Top Cornerbacks in NFL Draft: Trevon Diggs
Trevon Diggs, the brother of star NFL receiver Stefon Diggs, is the No. 2 cornerback in the 2020 NFL Draft.
At some point in the NFL, Trevor Diggs will line up in press-man coverage and see a familiar face.
His brother.
In five seasons with the Minnesota Vikings, Stefon Diggs caught 365 passes for 4,623 yards and 30 touchdowns.
“I feel like it will be easy” to cover him, Trevon Diggs said in a way typical of how brothers talk.
Because Stefon Diggs was traded to Buffalo this offfseason, Trevon Diggs would welcome being drafted by an AFC East team.
“That would be a blessing,” he said. “We always competed, even at family cookouts and things. We would talk trash to each other. We always did one-on-ones and tried to compete as much as possible. But nowadays, we don’t do it no more. Because I think he’s starting to think that I’m picking it up.”
While the brothers were competitive, Stefon stepped up after their father died of congestive heart failure 12 years ago at age 39.
“He’s like my dad, honestly,” Trevon Diggs said. “He was there for me when my father passed, so he has always taken care of me. I always ask him everything, no matter what. Two o’clock in the morning, I’m asking him questions. I called him last night, every day, about this process and how he managed it.”
Trevon Diggs played safety and receiver as a freshman. Entering his sophomore year, coach Nick Saban suggested Diggs move to cornerback. He ranked among the SEC leaders in passes defensed as a junior before a season-ending foot injury. As a senior, he intercepted three passes and had eight additional breakups to earn some All-American honors. According to PFF, he allowed just 8-of-29 on passes 10-plus yards downfield.
“I can tell what the receiver’s doing by where he’s lined up,” Diggs said. “I know the whole route tree. I know how many steps it takes to get into a route. I know what foot they put up when they try to run their routes. There’s little things I know that I can pick up on quicker.”
What we like
With only three years at cornerback, Diggs might have more upside than the other cornerback prospects. He’s got fantastic physical tools: 6-foot-1 3/8, 32 3/4-inch arms (second-longest among our top 24 corners) and speed (he didn’t run at the Combine). He had three interceptions and allowed a measly 16.3 passer rating, according to Sports Info Solutions. He’s at his best in press coverage and will play run defense. On special teams, he had career averages of 23.8 yards per kickoff return and 9.2 yards per punt return.
What we don’t like
The bad thing about upside is that means you’re not a finished product. That’s Diggs, who sometimes is overaggressive. He needs to improve his fundamentals and tackling. According to Sports Info Solutions, he missed seven tackles (16 percent).
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