Seahawks Draft Profile: Could CB Devon Witherspoon Be in Play at Pick No. 5?
With the 2023 NFL Draft set to kick off in Kansas City on Thursday, April 27, the Seattle Seahawks will have a chance to take another big step forward following a surprise playoff berth with four picks in the first 52 selections, including a top-five pick for the first time since 2009.
Over the next month leading up to draft weekend, the AllSeahawks.com writing staff will dish out in-depth profiles on numerous prospects who could be targets on Seattle's big board as the franchise aims to open a window for Super Bowl contention.
Continuing the series, the Seahawks haven't picked a cornerback earlier than the third round with general manager John Schneider and coach Pete Carroll calling the shots. Could Illinois star Devon Witherspoon be the exception to the rule that bucks that previous trend as a top-five selection?
Background
Originally hoping to be a Division I basketball player, Witherspoon didn't start playing football until his junior year at Pine Forest High School in Pensacola, Florida. But he immediately became a star, receiving 2018 Pensacola Defensive Player of the Year honors with seven interceptions before committing to play at Illinois. After seeing limited action on defense as a true freshman, he broke into the starting lineup as a sophomore during a COVID shortened 2020 season and then led the team with nine pass breakups in 2021. Emerging as one of the premier cornerbacks in the nation as a senior, he received First-Team All-American honors after racking up 17 passes defensed, three interceptions, and 41 tackles. Named a Jim Thorpe Award finalist, he decided not to play in the Illini's bowl game to begin preparing for the NFL Draft.
Strengths
An outstanding man coverage specialist playing on or off the ball, Witherspoon suffocates receivers with oppressive, physical defense on the outside, aggressively using his hands within the first five yards to set the tone. Even when he starts plays more than five yards off the line of scrimmage and drops into zone, he alertly flies out of his responsibility to pick up routes underneath him, particularly against schemed high/low concepts.
Always looking to make a play and set the tone for the defense, Witherspoon functions like a probe actively monitoring his entire side of the field, ready to work off his man to pluck misfired passes out of the air for interceptions. He excels at staying in the receiver's hip pocket and undercutting routes in the short-to-intermediate game, allowing him to get his hands on the football frequently for pass breakups and picks, often forcing quarterbacks to avoid him as the game progresses.
A menace with bad intentions for a boundary cornerback, Witherspoon lays the wood like a 250-pound linebacker with his lean frame, dishing punishment to anyone who dares to enter his side of the field. He's eager to throw his hat into the ring defending the run and teams should be cautioned against running swing routes or screens his direction, as he has a propensity to go nuclear rocketing into the backfield like a heat-seeking missile.
An intense competitor with a background as a multi-sport star in high school, Witherspoon began his collegiate career as a standout special teams player, leading the Illini with 13 tackles on kick and punt coverage as a freshman before breaking into the starting lineup on defense.
Weaknesses
While Witherspoon's ferocity and aggressiveness serves him well more times than not, opposing quarterbacks and coordinators made him pay for biting on play action when he thought he read run and tried to get downhill. He also got twisted into a pretzel a handful of times by quicker receivers on double moves, including allowing a 40-yard catch in a loss to Indiana where he lost outside leverage and got beat back inside on an in-and-out combo route.
Nobody will mistake Witherspoon for not being a top-flight athlete and he did run a quality 4.45 40-yard dash at Illinois' pro day, showcasing more than enough speed to match up with NFL athletes in coverage. With that said, there were occasional plays on his college film where he ended up in trail and struggled to recover or close the gap of separation, which could be more problematic against receivers in the vertical game at the next level. He also can be a tick slow out of his backpedal to defend curls and out routes.
Flying upfield to make plays against the run like a bat out of hell, Witherspoon's aggressive nature can lead to poor pursuit angles defending the run, which will be magnified against NFL running backs and mobile quarterbacks. His tendency to hit with his shoulders and not always wrap may lead to more missed tackles as well.
Fit in Seattle
For years, the Seahawks only drafted outside cornerbacks with 32-inch arms or longer, preferring boundary defenders with size and length. Witherspoon does not meet those requirements, as he stands under 6-0 tall with 31 1/4-inch arms.
But Seattle has softened on that prerequisite in recent years thanks to the success of 5'9 D.J. Reed and 5'10 Tre Brown, a fourth round pick out of Oklahoma in 2021. Taking the measurables out of the equation, Witherspoon checks off every other box the team looks for at the position, playing a physical brand of football in coverage and defending the run while possessing plus ball skills and exhibiting the bravado and swagger they love from defenders in general.
With Tariq Woolen and Mike Jackson coming off strong seasons in 2022, the Seahawks don't have to force the issue taking a cornerback early with other obvious needs on defense. But the franchise also hasn't had a chance to pick a blue chip shutdown cornerback of Witherspoon's caliber and if Will Anderson is swooped up in the first four picks, it's a legitimate possibility he could be in play at No. 5 overall.
Previous Seahawks Draft Profiles
Jalen Carter | Tyree Wilson | Will Anderson Jr. | Anthony Richardson | Adetomiwa Adebawore
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