Tag: c.j. henderson

Watch: Defensive backs go through combine drills

When the 2019 season ended, the Atlanta Falcons were thought to be in the market for a corner or safety in the first round.

When the 2019 season ended, the Atlanta Falcons were thought to be in the market for a corner or safety in the first round. However, that changed once the team announced it would be moving on from DE Vic Beasley, and will let LB De’Vondre Campbell and TE Austin Hooper test free agency.

With two second-round picks and an impressive 2020 defensive back class, the Falcons could still add a player or two in the secondary. The NFL scouting combine continues today with the defensive backs taking the field. Let’s take a look at some of Sunday’s top performers thus far.

OSU’s Jeff Okudah solidifies himself as the draft’s top corner:

Utah DB Javelin Guidry showed next level speed at the 40:

Alabama CB Trevon Diggs does it all:

Florida CB and possible Falcons draft target C.J. Henderson runs a 4.39:

Javaris Davis of Auburn brings his A-game:

Clemson safety Tanner Muse has wheels:

Lenoir-Rhyne’s Kyle Dugger runs a respectable 4.50:

6-foot-3 Southern Illinois safety Jeremy Chinn flashes his athleticism:

The Gauntlet Drill:

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Texans had formal meeting with Florida CB C.J. Henderson at NFL Scouting Combine

The Houston Texans had a formal meeting with former Florida Gators cornerback C.J. Henderson at the NFL Scouting Combine.

INDIANAPOLIS — The Houston Texans could choose to get younger at cornerback and not use their salary cap space in free agency to address the issue.

At the NFL Scouting Combine, the Texans had a formal meeting with former Florida Gators cornerback C.J. Henderson.

Unlike an informal meeting, which is limited to 15 minutes, includes just the position coach, and teams can have as many of them as they like, formal interviews are restricted to 45 players, are limited to 18 minutes, and typically include more members of the coaching staff and front office personnel.

Henderson collected 26 tackles, three for loss, 1.0 sack, and 11 pass breakups in his nine games with the Gators. The Miami, Fla., native injured his ankle in the third game of the season and played through the injury for the rest of 2019.

Though Henderson watches every cornerback in the NFL to add aspects of their game to his, the 6-1, 202-pound defensive back’s favorite corner to watch is Patrick Peterson of the Arizona Cardinals.

“He’s one of my favorites, not only on the field, but off the field he’s a great person,” said Henderson. “On the field he’s very physical. He’s athletic. He finds the ball, he gets the ball.”

What makes Henderson a desirable target is his ability to play different coverages. Defensive coordinator Todd Grantham employed various coverages at Florida when he arrived in 2018.

“It was very different for us, compared to freshman year, mostly one coverage,” Henderson said. “So it was very different.”

For the Texans, they may not get a shot to take Henderson. According to Walter Football, Henderson is slated to go anywhere in the first or second round. Houston’s first selection in the 2020 NFL Draft occurs at No. 57 overall, deep in the second round. Henderson could be gone by that point, and trading up would be their only way to get him.

Will the Seahawks buck tradition and take a CB in the 1st round?

The Seattle Seahawks have not taken a cornerback in the first round of the NFL draft since 2006, but could this year be the year?

Death. Taxes. The Seattle Seahawks not taking a cornerback in the first round of the NFL draft.

That’s how it has felt at least in the John Schneider/Pete Carroll era, with the team choosing to bank on Carroll’s ability to develop lesser known players into stars, most famously Richard Sherman and Shaquill Griffin.

Carroll hasn’t just developed stars, he has worked his magic on players like Byron Maxwell, Jeremy Lane, Walter Thurmond and Justin Coleman as well – plenty of evidence to suggest this team can get by without using early draft capital or large sums of money to build their secondary.

The last time the Seahawks took a cornerback in the first round was Kelly Jennings back in 2006, when Schneider still worked for the Packers and Carroll was still coaching at USC.

However – it has been a theme for mock drafts to project a corner to Seattle at No. 27 overall this year, with Kristian Fulton of LSU, Trevon Diggs of Alabama and CJ Henderson of Florida the most common targets.

Is it simply a case of mock drafters being unaware of Seattle’s strategy, or is it the belief that the team will take a more direct approach at replacing Tre Flowers this year?

After all, the Legion of Boom was so good in their heyday that drafting corners at all was unnecessary; now, with Flowers struggling and the depth behind him nearly non-existent, it could be time to buck tradition and pony up for an immediate addition alongside Griffin in the new-look Seattle secondary.

Of the three frequently mocked to Seattle, Diggs has the requisite length (six-foot-two) and aggressive, physical nature that seems to speak to this team and their front office. He’s known for his work in press coverage and as a zone corner – which would fit right in with Carroll’s cover-3 scheme.

The Seahawks may not be ready to spend early draft capital on a cornerback, but if they are, Diggs is a great place to start.

Even the Legion of Boom started with Earl Thomas, a first round pick out of Texas. Perhaps Diggs – alongside Griffin, Quandre Diggs and (eventually) Marquise Blair will help form the next great secondary in Seattle.

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NFL.com mock draft projects Texans selecting cornerback, receiver with first two selections

NFL.com has the Houston Texans going with a cornerback in the second round and a receiver in the third round of the 2020 NFL Draft.

The Houston Texans don’t have many resources in the 2020 NFL Draft, what with sending a first-rounder to the Miami Dolphins for left tackle Laremy Tunsil. However, it doesn’t take away their need to fill holes in the offseason.

If the Texans use free agency to address defensive tackle, edge rusher, and even running back, then they will have to use the draft to fix their cornerback group and receiving corps.

That is precisely how NFL.com’s Chad Reuter sees the Texans using their first two picks in the draft.

With pick 57 in the second round, the Texans select Florida Gators cornerback C.J. Henderson. The junior is similar to Lonnie Johnson with a 6-1, 202-pound frame. Henderson collected 33 tackles, three for loss, 1.0 sack, and 11 passes defensed in his nine games for the Gators last season. If the Texans go with Henderson, it indicates they want to get bigger at cornerback.

In the third round, where the Texans currently don’t have a pick, Reuter projects the Texans to net a compensatory pick at 102 on the back end of the round. With that selection, the Texans draft South Carolina receiver Bryan Edwards.

If the Texans go with Edwards, it would mean they released receiver Will Fuller and decided to go in another direction. The 6-3, 215-pound wideout caught 71 passes for 816 yards and two touchdowns in his 10 games as a senior with the Gamecocks in 2019. Edwards would be another big target, along with three-time All-Pro receiver DeAndre Hopkins. Kenny Stills would still be on the roster, and so would receiver Keke Coutee. The Texans’ receiving corps would still have speed with Edwards replacing Fuller.

2020 will be the first draft where coach Bill O’Brien, now fully uncloaked as general manager, has complete control. If the Texans go with cornerback and receiver with their first two selections, then the organization better have addressed other positions in free agency.

6 possible surprise picks for the Ravens in the 1st round of the 2020 NFL Draft

The Baltimore Ravens trust their draft board over direct needs which could see them grab a surprise in the first round of the 2020 NFL Draft

With the NFL offseason comes mock drafts and speculation about which prospects every team will take. There will be debate and arguments all the way up to the cards being run up to the podium and announced officially. But with the Baltimore Ravens’ needs well established, we have a pretty good idea of which prospects aren’t on their radar for the 2020 NFL Draft.

Or do we?

In reality, no prospects will be ruled out entirely. While we can hone in on a handful of players the Ravens will likely be coveting in the first round, there are always some that shouldn’t be completely dismissed, even if they’d be surprising picks.

With that in mind, let’s take a look at six surprising but plausible prospects Baltimore could pick at No. 28 in the 2020 NFL Draft.

Photo by Marianna Massey/Getty Images

S Grant Delpit, LSU

The Ravens have a handful of key needs to fill this offseason and safety isn’t one of them. After signing Earl Thomas last offseason and handing Chuck Clark a three-year contract extension this offseason, Baltimore is as set at safety as any team in the league.

But just as I did in a recent mock draft, if Delpit is available at No. 28, the Ravens are going to have to give it some serious thought. Thomas could be cut as early as next offseason and getting younger and cheaper there would benefit the team greatly right as they’re trying to re-sign big-name players like Ronnie Stanley, Lamar Jackson and Marlon Humphrey.

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Saints reinforce the secondary in latest 2020 NFL mock draft

The New Orleans Saints selected Florida Gators cornerback C.J. Henderson in the first round of a recent 2020 NFL mock draft from USA Today.

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The New Orleans Saints are going into the offseason with a short list of must-upgrades, but plenty, of positions that could need improvement. With holes on the roster on both offense (wide receiver and fullback) and defense (cornerback and linebacker), they have plenty of options to get better over the summer.

In a recent mock draft from USA Today, the Saints selected Florida Gators cornerback CJ Henderson. Pairing him with his college teammate C.J. Gardner-Johnson, the versatile defensive back who made an impact as a rookie last season, makes plenty of sense. But there’s many different directions the Saints could take late in the first round:

Much like the Patriots, the Saints will be difficult to suss out until they address a quarterback room full of pending free agents. Until then, it makes sense for them to take a closer look at cornerback, where Eli Apple and P.J. Williams are set to hit the open market.

It could be confusing to have multiple C.J.’s running around in the New Orleans secondary, but if Henderson can provide tight coverage and aggressive tackling ability that earned Gardner-Johnson playing-time, he’d be a welcome addition.

Between Marshon Lattimore, Janoris Jenkins, and Patrick Robinson under contract, the Saints are poised to go into free agency with just three cornerbacks on their 90-man roster. One or both of Apple and Williams could return, but it’s a safe bet that New Orleans will add some corners in the months ahead.

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Eagles 3-round mock draft after Wild Card playoff loss to Seahawks

Here is a 2020 NFL Draft 3-Round Mock Draft for the Philadelphia Eagles following their Wild Card playoff loss to the Seattle Seahawks.

It was a disappointing loss for the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday, as they fell to the Seattle Seahawks 17-9 in the NFC Wild Card playoffs. Quarterback Carson Wentz was knocked out of the game in the 1st quarter on a cheap shot to the head from Seahawks pass rusher, Jadeveon Clowney. The loss of Wentz was the final nail in the Eagles coffin, or for a better way to describe it, the final player that needed the blue medical tent before it was too much for the Eagles to overcome in 2019.

Philly had so many injuries this season that many have lost count. No team in the NFL needed the offseason more than the Eagles, so now they can heal up and be ready for 2020. They also will have the chance to add some help to their team in the 2020 NFL Draft. After the loss to the Seahawks, the Eagles officially locked themselves into the 21st pick in the 2020 NFL Draft.

It will be interesting to see what Roseman and the Eagles do in the draft, but here is a 3-round mock draft following their exit from the playoffs.

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Round 1, Pick 21: C.J. Henderson, Cornerback, Florida

Cornerback is the biggest need for the Philadelphia Eagles in the 2020 NFL Draft. That is why former Florida Gators cornerback C.J. Henderson needs to be a target for the Eagles. Henderson is the next shutdown cornerback in the NFL. He has elite coverage skills and he is already better than every single cornerback the Eagles have.

Henderson would give defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz and the Eagles defense a difference-maker at cornerback, which is something they haven’t had in forever. The former Gator would be the Eagles No. 1 cornerback the day he walked into the building and give them a piece to build on for the defense.

The big knock on Henderson is that he doesn’t help much in the run game, but the Eagles do not need a cornerback who can help in the run game. They need a cornerback who does not get burnt deep three times a game and can also make a play on the football. Henderson did not have any interceptions this year, but he had 6 in his career at Florida, as well as 20 passes defended, with a career-high 11 in 2019.

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Latest mocks for 2020 NFL draft heavily favor defense for Seahawks

The most recent mocks for 2020 NFL draft heavily favor defense for the Seattle Seahawks.

As college football’s regular season wraps up, Seattle Seahawks fans can look forward to watching top prospects in their bowl games and speculating which of them will be selected by their favorite team in the upcoming 2020 NFL draft.

This week, the season-ending injury to Alabama quarterback Tua Tagovailoa shook things up and made several writers across the country rethink their 2020 NFL draft predictions, leading to a slew of new mocks – let’s see which of college football’s best might be available when Seattle is on the clock next year.

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