2015 NFL Draft: A Scout's Eye View: Kevin Johnson CB Wake Forest

Kevin Johnson CB Wake Forest

Measurables: 6'1 188 31" arms and 8 3/8" hands

Combine Results: 4.52 40 yard dash, 41.5" vertical jump, 130" broad jump, 3.89 20 yard shuttle, 6.79 3 cone drill, 12.19 60 yard shuttle

Scouting Notes: Has a tall and thin frame, but has wiry strength for his size, possesses ideal height and length for the position, his outstanding leaping ability accentuates his length even more....Highly competitive player, plays with tremendous passion and doesn't back down from anyone on the field despite his lack of ideal size, he constantly plays with a high motor and takes pride in his performance on every snap, even in 2014 playing for a Wake Forest team that was often out of the game by the fourth quarter, he never took a play off and continued to play with a swagger, but a positive swagger, carrying himself with a belief that he's the best player on the field, capable and determined to make a game changing play on every given snap, has a playmakers mentality...Very aggressive, physical player, don't let lack of bulk fool you, he's a hitter whose ability and desire to deliver the knockout shot would have been valued much more a decade or two ago, but today might make some teams wary due to the amount of personal fouls and fines he's likely to rack up if he continues his style of play, nonetheless, most coaches will value his aggression and his ability to deliver a momentum changing hit and add a degree of nastiness to his secondary Ideally though he would do himself, his pocketbook and his team a favor by putting the breaks on launching himself into receivers, particularly defenseless receivers, which is obviously a hot button issue in todays safety conscious NFL...He's not just a hitter, he's also a sound, sure open field tackler who hits and wraps consistently and does a tremendous job of accelerating up field, closing up field very quickly against the run and especially blowing up the screen game, very impressive 0-60 acceleration...His aggression can work against him at times, he gets caught peeking in the backfield too long and he's susceptible to getting sucked in on pump fakes and double moves in the passing game...His overaggression also causes him to lose outside contain responsibility in the run game, and his competitiveness gets him caught up in extracurricular activites after the play including excess jabbering and taunting, some added discipline to rid him of the foolishness and overagression could be the difference between him being a solid corner and a standout corner at the next level...He's an outstanding and explosive athlete with impressive deep speed, capable of playing up on receivers and staying with them all over the field in man coverage...Covers quite a bit of ground quickly on his backpedel, capable of staying in it longer than most corners keeping his eyes in front of him...Stays balanced with sound body control on his flip and go, loose oily hips, turns and accelerates down the field seemlessly out of his backpedel...Has impressive recovery skills, not only has recovery speed but knows how to use his length, leaping ability and hand/eye coordination to make plays on the football when receivers get behind him...Has quality ball skills, not only good hand/eye coordination but sure, soft easy hands for a defensive back...Has some caginess to his game, likes to lag off his man and bait the quarterback into throwing the football before using his outstanding acceleration to break on the football... Very effective as an in the box defender, reads the play quickly from the edge, comes off the edge hard, flattens out, and makes plays for lost yardage in the backfield against the run...Was also a standout performer on special teams, particularly as a gunner in punt coverage, the role suits him well given how much he relishes the physicality of the game...Has all the physical tools to be an outstanding cover corner at the next level, quick feet, explosive acceleration, loose hips, strong body control and ball skills, sound tackling ability and all the deep speed he needs.  If he can add a bit more discipline to his aggressive and competitive approach, Johnson could and should be a top notch cover corner at the professional level.

Draft Grade: Mid to late 1st Round