I wouldn't be mad at all if we drafted the #1 safety in the nation, 6'3" ball hawk Grant Delpit, as long as the Cowboys staff feels as though they can improve his tackling. I'll help with a scouting report:
Coverage Spacing - His range is pretty incredible. For a tall, lean build, he's incredibly fluid and has good linear burst and football IQ to break and challenge routes as a single high defender or as a rat/robber in the shallow areas to jump into throwing lanes. He's a high production safety with good contest skills and quick twitch.
Acceleration - He can fly. When he triggers from center field and into the flats, he's routinely beating teammates to the football. He's aided by quick processing power but he's also got the kind of true deep middle range and burst and juice to be an impact player if you want to play him 15 yards off the football.
Tackling - Man, he's frustrating here. He seems hesitant with the left shoulder to throw himself into tackles and he's super quick to drop his head and try to cut you down low. There's no reason for such lapses considering his reach and physical skill, which brings into question if he's physically/mentally over his 2018 clavicle injury.
Zone Coverage Skills - He's a ball hawk and hunter in intermediate spaces. Can be a true weapon to bust up RPOs with his length, range and reactive quickness. Shows good ball tracking skills in vertical reps and does well to flip, open and attack the football. He's capable of producing a ton of turnovers in zone.
Ball Skills - Length, hand-eye coordination and physicality all come into play and shine for him here. He's combative at the catch point, a comfortable hands catcher and he's got the quickness to undercut throws if the ball hangs or if a quarterback leaves his throws inside by mistake.
Competitive Toughness - His effort level is really nice. He's all over the field and constantly around the football. Functional strength in man coverage or when working the catch point should also be considered a plus. That said, he's going to need to figure out his tackling inconsistencies — it's a pretty notable wart on his current resume.
Flexibility - Fluid. He's one of the more naturally moving safety prospects in recent memory. His hips flip at degrees that shouldn't be possible and he's got a real dynamic base to plant and drive from steep angles. Hardly ever wastes a step because of how free his base and feet are to drop and collect momentum with force.
Feet/COD - Foot speed is tremendous. It's all second nature, too — doesn't have to think about his buzz or deep landmark drops and his short area adjustments in a deep pedal are excellent. Springing forward or laterally offers little challenge and allows him to cover ground swiftly.
Man Coverage Skills - Has ability to play press in the red zone and he's not going to panic with his back to the ball. He's better when he can hunt or prowl but should be considered a viable slot defender or match-up defender with tight ends because of his size. If he's healthy, there's no play call that should pull him off the field.
Versatility - High blitz productivity and role in the box throughout stretches of college career. He's a valued defender that can play man, play deep zone, buzz the intermediates, blitz off the edge or be a run defender from 2nd or 3rd level. Blend of quickness, length open the door for plethora of roles.
---
Best Trait - Football IQ
Worst Trait - Tackling
Best Film - Florida (2019)
Worst Film - Alabama (2019)
Red Flags - 2018 Broken Clavicle
Player Summary - Grant Delpit projects as an impact defender at the NFL level. Tackling issues in the open field will put off some teams, but he's physically capable of booming hits and his foundation as a player is a pretty rare blend of skills — making him an enticing every down defender that can be a centerpiece to weekly game plans. Delpit has high football intelligence and can handle any number of roles or responsibilities, adding him to a roster will add infinite flexibility to back-end coverage combos.
