San Francisco 49ers should be very interested spectators at Cooper DeJean's long-awaited workout
The 2024 NFL Draft is a little under three weeks away, and one of the more polarizing prospects in the class will hope to make a late impression on Monday. Having been cleared for football activity after suffering a broken fibula in practice last November, DeJean will workout for teams in an individual pro day. […]
The 2024 NFL Draft is a little under three weeks away, and one of the more polarizing prospects in the class will hope to make a late impression on Monday.
Having been cleared for football activity after suffering a broken fibula in practice last November, DeJean will workout for teams in an individual pro day.
The Iowa cornerback is widely considered as a top-five player at the position by draft experts, but his experience playing safety along with concerns about his ability to hold up in man coverage have led to a debate about his position at the next level.
Some believe he can make it as a corner at the highest level, while others feel a transition to safety may be the best way to make the most of his athletic gifts.
As such, he has one of the highest range of outcomes of any prospect in the draft. DeJean could be a top-15 pick, or he could fall to a point where he is at risk of dropping out of the first round altogether.
Therefore, although the San Francisco 49ers do not have a pick in the first round until the 31st overall selection, they should be keen observers at DeJean's pro day irrespective of whether they believe he is a corner or a safety at the highest level.
Safety net
San Francisco's top two corners, Charvarius Ward and Deommodore Lenoir, are both free agents next offseason, while they have a lack of depth at the safety position. Ji'Ayir Brown had an interception in the Super Bowl and enjoyed an encouraging rookie season but played only five regular season games, while 2022 All-Pro Talanoa Hufanga is coming off the torn ACL that pressed Brown into action.
There is no guarantee of Brown taking the leap in year two or of Hufanga returning to his previous form coming off the injury. At the very least, the 49ers need insurance, DeJean could give them that and then some.
Brown is at his best when he can rely on his combination of instincts and athleticism when working from depth. Hufanga is better as a coverage defender than he is given credit for, but that is still the most inconsistent element of his game. He is at his best attacking downhill, with his knack for making splash plays in that regard the main reason why he is a tremendous asset.
DeJean would not only provide the 49ers with insurance behind that duo, but he would also lessen the need for Brown and Hufanga to play the slot.
Brown displayed some promising signs as a slot defender last season, but coverage in that area is not the forte of either of the 49ers' starting safeties. By contrast, DeJean is a much more natural fit at that position, which he could play regardless of whether the Niners label him as a corner or a safety.
Indeed, the lack of clarity over DeJean's position, justified or not, is something that should be celebrated as a feather in his cap rather than a question-mark.
A problem solver
For the 49ers, adding him would potentially allow them to keep Deommodore Lenoir at outside corner rather than rotating him inside on nickel downs. By the same token, if the Niners saw him as a natural outside corner rather than a slot, DeJean could be used to facilitate Lenoir kicking inside.
The Niners did not use any six defensive back looks in 2023, but adding a player of DeJean's talents and potential versatility could encourage them to do so, while three safety-packages on base downs that see him line up next to Brown with Hufanga moved down into the box could be very appealing to a team that may well start the season without WILL linebacker Dre Greenlaw.
Questions over DeJean's role may present a problem for some teams but, for the 49ers a skill set that could allow him to play several positions could be a problem solver, giving them depth at three positions in the secondary and possibly minimizing the issue of a lack of athleticism next to Fred Warner at linebacker by enabling Hufanga to spend more time operating as a de-facto linebacker.
And he is a problem solver whose traits fit the 49er defense excellently.
A potential trade candidate
DeJean is a superb zone defender who demonstrates great awareness and plays with excellent eyes to the football, looking in command at all times. He transitions out of his pedal extremely efficiently and can reduce separation in a hurry, with his ability to disrupt at the catch point and natural ball skills allowing him to rack up seven interceptions in his final two seasons.
Despite doubts about his man coverage, the 49ers should also have been suitably intrigued by the mix of physicality and athleticism in those situations.
DeJean is consistently aggressive in attempting to disrupt receivers with physical play but is similarly reliant on some impressive stop-start quickness.
In his plan of attack in coverage and in his potential varied role at the next level, DeJean is a diverse prospect entering a league increasingly defined by position-less football. The 49ers have long since valued such positional diversity among their players and would be extremely lucky to land a player who could improve their secondary depth, enable them to play the matchup game and mix up their coverages.
It's probably still unlikely that DeJean will fall into their lap. However, for a perennial Super Bowl contender that has never shied away from aggressive decisions, Monday could be important in determining whether he is worthy of an ambitious move up the board if DeJean starts to slide.
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