Photo by Patrick Pierson - Illinois Athletics

Height	Weight	Arm Length	Hand Size
5'11"	181 lbs.	31 1/4"	8 7/8"

40 Yard Dash	Bench Press	Vertical Jump	Broad Jump	3-Cone Drill	20 Yard Shuttle
N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A

Games	Tackles	Tackles for Loss	Sacks	Pass defended	Interceptions	Forced Fumbles	Touchdowns
44	162	5.0	0.5	15	4	3	2

Pros 

• Excellent athlete for the position.

• Tenacious cornerback prospect that has an alpha mentality.

 

• Mega aggressive at the line of scrimmage with the receiver to knock them off routes.

 

• First five yards of a receivers route is slog when he's in press-man.

 

• Tremendous fluidity in his footwork and frame in man coverage to stay with quicker receivers.

 

• Flips hips well to maintain stride when covering downfield.

 

• His aggression when contesting catches has consistently resulted in defended passes.

 

• Attacks hands of receiver when contesting catches.

 

• High football IQ in his early recognition of routes and how to neutralize them.

 

• Contorts body very well when attacking the football in the air to try and snag an interception.

 

• Excellent ball skills for the position.

 

• Agility and explosiveness in zone coverage casts wide net to make plays. 

 

• Triggers down hard on passes in his zip code to either swat at the ball and torpedo into receiver.

 

• Capable return ability after the interception to pick yards or points.

 

• The hardest hitting cornerback I have ever seen enter the NFL, and that's not hyperbole.

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• Comes at ball carriers like meteor and absolutely demolishes them consistently.

 

• Is a wrap up tackler that brings the pain behind and rarely, if ever, gets broken away from.

 

• Does a great job of aiming his hits at the football in an attempt to dislodge it.

 

• Comes screeching off the edge as a blitzer with his hitters mentality.

 

• Scheme versatile player that can play in the slot as well as on the outside.

 

• Could a be special blitzer for a creative defensive coordinator.

 

• Elite competitive nature on the field that is highly contagious.

 

• The undisputed leader and heart beat of a very talented Illinois defense in 2022.

Cons

• His current build at the cornerback position isn't conducive for his monstrously aggressive style of play, likely effecting his longevity in the NFL.

• Light frame likely won't help him be truly effective in press coverage.

 

• Average height for the position could be an issue against taller receivers and tight ends.

 

• His aggressive addiction for making plays has allowed receivers to occasionally get him to bite on routes as well as quarterbacks fooling him with look-offs and pump fakes.

 

• Overly aggressive coverage tendencies once past five yards.

 

• Can be late when transitioning on routes, forcing him to make up ground more often than not.

 

• Diagnosing play action calls has been somewhat of an issue for him due to his need to make plays.

 

• May lack top end speed to cover deep threats effectively.

Overview

Few cornerbacks in the college football have played as hard as Devon Witherspoon has in his career and his highlight reels of him smashing receivers, blowing up plays in the backfield, and dominating receivers on the outside has sent his draft stock on a rocket ship with his rise being compared to Ahmad "Sauce" Gardner's in 2022 as both were smaller school studs that work their asses off and play hard. However Devon Witherspoon's greatest strength, that being his all gas no brakes aggressive style of play, is also his biggest weakness as a prospect currently as his need to make plays on the field can get him in trouble with misdirection and offensive slight of hand targeted at him specifically which has resulted in negative outcomes. His size as well is a concern for how hard he plays because his frame and skinnier build likely won't hold up for a long career in the league, and teams often worry about smaller plays making big hits the way he does. All in all, he's a high floor cornerback talent in the draft that will certainly give team a turnover or two in 2023 whether it's an interception or a bone-jarring hit on receiver and if the team that drafts him can temper his raging aggression as football player, you could have a pro bowl cornerback within his first few years in the league.