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The Saints ARE showing interest in LSU linebacker Jabril Cox, who should go in the first two rounds of the NFL Draft pic.twitter.com/8KcmIQeO9r
— Doug Mouton (@DMoutonWWL) April 15, 2021
The Saints defense has taken some hits this offseason, especially in the middle of the linebacker corps. Alex Anzalone left town for a free agent deal with the Detroit Lions; his replacement, midseason trade pickup Kwon Alexander, was released amid salary cap cuts and continues to recover from Achilles surgery. Craig Robertson, their most-experienced backup and special teams captain, remains unsigned after his contract expired.
So it makes sense for New Orleans to scout their options at linebacker in this year’s NFL draft. One popular pick has been Tulsa product Zaven Collins, who was recently mocked to the Saints by ESPN’s Mel Kiper. But a name to watch out for his LSU standout Jabril Cox.
“No they’re definitely really interested,” Cox told WWL TV’s Doug Mouton. “I’ve been on multiple Zoom calls with them, they’ve said they’ll be down there for my pro day when I have it on the April 26, so the interest is there with them.”
Cox transferred to Baton Rouge from North Dakota State, where he earned all-conference and All-American recognition before making the jump to face top competition in the SEC. He’s on the lighter side at 6-foot-3 and 231 pounds — as many modern linebackers are — but has enjoyed the benefits of greater mobility, which gives him an edge in pass coverage.
Last season with LSU, he deflected nine passes thrown into his coverage (interception three of them) without allowing a touchdown or drawing a penalty, ranking fourth in the nation in forced incompletions. That’s part of a trend he established at North Dakota State: in total, Pro Football Focus charted him with 1,114 snaps in coverage at the college level, yielding just two touchdowns against eight career interceptions.
That would be a big boost to the Saints, who struggled to consistently defend the pass last year. Anzalone’s mistakes in zone coverage allowed too many free receivers running across the middle of the field and into the flats, and his athletic deficiencies made him a liability in man coverage. Alexander’s addition helped out in a big way, but his late-season injury didn’t solve the problem.
It’s easy to see why the Saints are in on Cox. His scouting report isn’t perfect, but there’s plenty of positives to explain their interest. He needs to get stronger and do a better job disengaging from blockers. He’s also notorious for erratic decisions in run defense, like plugging the wrong gap and taking inefficient angles to the ball. Those are issues that can be addressed with NFL-quality coaching and development; still, they’re flaws worth noting.
So where is he projected to be drafted? There isn’t much consensus on the exact spot or team fit, but the expectation seems to be that Cox will be a second round pick. Depending on how well he runs at his last-minute pro day (he had to sit out LSU’s initial workouts while managing a strained hamstring), he could slip down to the third round. But with the Saints slotted to pick at No. 60 overall near the end of round two, maybe he’s someone they consider trading up for. It’s a subplot we’ll be monitoring on draft night.
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