Kristian Fulton can be the No. 1 cornerback the Falcons need

Outside of Ohio State’s Jefferey Okudah and Florida’s C.J Henderson, the cornerback draft class can be a toss-up on who’s the next best prospect. The one player that’s been getting attention as possibly the third best behind those two is LSU’s Kristian Fulton.

During their national title run, Fulton led the Tigers defense with 14 pass breakups, while also making 38 tackles (one for loss), and an interception. With the SEC being one of the most talented in college football, Fulton held his own against some of best receivers in the conference.

“Just from a competitive standpoint, I felt like being in the SEC, I go up against the best receivers”, Fulton said. “You can look and tell me who's put up numbers on me. I feel like that's what really separates me.”

Fulton has made a name for being one of the few solid press cornerbacks in this draft, allowing a 40 percent completion rate since 2018. His playmaking and ability to read the receivers eyes makes him an intriguing prospect at his position.

Though he may be one of the best press-man cornerbacks, he has the title of not being physical at times. Fulton’s open field tackling can use some improvement, and his lack of athleticism could hurt him. Once he gets beat, there’s not a great chance he’ll be able to recover on time, and receivers that excel at route running will expose him.

With Desmond Trufant being cut during the offseason, the Falcons are in need of just not any cornerback, but a No. 1 cornerback. Isaiah Oliver showed improvement towards the end of last season, but he still has some question marks surrounding his play. Kendall Sheffield had a solid rookie season, but he still must prove he can have a starting role on team. This leaves Jordan Miller, who is suspended for the first four games, and Blidi Wreh-Wilson was resigned for depth purposes.

The Falcons usually don’t deal with players with a history of being in trouble, and Fulton’s early college career could raise some concerns after being suspended two years for using someone else’s urine during a drug test. Fulton’s suspension from the game didn’t stop him from working on his craft.

“I practiced every day”, he said. “I missed not one practice so I was still getting work in. I was on the practice squad, getting reps against the ones, so I'm getting really worked. So that's how I feel like I stayed in shape and I was able to stay on my game.”

Adding Fulton to the Falcons cornerback mix would instantly make him a favorite as their No. 1 corner, and bolster a secondary that had some low points last season. According to CBS Sports, Fulton is ranked as the No. 22 prospect on their draft board and the third ranked corner behind Okudah and Henderson.

Fulton should still be on the board when the Falcons select at No. 16. They could even decide to trade down to gain more picks down the line. With Okudah possibly going in the top-3 and Henderson making a jump to early or mid-round, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see the Falcons grab the next corner in line.

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