Green Bay Packers draft: The overrated and underwhelming Senior Bowl prospects

Desmond King

Desmond King (CB-Iowa): The Detroit-born cornerback has been an absolute ballhawk over the past two seasons by using his instincts and physical style of play to record 11 interceptions, but his Senior Bowl performance brought to light many concerns about his size and athletic ability.

Simply put, King lacks the traits to consistently cover wide receivers in man coverage and that was easy to see from Day 1 with Cooper Kupp exploding by him on multiple plays right off the snap.

The former Walter Camp Player of the Year finalist also struggled to transition of out breaks in matchups versus (Amara) Darboh.

The 5-foot-10 defensive back’s short arms don’t give any sort of advantage in press coverage and his less-than-fluid backpedal prevent him from effectively reacting to any sudden movements.

In game action, King allowed Grambling’s Chad Williams to easily shield him on a reception in which the receiver tacked on extra yards by running past his opponent with a burst of speed.

Some observers have suggested slot corner as the former Hawkeye’s best position going forward.

But King’s stiff hips can (and will be) exploited versus fluid athletes that line up inside, such as Julian Edelman, Jarvis Landry or Doug Baldwin just to name a few.

The fact that the 200-pound prospect is best suited to play in zone-coverage schemes makes him more projectable as a pro safety that can use his anticipatory and ball-tracking skills to get his hands on plenty of downfield throws.

In addition, one of King’s biggest strengths is his ability to diagnose running plays and attacking the ball downhill.

Next: Senior Bowl offensive standouts

This Big-Ten standout needs room to roam and will be a physical tone setter at safety.