New York Giants Draft Prospect Profile: DB Jalon Kilgore, South Carolina

The Giants could use some Swiss Army Knife types in their defensive secondary. Jalon Kilgore is one such prospect who could fit the bill.

Aug 31, 2024; Columbia, South Carolina, USA; South Carolina Gamecocks defensive back Jalon Kilgore (24) celebrates after a fumble recovery against the Old Dominion Monarchs in the second half at Williams-Brice Stadium. | Jeff Blake-Imagn Images

Jalon Kilgore, DB

• Height: 6’1
• Weight: 211 lbs
• Class: Junior
• School: South Carolina
• STATS

A former four-star recruit out of Putnam County High School in Eatonton, Georgia, where he was the 18th ranked safety and the 23rd Georgian recruit during the 2023 recruiting class.

Kilgore was a standout track and field star in high school and he jumped a 23’7” long jump as a sophomore at the Georgia 2A State Championships. In 2021, he was the Georgia region 4-AA Athlete of the Year as a junior for his contributions to track and, obviously, football; he dabbled on offense as well, securing 34 passes for 921 yards and 11 touchdowns that season.  

Kilgore missed 11 tackles in 2025 (11.4% missed tackle rate) and nine in 2024 (14.3%), while mostly aligning in the slot: 1,382 of his 2,241 snaps came in the slot (PFF).

His presence allowed defensive coordinator Clayton White to remain physical in sub-packages due to Kilgore’s size and desire to fit the run. He had 48 career STOPs, along with just eight total pressures, according to Pro Football Focus.

Kilgore was used in a versatile manner when in coverage. He had his best season in coverage in 2025, allowing a 52% catch rate with an average of 11.5-yards surrendered.

He finished his college career with a 59.9% catch rate and nine touchdowns surrendered, with six penalties. Some teams may look to use Kilgore at safety in the NFL. Jalon Kilgore was added to the Senior Bowl roster.

Sep 30, 2023; Knoxville, Tennessee, USA; Tennessee Volunteers tight end Jacob Warren (87) is tackled by South Carolina Gamecocks defensive back Jalon Kilgore (24) during the second half at Neyland Stadium. | Randy Sartin-Imagn Images

Strengths

• Excellent size with long physical build
• Very good athlete with impressive explosive traits
• Excellent short area quickness and burst into contact
• Length + elite jumping ability and hand eye coordinator maximize ball skills 
• Smooth backpedal with good feet – controlled on vertical plane
• Above average ability to open/close hips – good for size!
• Quick eyes and instinct in zone to trigger on underneath route
• Closes on the football well underneath
• Good overall processing to see routes manifest from zone
• Recognizes and attacks well – good play strength into contact
• Excellent overall play strength for CB, very good for SAF
• Uses physicality to disrupt routes in man coverage (must be careful)
• Adequate overall man coverage defender
• Very good ball skills – see Clemson INT (2025) / Alabama (2024)
• Disruptive at the catch point with solid timing
• Solid and very willing in run support – can get a bit wild!
• Played versatile SPUR position for South Carolina – hybrid LB/SAF/Nickel
• Swiss-Army knife secondary option with starting safety upside

Weaknesses

• Recovery speed is only adequate once beat (specifically by shiftier players)
• Needs to transition hip-flip quicker against quicker receivers
• Can, at times, allow receivers into cushion and his lack of top-end recovery speed hinders his ability to consistently stay in phase
• Can clean up tackling, but is a willing run support player
• Is not a liability in man coverage but could struggle to mirror & match shiftier slot players
• Mirroring ability and speed may cause teams to move him to safety

Summary

Jalon Kilgore possesses excellent size with a strong and long build that could engender intimidation as a slot defender or possibly a safety.

His size and athletic combination, along with his production and physicality, will be valuable to any defense, as will Kilgore’s penchant to fit the run, making him an important nickel and sub-package defender.

His eyes and ability to quickly explode downhill with violence help against the pass and run. Kilgore also has good overall ball skills with solid timing and disruptive skills. His disruption skills are also seen at the line of scrimmage and up route stems – he’s a harassing player.

Jalon Kilgore can be a key cog to a defensive sub-package, while also being starting safety who can align over the slot in the right matchup; this type of versatility will appeal to creative defensive minds, and Kilgore could be a defense’s mismatch weapon.

His absolute ceiling – and archetype – is Jalen Ramsey, but also fits a similar mold to former Gamecock Israel Mukuamu, albeit I have a significantly higher grade on Kilgore than Mukuamu and Ramsey was a top-five difference making pick for a reason.

Defensive coaches like Dan Quinn or Mike McDonald would love Kilgore, who may be playing a bit out of position at nickel, and will likely play safety at the next level, although creative sub-packages should move him around enough. His testing will be important at the draft, but he’s a talented player who had eight career interceptions.

GRADE: 6.31

Nick Falato's Draft Grade Chart | Nick Falato

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