Boundary Corner. It ultimately depends on'is DC, of course.
There is of course the matter of his ACL Injury. As my beloved Steady Readers might remember, I discount when I perceive that a Prospect's Long Term Health is in question, but not because of an Injury that casts his Rookie Year in Doubt.
A Year deferred is only that. And while, as a budding Financial Analyst, I understand and love the Concept of Time Value, in FootBall, I attribute only a marginal loss of Value to a Year deferred, not enough to register on my Radar.
Grateful Thanks, as always, for the crucial Work done by the folks at Draft BreakDown!!
Market Value #68 | Yankee Grade 2nd/3rd Round |
This is not is even remotely a Complaint, mind you, but rather a Warning: Caveat Emptor!!