Scouting Profile: Ronald Darby, CB, FSU

[Dustin]

Previous Installments: 

 

The RBs - Hub Post

The WRs - Hub Post

The Off-Ball LBs - Hub Post

The EDGEs - Hub Post

The DTs - Hub Post

Marcus Peters, CB, Washington

Kevin Johnson, CB, Wake Forest

 

 

Mock Draftable chart: http://mockdraftable.com/player/4966/

 

Games watched: vs Oregon, vs Miami, Oklahoma State

 

The Good: 

 

Well built. Looks the part or a press corner.

 

Elite athlete. Great long speed (4.38) and explosiveness (129" broad and 41 1/2" vertical). Great agility. 

 

Good job following the QBs eyes and recognizing the open WR to deliver a big hit:

  ex. http://www.draftbreakdown.com/gif-embed/?clip=257512&gif=ImpressiveUnequaledClingfish

 

Can flip and run with any WR down the field. Not many players are going to be able to beat him deep. 

 

Willing tackler. Comes downhill with tenacity. 

 

Sniffs out screens pretty good. Great instincts and awareness overall. 

 

No wasted steps in his motions. 

 

Aggressive attacking the ball. Times jumps and has shown ability to high-point the ball. 

 

 

The Bad:

 

Like Johnson, Darby plays primarily off-man coverage. This is only a negative because it's not the scheme the Colts run, but it's a plus in a way because it's arguably the hardest coverage to play. 

 

As a result of scheme, he doesn't jam at the line. 

 

Doesn't backpedal. Does the same dumb shuffle-step move that Peters and every Alabama DB does. This is what happens when you don't backpedal:

  ex. http://www.draftbreakdown.com/gif-embed/?clip=257454&gif=AlertGoldenBighornsheep

 

Needs a ton of technical work. Good NFL route-runners will demolish him. 

Hard time shedding blocks in the run and screen game. 

 

Needs to look back for the ball and track it better. 

 

Sometimes he plays too safe and stays at the top of the route to avoid getting beat deep, giving up catches underneath. 

 

Conclusion:

 

Darby is the classic case of a player with 1st round talent, but 2nd round film. He's a very high-upside player who would excel in Manusky's press-man system with a year to straighten out some of those technique issues. He's not a project in the sense of the word, he's still a very good player, but he can be much better with some time to develop. 

 

Projected Round: 1st

NFL Comparison: Janoris Jenkins, STL