From now until the 2019 NFL Draft takes place, we hope to showcase as many prospects as possible and examine both their strengths and weaknesses. Most of these profiles will feature individuals that the Pittsburgh Steelers are likely to have an interest in, while a few others will be top-ranked players. If there is a player you would like us to analyze, let us know in the comments below.
#18 Deandre Baker/CB Georgia – 5’11 185
The Good
– Good size and looks even bigger than he’s listed
– Fantastic athlete, great straight line speed, fluid player in his transitions and change of direction
– Plays the ball in the air as well as you could expect, routinely breaks the ball up, and times his leaps on jump balls in the end zone very well
– Excellent in man coverage, runs with the best players, and shows good eye discipline, not fooled by double-moves
– Capable in press man, patience in his pedal and doesn’t offer a clean release
– Shows veteran tools (like speed turn) to recover when beat off the line
– Productive player against top, SEC competition
– Experience at both corner spots, though more time at right than left
– Solid starting experience
– Decorated, durable player with tons of accolades
The Bad
– Needs to more disciplined in zone coverage, can get locked in on the QB and lose track of route distribution around him
– Weak against the run, struggles to get off stalk blocks by WRs in the run game, need to see more urgency
– Inconsistent tackler who needs to show more power and take higher angles, drops his head and goes for the cutdown too often against running backs
– Will punch with wrong hand in press coverage and be a little late opening his hips but has athleticism to recover
Bio
– Three year starter, 34 in his Georgia career
– Career: 116 tackles, 23 breakups, seven interceptions
– 2018: 40 tackles, nine breakups, two picks
– Highly decorated senior season, AP All-American and 2018 Jim Thorpe Winner, awarded to top DB in college football
– Ran track and field in high school in addition to playing football (200 and 400 meter dash)
Tape Breakdown
Baker is actually a relatively easy breakdown judging what he did and didn’t do well at the college level, which is why his Good/Bad isn’t as extensive as others.