Florida Gators CB Kaiir Elam 'High' on PFF's Radar Heading Into 2020
As has been the case throughout the offseason, Gators cornerback Kaiir Elam is generating more buzz as one of the top players in the SEC, and was also, according to Pro Football Focus, the Gators' most valuable player in 2019.
PFF cites their Wins Above Average (WAA) metric as reasoning for Elam's importance, noting that it was Elam, not former Gators cornerback CJ Henderson or quarterback Kyle Trask who earned the title as the team's most valuable player even though he played just 310 total snaps for the team last season.
Elam was also chosen by the SI Publishers' Preseason All-SEC team, making first-team honors along with quarterback Kyle Trask and tight end Kyle Pitts.
RELATED: Four Florida Gators on SI Publishers 2020 Preseason All-SEC Teams
Following the departure of Henderson, who was selected by the Jacksonville Jaguars with the ninth overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft, Elam is now expected to man the Gators' No. 1 cornerback position, becoming the team's lockdown on one side of the defense. For that, he is high on PFF's radar as one of the five SEC players they'll be taking a closer look at.
"He consistently wins the leverage battle downfield and has plus instincts and length for the position. With that, he came away with six combined pass breakups and interceptions while allowing only 10 catches on 23 targets," said PFF writer Anthony Treash.
"Elam ended up earning an 87.8 PFF grade for the year, the fourth-best we have ever seen by a true freshman cornerback. Obviously, the loss of Henderson to the NFL is a big one, but you likely won’t see a change for the worse if Elam plays as he did last season. In fact, you might even see a better Florida secondary in 2020 because of Elam’s elevated role."
As the fourth-best grade by a true freshman cornerback, Elam will have a lot to live up to, however, his teammates appear certain he is up for the challenge. During his pre-spring press conference in March, Gators cornerback/STAR Marco Wilson spoke about Elam's readiness.
“Kaiir [Elam] is coming along great," said Wilson. I know he’s going to be a great player and we’ve just been getting extra work during the offseason, kind of what me and CJ [Henderson] used to do together to make each other better. I’ve also been bringing all the other guys along so it’s not just me and Kaiir. I’m trying to get everybody to be on the same level. A high level.”
During the season last year, Wilson and Henderson were routinely some of the last players to leave the practice field following their conclusion. The work ethic and leadership ability that Elam possess have already begun to get noticed around the Gators' locker room and that's special for such a young player.
“It’s usually the older guys [that are leaders] but there are definitely some guys like Kaiir that are looked at as a leader," Wilson said when asked about the leaders in the locker room. "Anyone that does the right things on and off the field, if you just speak up and voice your opinion people are going to listen because we all respect each other.”
Elam has the makings of a true star for Florida as long as he continues to progress the way, seemingly everyone, believes he will.
