Broncos Sign Ex-Fangio CB Kevin Toliver to Practice Squad, per Report
The Denver Broncos' just filled the last open spot on the practice squad by signing third-year cornerback Kevin Tolliver. Brad James of the Chicago Tribune broke the news on Sunday.
The signing has been confirmed by Denver media. Tolliver joined the Chicago Bears in 2018 as an undrafted free agent coming out of LSU in 2018. The good news is he has experience in Vic Fangio and Ed Donatell's defensive system after spending his rookie campaign with them in Chicago.
Scouting Report
Toliver is also blessed with good size at 6-foot-2 and 200 pounds. Importantly, he has fairly oily hips for a bigger cornerback and showed polished technique in college to stay in phase with receivers throughout their route, though in the NFL that has been much harder for him.
The 2020 season will be Tolliver's age-25 campaign and would represent his third accrued season. While the Broncos' defense is primarily zone coverage- based, Toliver is most promising in press-man coverage, and Fangio will have to mix up the coverages to keep opposing offenses guessing.
Toliver can drive to the catch-point but must make more plays on the football. He had just two interceptions in his college career, and while picks are not the be-all-and-end-all, he had 10 pass break-ups in his final season at LSU in 2017.
In a twist of fate, Toliver was waived on Saturday despite competing with 2020 second-round pick Jaylon Johnson for the starting role opposite Kyle Fuller throughout the offseason. The Bears ended up keeping just five cornerbacks on their initial 53-man roster.
The veteran Buster Skrine is also expected to play some outside cornerback as well in Chicago. Appearing 27 games over the last two seasons with two starts, when Tolliver did play with the Bears, the results were mixed at best.
NFL Resume
In 2019, Toliver compiled a 46.9 coverage grade from Pro Football Focus, which came on 100 coverage snaps. He gave up 11 completions on 16 targets, for a 69 percent completion rate, 162 yards, and a touchdown, with an allowed passer rating of 122.4 against him, per Pro Football Reference.
Most of those yards were in the air, with just 21 yards allowed after contact. In the run game, Toliver compiled a 68.2 PFF grade on 75 run defensive snaps, with 13 solo tackles and two assisted tackles, but concerningly, he missed four tackles per PFR.
Over his two years with the Bears, Toliver had seven run-stuffs and four pass breakups with no picks. In 2018, he had a 54.8 PFF grade in 104 coverage snaps, and a more promising 76.5 grade in run defense on 32 snaps.
Broncos fans have seen Toliver in action before. In Chicago's 2018 preseason game against the Broncos, Toliver appeared to be burned for a red-zone touchdown by Courtland Sutton, but it seemed he was expecting the Bears' linebacker to have inside coverage and the miscommunication was more to blame for the touchdown than poor coverage by Toliver himself.
He is best served as an outside cornerback and boundary corner depth is an issue for the Broncos, so he does fill a need there. Despite his flashes in press-man, he was pretty raw with his overall technique.
Tolliver's experience on special teams is limited to the kickoff unit, as in 2018, he had a penalty for going out of bounds before the catch. He has one defensive pass interference penalty on 3rd-&-10 for 14 yards.
Red Flags
With Toliver, there are a few red-flags, and while he is a late addition to the practice squad, based on his history with Fangio and Donatell, the coaches have a comfort level with him as a player and person. Tellingly, according to Chicago beat writer JJ Stankevitz, Bears' defensive backs coach DeShea Townsend, when asked a few weeks ago if Kevin Toliver could handle a starting job, said, "That’s up to Kevin. One thing that I talked to him about is the mental part of the game. That’s the part of the game that separates you and that’s up to him."
Toliver had some injury issues in college, having a shortened 2016 season where he fell behind the likes of Greedy Williams and Donte Jackson. While college recruiting isn't always an exact science, it's a concern when a highly rated high-school prospect at a big Power 5 program has underperformed.
In 2016 Toliver had a suspension for missing team meetings. He played his freshman season with a torn rotator cuff in his right shoulder, had it surgically-repaired, recovered after missing Spring Practice, and then reaggravated it.
Through the draft process, Toliver was dealing with a hamstring issue that caused him to not go through the full series of drills so he didn't run the 40-yard dash or go through the agility drills.
Toliver needs to be more secure when driving to the ball-carrier, squaring up and getting a solid wrap to finish more plays consistently. He's more of a banger where he goes low, which puts him at risk of being hurdled or bouncing off the back.
Too often, Toliver relies too much on others to finish the play. While he has good height, he does lack length, having just a 73-3/8-inch wingspan and 30-1/8-inch arms. He does have solid play strength and can control the rep but his athleticism is only sufficient for the NFL.
Toliver's click-and-close is a little sloppy, though his closing speed is sufficient. He needs to trust what he sees more and break decisively once he sees it. In zone coverage, he can lose track of players entering his zone.
In the running game, he needs to do a better job getting off his blocks, despite his physicality in the passing game and being better with his run fit. When he has control of the rep, he can do a good job, but there were many plays in college where he allowed too much separation, especially on in-breaking routes.
With the NFL's increasing use of option routes he has to tighten up his coverage or he will allow easy completions. Toliver needs to be a better processor and show better anticipation, and his experience as the nickel is minimal, so he's pretty much a boundary-only prospect.
He utilizes more of a shuffle technique and not a traditional backpedal, but it's not really a negative, though he can be guilty of false-steps which give receivers easier separation. He has not been a threat as a blitzer in the NFL despite some flashes in that area in college.
Bottom Line
This isn't just a throwaway move though. The Broncos have shown that they are willing to stash players on their practice squad as well as a willingness to promote from there to the active roster. After carrying four offensive linemen, the Broncos only have four defensive backs on the practice squad: safety P.J. Locke, Alijah Holder — listed at safety, although he has cornerback experience — and De'Vante Bausby after he passed through waivers.
The Broncos' starting secondary seems to be set for now but expect the team to continue to churn the free-agent market to add to its practice squad and active roster. For now, though, Toliver is quality depth at a position where the Broncos need quality depth.
With questions abound regarding Davontae Harris, Bausby, and Holder, and hopefully, Toliver is past the growing pains that make it difficult for cornerbacks to adjust to the NFL and he may yet carve out a role on Sundays.
Follow James on Twitter @JamesC_MHH and @MileHighHuddle.
