CB prospects and their draft projections

These are some guys are projected to go in the 2nd and later rounds. These projections are from CBSsports.com
Keith McGill of Utah 6-3 ft and Stanley Jean-Baptiste of Nebraska 6-3ft both of these guys are in the Richard Sherman mode of CB, they're projected to go in the 2nd or 3rd round.
Walt Aikens of Liberty rd 4 or 5
Ross Cockrell of Duke rd 4 or 5
Antone Exum of Virginia Tech rd 5 or 6
Phillip Gaines of Rice rd 3
Pierre Desir of Lindenwood rd 3

 

i took mcgill in the forum fantasy draft, with the 2nd pick in the 3rd rd. the guy after me selected bapiste. He was my backup pick too, i like them both.

 

Desir has done a lot to make some heads turn at some events.

 

The guys in this group that really stand out to me are Gaines and Desir. I'd be all over either of them with the compensatory 3rd. Exum is unique in that he has the capability to be a safety prospect as well, and in the 5th round he could have some value. Aikens has some off the field things that I'd be concerned about, but he is definitely a solid player. I don't know tons about McGill, so I'll hold my judgement. The only guy I wouldn't touch is Stanley Jean-Baptiste.

 

Phillip Gaines ran a 4.3 forty some scout said he could sneak into the second round they think.

 

I saw he's been moved up into 2nd rd. consideration. he is a good cover man. fuller is also bumping up against dennard too.

 

I think EJ Gaines would be a great pickup. Seems like our kind of CB as he is physical against the run as well. In my pre-combine mock I posted on here I had us taking him in the 2nd as I thought he'd climb up draft boards. Maybe the fact that he didn't do most drills at combine has prevented him from that rise I expected, but needless to say this guy would be a steal in round 3 with our comp pick and absolute robbery if we could get him in the 4th IMO.

 

He's projected to go in the 4th, I think they should target the bigger CB in the draft IMO.

 

frankly I would be happy with any of them at the point they are projected. I think the value is better in mid rounds than early rounds.

 

All I have to say about which CB/etc...I dont care the round (though earlier the better probably)...or who they are and so on....but I DO CARE...that they are not a project and can step in and contribute early and potentially be a starter and not take 3-4 years to develop and so on. If they want one of those guys that could be good but will take some time...then they need to double dip...pick one early and then a development guy later.

 

there are probably more "get on the field early" players in this draft as any I can remember ever, at CB. there are some really good coverage guys deep into this years picks. maybe we get real lucky this year on a couple of good draft picks and some PS gems too. that would be taking full advantage of what's been delivered to us in a year we need it. fill that need but don't overlook our need for pressure up front too. whether it's OLB'ers or DE's. these guys will be harder to come by, so you better get them early. at least if we want to upgrade what we have or not.

 

If they double dip at CB the one they take early needs to be able to play right away, the later round CB can be more of a developmental type of player.

 

It does raise an interesting question if we have quality guys up front who can get to the QB and constantly pressure him does that then allow you to draft middle of the road talent at the defensive back position or if you draft high quality CB and defensive backs that can blanket the other teams wide receiving options does it allow you to have an average front line that gets pressure on the QB eventually?

 

I think we need to face the fact that there are probably no cb's in this draft who can walk in and cover/support as well as Ike did up till last year. In fact there are probably none who can beat him out as a starter this year. Maybe he's done but I still think he's the best bet for next season and the real key is if Allen improves.

 

If we're depending on Ike to be our best bet at CB next season then we are screwed, Gilbert and Dennard could probably beat Ike out of the starter role even if they don't will get a lot of playing time.

 

can they beat out allen, gay and McCain? Thomas? we'd like to think so, but we don't know that. there has been some concerns recently about gilberts quickness numbers. scouts saying he's a straight line speed guy and are worried about his short area quickness in coverage. ( don't shoot the messenger)

I will say, ike usually bounces back after a bad season with a good one. will he show us that again? he's been a pretty solid corner for us for years and we forget he was rarely hurt. can we count on any of the others for an ironman like performance down the line?

 

We also need to keep in mind that with Clark obviously slowed, Troy playing a modified LB, and Thomas a rookie Ike rarely got much help on the #1 WR's last year. Just because you may not still be a total shutdown guy doesn't mean you are done as a CB-I sure don't expect any rookie on this Board to be one of those.

 

I agree about Clark last season he was no help at all the cornerbacks didn't get much support from the safeties.