Prospect of the Day: Tyrann Mathieu, CB, LSU

[Complex]

A more fiesty Shane Walton.

[Lil Quip]

I think this year will be extremely telling. Way to go out on a limb, I know.

The amount of db talent LSU is pushing out right now is crazy. He would be an out of this world talent if he could have unseated both Peterson and Claiborne the past two years. They were both the more experienced players ahead of him. Playing with guys like that allowed him to be the gambler big play guy. Now he should get the spotlight as a true number one, so let see how he does. That being said, I am not an expert on lsu, but there may be a young super blue chip prospect at corner ready to step into that role instead. If I were that kind of recruit, why not go to lsu right now?

As an aside, if you are looking for a super physical corner, you have to go ty law. Dude just manhandled receivers. Some people would argue he single handedly caused polian to go on his quest to dumb down nfl defenses. This guy caught more passes from peyton in a playoff game than harrison did.

[derza222]

Originally Posted by StickSkills

If I'm the Jets, I'm looking at him as a good match up for Wes Welker.

As long as Revis is a Jet and Welker is a Pat (and they're both playing at the same level they have been the last few years) I think that's the matchup you'll see. That's what they've been doing the past few years and unless the Pats get two utterly dominant outside receivers, Cro and Wilson should be fine there. The Jets really need to focus on trying to find guys who can cover Gronk and Hernandez to match up better with the Pats...but obviously that's easier said than done.

That said, if the Jets for some reason don't have all three of those corners, Mathieu would be an interesting option as a slot guy and occasional safety. Think Ryan and Pettine would use him very effectively and as good as the defense is, adding a playmaker wouldn't hurt.

[bornnraisedwhodat]

This guy is a playmaker. Watched every LSU game last year, and you can always count on TM to make the plays, be it punt return, pick 6, forced fumble, etc.

He will get exposed as parameter CB, so I doubt he will make it in the 1st round. But teams will def value him as a nickle CB or cover safety. His height will hurt him but not as much as you guys think.

Not a 1st rounder though.

[broncosfan]

As many others have pointed out Mathieu is a playmaker. He may not have the size yet but the man is 19 years old (turning 20 on may 13th), hes got room for improvement both in size and in technique.

He may not be your classic outside shutdown corner, but he is an excellent defensive back who can cover, tackle, blitz and take the football away consistently.

And as a bonus he's a great special teams player ala Joshua Cribbs who just doesn't return kicks but he's also a great gunner. I think a team like the Ravens, Steelers, Pats or Packers will be very happy to get him once he decides to turn pro.

[Caulibflower]

Originally Posted by AntoinCD

I think more and more teams are going to view guys who can play in the slot as being more valuable now than ever before.

A lot of guys who have the size to match of with perimeter guys like Calvin, AJ, Fitz etc don't have the necessary quick movements to match up with guys like Wes Welker or Victor Cruz in the slot.

Having someone who can play the slot limits a team's ability to move the chains.

Take the Patriots for example,

The fact that last year they had no outside WRs worth mentioning, if teams could slow Welker down then they could focus on Gronk and Hernandez which limited their effectiveness.

Yet teams who had very good perimeter CBs failed to slow the offense down because of the damage Brady could do underneath.

It's a completely different game these days. It's not two WRs, a TE, a FB and a RB. If you can't match up against 4 or 5 WR sets then you will struggle defensively.

I'm not sure Mathieu will be a high pick but he should carve out a niche for himself in the NFL thanks to his playmaking ability and competitiveness.

This is exactly my take on it. I like his style, and don't think his size is as much of a concern as it might have been a few years ago; the transition to a more wide-open passing game throughout the league means smaller players in more prominent roles. No, you're not necessarily going to want him on an island on the outside (although, let's be honest - we're only projecting him when we say that, and he could always play better than expected), but for the kind of guys who work the slot, the Victor Cruzs and Wes Welkers of the world, it doesn't hurt to have a defensive slot specialist to match up with an offensive slot specialist. Not to mention he's going to go balls-out on every nickel blitz that gets called for him and offers real value on special teams both as a returner and a gunner.

Certainly not in the Revis/Peterson category, but even Revis isn't huge. Realistically, we might be talking about a Brandon Flowers kind of cornerback. If you're drafting him to be your no. 1 corner you might be overrating him, but if you're expecting him to be a high-intensity matchup corner and return man I think he's a guy a team would feel pretty good about picking in the second, and depending on how this next year goes, he could sneak into the late first. Defensive backs are increasingly important, and I think if guys like Jerrell Jernigan, Randall Cobb, Percy Harvin, etc. are starting to be picked in the late first/second, the guys who line up across from them are going to merit being picked in the same range; I too see nickel corners beginning to be more and more of an actual position teams scout specifically for.

[Caulibflower]

^ And I'll just add I know Jernigan was actually a third round pick, but there was a lot of second-round chatter about him and I'm pretty sure I saw him mocked to the Jets at the end of the first a couple of times, so I'm talking about perceived value here.

[Caulibflower]

Originally Posted by K Train

patrick peterson says pssshhhhhh

T.Y. Hilton says, "Hey, the Sun Belt is a D-1 conference, too..."

[dunagan15]

Kid is def going first round. Easy. Just an absolute playmaker, and although not a great guy to leave alone, he still is very aggressive, great tackler, can blitz, just a real X factor type of player.

All this too small talk really depends on the system he is in. Brent Grimes is listen at 5'10 and Ive seen him in person and no way is he taller than 5'8, doesnt run a 4.4 but still made the pro bowl and is a pretty good corner. Yes he can jump thru the roof but he just is there to make plays just like Honeybadger.

And obviously as an added bonus hes a hell of a return man and weve seen how valuable those can be over the course of a game/season exp with field position.

[Caulibflower]

Yeah, Brent Grimes is kind of an interesting guy to point out, too. I mean, I think I'd be a little more concerned about Mathieu's size if I thought it meant he'd be a poor tackler, but that's obviously not the case - he might be known more as a big hitter than anything else. (At least, that's typically what I've seen.) Grimes isn't known for that, and he's still a successful starter. You know who else I thought of who might be a really good comparison?

Antoine Winfield. + return ability.

[ElectricEye]

I think there's going(and is)to be way too much made about what he can't do in the NFL. You can't put him outside in man coverage. You can't put him in man on bigger slot receivers. Don't get me wrong, those are completely fair pieces of criticism that limits his value quite a bit. We're probably projecting giving him a late first/early second round ceiling right off the bat because of that. He's simply not the kind of guy you draft to fix your coverage unit on his own. He's a luxury type pick for a good defense that can move him around and put him in positions where he isn't overmatched with size. He'll help against shiftier slot receivers and in deep zone, where his primary responsibility will be to track the ball. His knack for creating turnovers and big plays is just too valuable to completely dismiss.

Don't forget, he offers an immense amount of value as a punt returner too. I would be interested to see how he did with kickoffs. You can probably use him on punt/kickoff coverage units as well.

[Caulibflower]

Originally Posted by ElectricEye

I think there's going(and is)to be way too much made about what he can't do in the NFL. You can't put him outside in man coverage. You can't put him in man on bigger slot receivers. Don't get me wrong, those are completely fair pieces of criticism that limits his value quite a bit. We're probably projecting giving him a late first/early second round ceiling right off the bat because of that. He's simply not the kind of guy you draft to fix your coverage unit on his own. He's a luxury type pick for a good defense that can move him around and put him in positions where he isn't overmatched with size. He'll help against shiftier slot receivers and in deep zone, where his primary responsibility will be to track the ball. His knack for creating turnovers and big plays is just too valuable to completely dismiss.

Don't forget, he offers an immense amount of value as a punt returner too. I would be interested to see how he did with kickoffs. You can probably use him on punt/kickoff coverage units as well.

Right. "Shutdown corner?" Maybe not. Will a creative defensive coach like to have a guy like that to line up all over the field to take out a teams' slot receiver, blitzing, or disguising coverages by having him drop back to free safety while the free safety steps up into man? Absolutely. If you're got Darrelle Revis covering Hakeem Nicks and Cromartie over Rueben Randle, you're still got to have a guy cover Victor Cruz, and it may be more important to have a player who can make a quick, sure tackle or create a sharp pop as the ball arrives than someone who's going to highpoint a deep ball.

[Dangermouse]

This guy is too much of a weapon to fall far.

[JaxJag_1]

Incredibly overrated.

Great punt returner, nickel CB/FS in the NFL.

Not a starting boundary CB in the NFL.

[Brown Leader]

Originally Posted by bruschis4all

Two things. Even if you don't think he can play cb.

1. A nickel back is a starter in today's NFL. The 4-2-5 is the base defense in the league. Not the 3-4 or 4-3. I'm pretty sure he can do that. And, do it well. Because it allows him to free lance a little.

2. He might be the best punt returner to come out of college since Devin Hester.

This.

I like the Brent Grimes comparison. He doesn't hit like a truck like Winfield. That would be Brodrick Brown.

[thetedginnshow]

It's funny because for a while I thought he was in this draft and I was like, "Do people really think he's a top 5 corner?" Claiborne definitely was, though. Mathieu, however, is not that great. He'll be solid. LSU has good CB pedigree, but he won't be anything amazing. His cover skills really aren't that impressive. He's just very opportunistic (to his credit).

[prock]

Put him in the slot and have him return kicks. He will be a stud in the NFL. He is just too talented. The dude just simply makes plays whenever he is around the ball. He obviously has flaws, but you can't knack the playmaking ability. I would group hug Gregg Williams and Jonathan Vilma to get him on the Vikings.

[Caulibflower]

Little bit of Asante Samuel to his game, too.

[RockyMtn_Badger]

From what I remember of the NC game, he got abused pretty badly in coverage. But I think defensive coordinators are too creative nowadays for many teams to continually pass on him in the draft. Use him in a hybrid role ala Charles Woodson and he can be a contributor to a defense.

[cmarq83]

Originally Posted by RockyMtn_Badger

From what I remember of the NC game, he got abused pretty badly in coverage. But I think defensive coordinators are too creative nowadays for many teams to continually pass on him in the draft. Use him in a hybrid role ala Charles Woodson and he can be a contributor to a defense.

This is probably a big part of the reason why he is viewed so negatively right now. He played one of his worst games in the biggest spot of the season coverage wise, I think he's a better cover corner than he's getting credit for right now. Regardless he has every secondary characteristic you wish your DB's had, and a lot of it is the stuff you simply can't teach. If I was a GM I'd be willing to bet a late first on this guy. Throw him in a role exactly like Charles Woodson and you could have something special. For a team that is short on playmakers this guy could be a steal.

[dannyz]

Tyrann Mathieu is a guy I am not so sure about. I Love him as a Playmaker but hate him as a Corner. I think this year will be big for him because he is either going to get completely abused by Number One WR's or he might show he is a Cover corner.

He just seems like a punk though and the media hype is getting bad, I remember watching the NC Game and the announcers were like "Honey Badger doesn't Care" and I was like yeah he does when Alabama is killing him on the biggest game of the year. I think having Claiborne be the Shutdown guy made him more able to have those game changing plays but I see him as to much of a gambler and a Play I remember in the NC Game where Maze where he tried to strip the ball but Maze dragged him for about five yards.

I see alot of people here are saying he should be a Nickle Corner but what about Safety? He could be a Troy Polamalu type of player that can be used on Blitzes or an Ed Reed and just wait for a bad pass and get a pick, he can uses his return ability once he gets a pick to become a Reed or Eric Berry with the ball.

[AntoinCD]

I don't think its as black and white to say he's a slot guy, or a safety, or a nickle back etc but he's going to get a role in the NFL. A good DC will get him on the field as much as possible be it in the slot, a rusher from outside the tackle box, a deep safety, a rover in big nickle packages etc. Most teams would kill for a playmaker on defense. For some reason I think INTs are undervalued by some guys, along with return yardage from said INTs. The ball gravitates towards Mathieu. I would be ok with using a late first one him easily

[HeavyLeggedWaistBender]

How about, and just go with me for a second, as style of play:

CURRENT Charles Woodson

[SchizophrenicBatman]

The thing a lot of people don't seem to get with Mathieu is that it's not that he's short. It's that he's NOT GOOD IN COVERAGE.

He makes a lot of plays so he does have value. And guys who are fungible WRs but really good return men tend to go in round 3. So he's probably a second rounder. That's not saying he's a bad player

[cmarq83]

Originally Posted by SchizophrenicBatman

The thing a lot of people don't seem to get with Mathieu is that it's not that he's short. It's that he's NOT GOOD IN COVERAGE.

He makes a lot of plays so he does have value. And guys who are fungible WRs but really good return men tend to go in round 3. So he's probably a second rounder. That's not saying he's a bad player

He was a true sophmore who was above average in that respect for most of the season, then in ONE game with everyone watching he struggled a bit, so now everyone just thinks he can't cover at all. The guy was in great positions in coverage for most of the season while operating in a huge variety of spots on the field in zone and man coverages.

I think everybody saw the national championship game and look at the size thing, and basically think that Mathieu is all hype, but it's really not the case.