John Reid, Penn State
Round Grade: 4th
Value: Steal
Percentage Available: 100%
As mentioned earlier in the article, the picks were made based on the TDN big board. I would feel a lot more comfortable drafting Reid earlier, especially over Hand who was the fourth-round pick. Typically in the late rounds, teams love drafting athletic specimens with the hope they can develop into something more than a special teams player.
John Reid is an uber-athletic profile. He also isn’t a raw prospect.
The Nittany Lion stands at 5-foot-10, 187 pounds with 30 1/8 inch arms. His stature doesn’t typically match someone who plays on the outside, but it is more than fine for a nickel cornerback. After running a 4.46-second 40-yard dash, Reid followed it up with a 6.95-second 3-cone drill and a 3.97-second short shuttle.
The fantastic times were great for evaluators because they confirmed he can play in the slot. In college, he played a lot on the outside and typically in zone coverage. He used his rangy speed and agility to cover receivers to switch between assignments and to break on the ball in hopes of an interception or a pass deflection. Reid’s ball skills coupled with his athleticism prevented a lot of big completions in Happy Valley.
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In man, Reid could struggle, but that had more to do with his length and strength than it did his technique. Against bigger receivers, Reid’s 30-inch arms won’t stand a chance in disrupting the routes and releases of bigger receivers. Even if he was sticky in coverage, all it took was a nicely placed ball by the quarterback to keep it away from Reid. However, in the slot and playing off the line, Reid’s reaction time and athleticism allowed him to shine.
His short-area quickness is excellent and it will allow him to be sticky against quicker slot receivers. He won’t have to always deal with the physicality of wide receivers.
Reid could be more consistent with how he opens his hips as sometimes it takes longer and he misses a break on the ball. Otherwise, Reid could translate into a solid nickel cornerback for a team. In a scheme that saw him play a lot of zone, he will probably be asked to play more man coverage as a result of the position change.
In a cornerback draft class filled with a lot of good talent at the top, there seemed to have been great value until the seventh round. It is unclear how this coaching staff ranks positional value, but no matter how they do so they can find someone good enough to play at all parts of the draft.