Jabrill Peppers is one of the most prolific college athletes that we have seen in a while. He is the handy man of college football, being able to do just about everything. Throughout this past season he’s played a total of 10 positions (QB, RB, HB, WR, LB, CB, S, DB, PR, KR), which is an amazing feat in itself. Most college athletes need to focus on showcasing themselves in just one or two positions, let alone ten.

However, as much as Jabrill Peppers was a versatile player and was able to do it all, he will primarily be focusing on safety in the NFL, and rightfully so. His speed, size, and broad skill set allow teams to use him in a variety of different packages, expanding a defense’s possibilities.

Jabrill Peppers Draft Profile:

Strengths

Speed

If this wasn’t obvious already, Jabrill Peppers is fast. Really fast. Like 4.34 laser-time fast. His ability to move from sideline to sideline is extremely impressive, as he seems to be all over the field on every play. Michigan was able to utilize Peppers’ speed effectively, lining him up on the line numerous times and allowing him to pursue backside and be a really effective weak side defender, either eliminating cut back lanes or just catching people from behind.

Peppers’ speed is especially on display when he sees a hole and he fills it. He comes in like a heat-seeking missile and lays the wood. You can see how quickly Peppers reacts on this play here. It take him not even two seconds from identifying the option to crushing the quarterback, preventing him from even being able to make a read and option the ball, leading to a fumble. This is the type of speed that Peppers can bring to a defense.

What we couldn’t see this season is Jabrill coming down full speed from the safety position to fill, which will definitely be on display in the NFL. However, his ability to identify and fly downhill is something that not a lot of players in this NFL draft do better than him.

Aside from being able to come downhill, Peppers’ range as a linebacker is something that will definitely transfer to having great range of the field as safety in the NFL. This play below shows just exactly how much of the field Peppers can cover, and it’s also the kind of play that leaves you wondering how the hell he got to where he did so fast.

If Peppers can cover a hole shot out-and-up from the box, he can definitely be able to range from sideline to sideline lining up 15 yards deep.

Peppers’ speed is his most outstanding quality, because speed is something that directly translates to the NFL. You need to fly around on defense, you need to be able to keep up with the fastest of the fastest, and Peppers is definitely fast. Did I say Peppers got clocked in at a 4.34 40-yard dash?

Tackling

Peppers is a very sure tackler. According to ProFootballFocus , “[Peppers] was also a dependable player against the run, as his seven missed tackles in 2015 ranked him 15th among 122 returning safeties with at least 40 tackles last year. He graded 13th overall in the category last year.”

While moving to full-time strong-side linebacker this year, Peppers rarely missed out on tackles as well. He chases the ball-carrier while maintaining leverage and position, with a fierceness attacking the ball-carrier. It is a sure thing that with drafting Peppers, he will make the stops that your defense needs.

Versatility

Jabrill Peppers the Moneyback

The NFL is changing, and it’s changing quickly – on the offensive and defensive side of the ball. NFL offenses are changing more to a spread concept, lining up four wide on first and second downs, or even showing empty backfields. Look at the Patriots, they are in shotgun almost every play and utilize backs like Dion Lewis and James White to motion from the backfield to enter an empty set.

Defense combat this by adding speed to their “linebacking” core. A new position is being created – a “Moneybacker.” This is where we see Deone Bucannon of the Bucs, Mark Barron of the Rams, Tyrron Mathiue of the Cardinals, and Kam Chancellor playing. These are all guys with speed, the ability to cover, and the ability to fit up in the box to help stop the run.

Peppers is the perfect player for this position and to add versatility to a defense. If a defense can play well against the run in a nickel package, it causes all sorts of problems for opposing offenses. Peppers allows a team to confidently put him in the box, line him up over slot receivers, drop him back in coverage, do just about everything possible, because they’ve seen him do it all.

Jabrill Peppers and the Blitz

Peppers has shown to also be an effective in the blitz, an ability that is needed for modern day safeties and something that executives in the NFL Draft look for. With Peppers’ speed and size, we’ve seen him shoot gaps and close in on quarterbacks in what seems like no time. In his best game this season against Colorado, he posted a sack, a hit, a hurry, and seven defensive stops on only 12 pass rushes. Just about every time he rushed, he made a play.

Look at him just hit the gap and create a rush:

Or, you can see him rush past Ryan Ramczyck, the top rated LT in this year’s NFL Draft, on the right side here:

Returner

This is an obvious strength of Peppers. With the ball in his hands, he’s absolutely electric. We’ve seen how Tyreeke Hill has added a serious weapon to the Chiefs with his return ability, and Peppers can have the ability to be just as dynamic.

Weaknesses

Coverage

This is something that will hurt Peppers’ draft stock, and it’s not primarily because of his play. Peppers’ played a majority of his snaps at linebacker, something that can’t showcase his cover skills. And although he did line up as a slot-corner for a good amount of snaps, he dropped into an underneath zone coverage behind Jourdan Lewis and Channing Stribling. He did showcase some man cover skills, but a majority of the time, he was lining up against bigger tight ends.

What he does have to show for himself is a great 2015 season in pass coverage. According to ProFootballFocus “Peppers was excellent in coverage last season. When targeted, opposing QB’s completed just 56.1 percent of their throws for only a 9.3 yard average and an NFL QB rating of 76.5. His six passes defensed last year ranked him fifth among returning safeties.”

However, there were some struggles this year and some mistakes were costly. He allowed a touchdown against Colorado by not rotating back into his deep third enough, as we can see below:

In the NFL, the slight hesitation to rotate back to the deep third to give safety help over the top will result in a touchdown just like this play. There is no getting caught looking in the backfield in the NFL. This is something that Peppers gets caught doing once or twice a game, which isn’t the worst thing in the world, but something that definitely isn’t a positive.

Peppers Man-to-Man Coverage

In the NFL, Peppers will either have to be a dynamic man-to-man slot corner to be successful or be someone who can line up over tight ends and eliminate that threat. Although Peppers did have success in the secondary this season, we can see where some of his liabilities can be at the next level.

Look at two man-to-man plays in this year’s Ohio State-Michigan game, where Peppers was lined up over Curtis Samuel and Ohio State’s big 6’5″ 260 pound TE Marcus Baugh.

Here’s the play where Peppers is lined up over Samuel in the right slot:

What we see is Peppers giving ample cushion despite being man-to-man since it’s first down. What we see is Peppers give up ground right after the ball is snapped, which allows Samuel the space to snap off the out route cleanly with space. In the NFL, giving ground off the snap will allow quarterbacks who thrive off the short passing game, such as Brady and Prescott t0 pick apart any man defense.

Peppers’ speed out of his break is where we can see his potential. The closing speed and explosiveness he has is definitely something special. Not many players will be able to burst away from Peppers, as we can see him close the gap on Curtis Samuel very quickly.

Now, let’s look at the man-to-man coverage Peppers had against Baugh on the right side of the formation:

Peppers and Stribling are playing man, with Stribling taking whatever goes out and Peppers whatever goes in. Peppers is extremely physical with Baugh, initiating contact and is right with him the whole route. There is no doubt that Peppers has the athletic advantage over Baugh, but we can see Baugh just outsize and out-physical Peppers here. Baugh is just too big, shoving Peppers out of the way as he snaps his route across the middle.

How will Peppers fare to tight ends with even greater physicality and athleticism at the next level, like Travis Kelce or Martellus Bennet? Here, it looks like he will be a little undersized to do so.

Shedding Blocks

As stated before, Peppers played strong-side linebacker as his primary position this past season, and he did so extremely undersized at the position. What this directly translate to was being beat at the point of attack and having difficulty getting off of blocks by 300-pound lineman.

If Peppers is going to play in the box and be that moneybacker at the next level, there are going to be times where a lineman is going to reach the next level and attack Peppers. Now, this is an obvious mismatch for any defensive back, but we see guys like Kam Chancellor be extremely physical with players much greater than his size. Here we can see Jabrill struggle getting off the block of this tight end and completely get washed out of the play instead of setting the edge:

Again, this is a size mismatch, but if Peppers could turn this weakness into a strength at the next level, or put into a position to hit gaps and not take on blocks, he will succeed.

Analysis of Jabrill Peppers

Jabrill Peppers is a special talent that doesn’t just enter the NFL Draft every year. His versatility and speed make him a very intriguing prospect, but being the handyman of Michigan may have hurt his draft stock at safety. There’s just not enough film of him playing the traditional position that NFL teams will draft him to fill.

However, Peppers shows that he can mix it up in the box and excel at it. He is a big time player, and his explosiveness filling gaps and holes is unparalleled. We can see his speed ranging from sideline to sideline at linebacker as something that can directly translate to filling hard downhill and being a ballhawk from sideline to sideline in the defensive backfield.

Peppers’ versatility to play DB and LB provides the NFL team who drafts him a guy who can create a number of different packages and defensive personnel. Peppers is a prototypical moneybacker at the next level, a position that is combatting the modern day, pass-heavy NFL offense.

Peppers’ value also relies in his return ability, something that can change a game or a team (ie Tyreeke Hill).

Prediction:

17. Washington Redskins: Jabrill Peppers, SS, Michigan.

Jabrill Peppers is a Top-10 talent. However, teams will be weary of the safety they are drafting. I can see Jabrill Peppers falling out of the Top 10, if the Panthers do not select him at 8. Most likely, I can see Peppers at 15-17, with the Colts, Ravens, or Redskins all able to use his services.

Showcasing his blazing 40-time at the NFL Combine could propel Peppers into the Top-10. The Combine will be huge for Pepper’s draft stock.