Chicago Bears draft profile: Iowa CB Josh Jackson

Strengths

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To put it simply, no college corner played the football quite like Jackson did last season.

It’s not just that he allowed just 41.3% of passes thrown his way to be completed. It’s the fact that Jackson managed to either knock down or intercept 25.7% of his targets.

Seriously? Reading that almost makes you laugh.

As a quarterback and offensive coach, you know what I’d be thinking if there was a 1-in-4 chance that a defensive back would get a hand on a ball we threw his way?

Don’t throw it near that guy.

His ability to read the play, attack downhill and use his long arms to spike the ball away from a receiver or separate them from the ball at the last moment is next-level stuff for a college kid.

I can’t wait to see how his arm length measures at the NFL Combine for that reason. Just in general, his measurables (6’1″, 195 pounds) project excellently on the outside. His size allows him to mix it up with big receivers, slow people down at the line of scrimmage and hold his own in man coverage in the red zone.

And you’re not safe when he’s playing in zone coverage, either. He’ll pull a Tyrann Mathieu-style bait-and-switch on you before you know what hit you.

From the cornerback spot, he plays in the style of an Ed Reed-type player of old. If he knows where you want to go with the football, he doesn’t care what else is happening. He’s going to the ball, and there’s a good chance he ends up with it.

And as much as you try not to fall in love with just one play, good gracious.

Good luck trying not to love his raw abilities as a playmaker.

And if you’re a team that values taking the ball away on defense (AKA everybody), you’ll be thinking really hard about Jackson, especially in the middle of the first round if he’s there.