NFL Draft Profile: Shaun Jolly, Cornerback, Appalachian State Mountaineers
#3
Pos: CB
Ht: 5085
Wt: 177
Hand: L 900
Arm: 3038
Wing: 7358
40: 3038
DOB: 10/17/
Hometown: Stone Mountain, GA
High School: Stephenson
Shaun Jolly
Appalachian State Mountaineers
One-Liner:
Jolly is an experienced zone corner with the ball production and turnover potential favored by secondary coaches.
Pros:
Twitchy athlete with elite hops and springy feet. Jolly was a ball hawk in college, paring his atheltcism and play recognition to rob out routes and undercut indermediate pass concepts. Has a quick downhill trigger that allows him to exploit screens and outside run plays. Shows enough speed to carry vertical pass concepts. Was a turnover machine that played not only the ball in the air, but caused multiple fumbles with a strong punch. Multiple first team All-Sunbelt selections.
Cons:
Smaller player with a slight frame that could be mismatched in the NFL. Alignment allowed far too much of a cushion and space over middle of the field. Seldom tasked with mirroring receivers one 1v1 and mostly played with a safety above him. Has some footwork issues that result in him becoming unbalanced and missing tackles or pass breakups. Needs more nuance in his game with better eyes and understanding of spacial awareness.
Summary:
Shuan Jolly was a productive player for Appalchain state, with his timely turnovers and overall solid corner play. His intelligence for at the position really pops, with his timing and technique specific to certain route combinations or blocking schemes. Jolly is fairly slight for the position and was rarely left on an island, making the slot corner position most suitable for him in the NFL.
Background:
Jolly is from Stone Mountain, Georgia., where his athletic background stems from his father, brother, and sister, all of whom played division one sports. Jolly earned a two-star recruiting ranking out of Stephenson High School where he was named to the Georgia All-star Team. Burst onto the scene in 2019 as a second-team All-American from PFF and first-team All-Sunbelt. He followed that up with another first-team All-Sunbelt in 2020 and then wrapped up his career at Appalachian State with an invite to the East-West Shrine Bowl, and another first-team All-Sunbelt selection.
Grade:
Round 6-7
Quotes:
“Shaun Jolly is an active player with very good athleticism. He is a bit undersized but shows to have very good twitch and change of direction.”
“Alert defender for zone coverage, showing good understanding of route progressions occurring behind him and a quick burst downhill to break on underneath passes in front of him.”
