Patriots take defender who scared opposing coaches in latest mock draft
Good luck finding a mock draft that doesn’t have the New England Patriots taking a cornerback, offensive line, or some rare occasions, a wide receiver. Bruce Feldman of The Athletic posted a mock Friday that had the Patriots taking Illinois cornerback Devon Witherspoon. Included in Feldman’s mock were quotes from coaches. Witherspoon was described as […]
Good luck finding a mock draft that doesn’t have the New England Patriots taking a cornerback, offensive line, or some rare occasions, a wide receiver.
Bruce Feldman of The Athletic posted a mock Friday that had the Patriots taking Illinois cornerback Devon Witherspoon.
Included in Feldman’s mock were quotes from coaches. Witherspoon was described as physical, tough and savvy, a player who understands the game with rare instincts and “by far the best corner in our league.”
This quote stood out most, however:
“He has great football IQ. He’s really physical at the line of scrimmage; really fits the run; loves to throw his body around. We put an ‘X’ (on our scouting report) to go away from him. We were scared to attack him.”
Feldman was smart to point out that Witherspoon was coached by Bret Bielema at Illinois. Bielema spent two seasons as an assistant with the Patriots in between head coaching gigs at Arkansas and Illinois.
Witherspoon is 5-foot-11, 181 pounds. He didn’t work out at the NFL Scouting Combine because of a hamstring injury. He didn’t work out at his pro day by choice. He has a 73 5/8-inch wingspan, 8 7/8-inch hands and 31 1/4-inch arms.
He had PFF’s highest coverage grade among FBS cornerbacks last season and allowed just 22 catches on 62 targets for 206 yards with no touchdowns, three interceptions, 14 pass breakups and a 25.3 passer rating.
It’s a loaded draft for cornerbacks, and Witherspoon, Oregon’s Christian Gonzalez, Penn State’s Joey Porter Jr., and Maryland’s Deonte Banks all are expected to be taken around New England’s 14th overall selection. Mississippi State’s Emmanuel Forbes, Georgia’s Kelee Ringo, Michigan’s DJ Turner, South Carolina’s Cam Smith and Kansas State’s Julius Brents, among many others, are highly regarded.
It would be wise for the Patriots, given their need at cornerback, to take a player at the position within the first three rounds. Jonathan Jones, Jack Jones, Marcus Jones and Myles Bryant are New England's top cornerbacks. All four players are on the smaller side and could struggle to defend more physical wide receivers.
