New York Giants Draft Prospect Profile: S Xavier Nwankpa, Iowa

Xavier Nwankpa's physical traits are enough to get excited about, but he has some flaws that need to be cleaned up to reach his full potential.

Xavier Nwankpa, S

Height: 6’2
Weight: 215 lbs
Class: Junior
School: Iowa
STATS

A former five-star recruit out of Southeast Polk High School in Altoona, Iowa, where he was the number one ranked Iowian recruit and the first overall graded safety in the 2022 recruiting class.

Nwankpa played as a true freshman, earning the Team Hustle Award for his work on special teams. He started Iowa’s Bowl Game against Kentucky as a true freshman and played 1,299 snaps over the next two seasons. Here are Nwankpa’s college statistics:

The highly sought-after Nwankpa earned a pick-six in his first college start against Kentucky, one of two picks in his college career. Nwankpa aligned as a single-high and deep-half safety in Phil Parker’s defense, while also doing well in the robber role in the intermediate parts of the field.

Strengths

Excellent size, length, and explosiveness
Good change of direction skills
Is a lean 200+ pound safety – wiry muscle that packs a punch
Smooth mover with quick feet and good acceleration
Closes width immediately – very good athlete
Long strides + athletic ability provide excellent range
Hips open and close effortlessly
Has man and zone coverage upside
Solid eyes and reaction when robbing the intermediate parts of the field
Takes sound angles through horizontal routes when robbing or vs. routes coming across the field
Athletic ability and burst allow him to quickly clamp as a mid-pointing defender vs. verticals (processing this is a different story)
Delivers hard low tackles – wraps up and secures from depth.
Technically sound tackler with solid angle judgment when coming downhill
Good physical player in run support with excellent play strength
Lays the boom into contact when square – good in pursuit
Will tackle through players – you feel his pop through the screen
Has not come close to maximizing his potential – he is still young
Floor is a unique sub-package hybrid defender
Potential to execute any safety assignment

Xavier Nwankpa 🔥 Freshman Highlights ᴴᴰ https://t.co/lqFMnPWmXC @YouTubeより
中身が1分半は短すぎるし、ハイライトだけじゃよくわからん。
— Andrew mLuck (@AmLuck12) July 8, 2024

Weaknesses

Needs work on positioning and footwork – gets caught flat-footed
Took questionable angles and found himself scrambling at times on outbreaking routes or when he was unsure of the route combinations
Could do a better job reading route combinations and seeing the field
Was the game – from an assignment perspective – too fast for him?
Questionable eye discipline and assignment awareness
Could improve positioning/feet as a man coverage defender
Eye issues affect his upside as a zone defender
Immense potential but blown coverages in match were evident on the tape
Lost leverage from depth when eyes were uncertain
Tunnel vision on quarterback has led to bad reps (Q1 2:19 3rd & 4 vs. Mizzou)
No. 2 WR candy has led to blown assignments in C2 on No. 1 (Q1 5:49 3rd & 7 vs. Western Michigan)
Got turned around and lost position vs. Iowa State for 75 yd TD (Q3 4:47 1st & 10)
Only got his hands on five footballs across 810 coverage snaps in college

Summary

Xavier Nwankpa has a ton of potential that hasn’t been actualized yet – he hasn’t lived up to his five-star grade. Still, his length, build, and athletic ability are an excellent combination that few safeties possess.

He’s adept at coming forward and attacking the line of scrimmage or routes underneath him. Still, he has questionable eyes and seemed susceptible in his back-pedal when covering the deeper portions of the field.

His athletic ability and range would suggest he should thrive in this role, but the game may move too fast for him at the moment, for he loses his assignment with match responsibilities, leading to blown coverages.

He’s still a young player, and these lapses could be corrected. Nwankpa has the potential to execute any safety assignment, but he must clean up the tunnel vision to earn that trust.

His physical traits provide a high floor; his ceiling would be through the roof if he fully grasps the system he’s drafted into. He won’t fall into the first round, but the grade below reflects his wide range of outcomes based mostly on his potential.

GRADE: 6.3B*

Nick Falato's Draft Grade Chart | Nick Falato

Xavier Nwankpa, S

Strengths

Weaknesses

Summary

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