Falcons Draft Profile Devon Witherspoon: Strengths, weaknesses, highlights, prediction
Strengths and weaknesses of the potential Falcons pick
Strengths:
Devon Witherspoon is one of the most entertaining players I have ever watched. From snap one you can see why he will be taken in the first round, he is a bullet on the football field.
Witherspoon ran the forty in 4.42 seconds, but his game speed is faster than that. He is also a very quick and agile cornerback. His feet look like are on 10x speed, he changes direction faster than anyone, and he is absolutely fearless.
Most sub-six-foot cornerbacks are afraid to throw their body around, which is not Witherspoon. Witherspoon is a big hitter who throws himself around so much that it is concerning He flies around on every play, whether that is on his feet, in the air, or flipping over someone. And yet somehow he only had one injury that kept him off the field during his career at Illinois.
Witherspoon can be a pest to wide receivers in man coverage as he can keep up with anyone on the field with his agility. I believe that he can be an outside corner, nevertheless, putting him in the slot would be the best use of his talents.
Weaknesses:
You cannot ignore Devon Witherspoon's size, you just can't. While he isn't super short, he weighs just 180 pounds. Some people might say that doesn't matters since he is a great player, but that is simply not true—physics are undefeated.
His aggressiveness and feistiness get exposed in the running game. He will go flying in to make a reckless tackle which makes it easy for offensive players to do a quick sidestep to avoid him. He needs to get himself under control when tackling. With that, he has a one-track mind that keeps him from taking a quick peek to see if the offense handed the ball off. Receivers are able to fake a route instead of blocking him.
And, finally, there is the fact that he didn't play football until his junior year in high school, so take that for what it is worth.
Summary:
Devon Witherspoon may be undersized but he packs a serious punch. He is an intense and feisty cornerback who can play outside and in the slot. He has exceptional speed and agility. And when he gets his hands on the football he has the potential to take it the distance.