30 Days of Colts' Fits: Jakorian Bennett, CB, Maryland
The 2023 NFL Draft is officially just under a month away. In order to help you all along until draft day, I decided to start a daily prospect spotlight series to talk about some players that the Colts could target next month.
The players mentioned in this series will be players that I have either heard that the team is really high on or are players that just make way too much sense for the team based on fit/past draft history.
Next up on the countdown to Draftmas is Maryland cornerback Jakorian Bennett.
Background
Bennett had a difficult path to becoming the player that he is today. He nearly quit the sport altogether during high school, but he ultimately decided to give it another shot. He hit a growth spurt during his junior season but unfortunately didn't have the ACT scores required to attend a top college. He ended up enrolling at Hutchinson Community College instead out of high school.
Bennett improved his recruiting profile at the community college level, earning First Team All-Kansas Community College Conference honors during his final season in 2019. He was a highly sought-after transfer after his sophomore season, with over 27 division-one offers waiting for him in the portal. He ultimately chose to attend Maryland over offers from other notable schools such as Ole Miss and Arkansas.
Bennett immediately earned a role with the Terrapins, as he appeared in four games (with two starts) during his junior season back in 2020. He also starred as a special teamer for the school that year.
Bennett truly broke out over his last two seasons with the program. He amassed 29 pass deflections over the past two seasons and came down with four interceptions for the team. He earned Honorable Mention All Big-Ten honors in each of the last two seasons.
He was invited to the 2023 Reese's Senior Bowl for his strong play after his final season in 2022.
Size/Testing
Height:
5'11"
Weight:
188 pounds
Arm Length:
31.875 inches
Testing Numbers:
40 Time: 4.3 seconds / Bench Press: 13 reps / Vertical Jump: 40.5 inches / Broad Jump: 133 inches
Ability on Film
Bennett isn't the most refined cornerback on film, but he is a special mover in the open field. He has quick feet and outstanding long speed, he just needs some refinement to put it all together at the next level.
The flashes from Bennett are top-notch on film. He is a naturally long corner that is patient in press coverage. He is advanced in his mirror technique and does a good job of staying in the hip pocket of his assignment. When he gets a chance to squeeze a receiver out of the play on a vertical match-up, he has the physicality to do so with ease.
Bennett is a smooth operator in and out of his breaks. He needs to work on his overall efficiency and pad level on his breaks, but he can match step-to-step with any wide receiver. This clip below shows just how quick he can be on this dig route:
When Bennett is asked to click and close out of his backpedal, he comes downhill with great speed and physicality. He does whiff on some tackles, but it is never due to a lack of effort. He packs a punch with his pads and gets after it in both the run game and when defending screen passes:
On top of all this, Bennett is a top-tier special teamer. He was a core four guy for Maryland this past season and he even blocked a kick coming off of the edge. His speed and physicality would be a perfect fit as a gunner during his rookie season as well.
Fit with the Colts/Team Interest
The Indianapolis Colts are in desperate need of cornerbacks this offseason. Kenny Moore II will be back for 2023, so the slot position is officially taken care of (for now). Isaiah Rodgers Sr. likely slides in as a starter on one side, but after that, it gets a bit ugly. The only other outside cornerback of note on the roster is Dallis Flowers, a 2022 UDFA that primarily played special teams a year ago.
Bennett is still working through the finer aspects of his game, but he is a superb athlete that has high-level flashes on film. He is competitive in press coverage and has the explosiveness to come downhill in zone drops. He would be an excellent player to add to the Colts' secondary (if they add another corner in free agency to start).
The Colts haven't been linked to Bennett too much this draft cycle, but he does check a lot of boxes for the team. He is a high-level special teamer that transferred up in competition and is an elite athlete. That sounds like a Chris Ballard guy to me.
Overall, Bennett would be an excellent developmental corner to add on late day two/early day three of this draft.
Learn more about Jakorian Bennett and so much more by pre-ordering the Indy Draft Guide!
The most comprehensive Colts draft coverage you can find anywhere releases April 10th, 2023.
Pre-order now with this special discount code!
Follow Zach on Twitter @ZachHicks2.
