Welcome back to my 2024 NFL draft notes article. I have been busy slaving away at updating my database and have finally found time to drop another draft notes article. So everything is the same as before. There is no specific order to these notes and they are not a final scouting report.

Cooper DeJean, DB, Iowa:

Will get physical with receivers, can body them up. Shows a strong punch. Needs to get better at disengaging from blockers. Iowa plays predominantly zone, not a lot of man coverage. Smooth backpedal. Can click-and-close. Decent tackler. Good overall athlete. Can be a little clunky when asked to stop-and-start. Sinking his hips and changing direction is a little slow. Has some pop in his shoulder pads. Willing to sacrifice his body. Good long speed as former high school track guy. Well-built with great size.

Has covered tight ends and didn’t look over-matched. Has some trouble with double moves. Arm length looks ok. Has trouble finding the ball with his back to it. Good leaping ability, can really get up. Good hands and can undercut passes if quarterbacks aren’t careful. Showed versatility by having played some pseudo-linebacker early in 2022. Doesn’t look like he could play slot in the NFL, pure outside corner, especially in a cover-3. Can fill the alley in the run game. Could move to safety.  

Jason Marshall Jr., CB, Florida:

Good size. Has experience in both man and zone. Will predominantly play side-saddle technique when in zone. Quick feet and has the speed to keep up with almost any receiver. Flips his hips with ease. Looks comfortable in mirror press. Does a good job of staying square as long as he can. Has gotten beat when he opened his hips too soon. Uses a one hand jam when he does press.

Occasionally bites on outside fakes. Motor could run hotter, jogs on plays away from him. Blocked easily by wide receivers; doesn’t seem to try to get off or even play half man. Gets physical in coverage, but otherwise seems to avoid it. Shows good route recognition in man, but seems a little off in zone. Drag down tackler; will hit on a rare occasion, but not much power. Rounds his cuts instead of click-and-close.

Just 36 career snaps in the slot, so his ability to play the slot is unknown. Should be able to do it physically, though. Needs to add strength; jams don’t seem all that effective. Lines up mostly on the left side. Can get into the receivers’ hip pocket with ease. Good overall trail technique.

Junior Colson, LB, Michigan:

Can explode through open gaps and take the runner down. Has quick feet and jumps gaps with ease. Aggressive run defender; does not hesitate. Smooth change of direction with little-to-no wasted motion. Seems to have good length. Good tackling form; rarely misses a tackle. Very good stopping power, backs rarely get extra yards.

Motor is always running. Long speed is average to slightly above; looks to be in the 4.6-4.65 range. Looks about his listed size from 2022(6’2 235). Shows he can scrape down the line, keeps clear of the trash.

Ducks his head sometimes when tackling. Only adequate hip flexion. Needs to stay a little lower when backpedaling. Sometimes will lose the ball. Didn’t play much, if any, man coverage, but looked physically comfortable when he was asked to cover tight ends and backs. Okay at getting off blocks from tight ends and fullbacks. More of a block slipper than a block breaker. Will get stuck on offensive linemen. Still looks a little unsure in coverage at times.