Welcome to the most hectic, hot-take filled time of the year in Pro Football. While many times it seems there’s tons of negative back and forth between fans, trade rumors behind NFL closed doors, and teams shedding contracts left and right, there is always a light at the end of the tunnel. That light is the NFL draft. For decades the draft has been making young athlete's dreams become reality, creating a brighter future for the dark-mind fanbases, and creating front page content on a record basis. Every team is striving to find the next “Diamond in the rough” or steal of the draft, and when there’s 300+ names to choose from, many times that’s easier said than done.
Turning on the film is the first thing teams, analysts, and media are going to do across the country. Picking out flaws and identify strengths for every former collegiate athlete that declared for the draft. When identifying a draft steal, there’s always someone that is in their corner that is willing to “Pound the table” or in other words, “fight like hell” to get their team to take a swing on that players upside as a professional athlete.
Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah (JOK) has the potential to be a defensive mainstay for the next decade, and I’m here to pound the table for a team to draft him. JOK is a true X-Factor in todays game. The NFL continues to evolve and adopt the College Mantra of position less football, and JOK’s game perfectly translates in this regard. At 6’2 205-215 LBS, he profiles out as a box safety/Undersized LB. Turn on the tape and be ready to have your jaw hit the floor. This guy can lay the boom like 250lb Mike Linebacker. So this guy can hit? Trust me, his game is more than that. His athletic profile jumps out for his size. He has the ability to run with TE’s down the seam and not be outmatched physically. Covering running backs out of the backfield is not lofty task either. He even has the ability to split out and run with slot receivers, mainly in zone coverage.
I don’t see him manning up taking on the best receivers in the game from the slot, but in the right defense he can be a true chess piece. The keyword for him is “plan in place.” Similar to Isiah Simmons and Jeremy Chinn last year, a team needs to know how to scheme him up. Setting him up in early downs with WILL positioning, or a Mike with run stuffers up front can help capitalize on early downs. Widening him out on 2nd and long, or 3rd downs as a Dime LB or box safety can help create plus matchups on the fields benefiting a defense. With the emergence of the running quarterback, he can even provide versatility as a SPY defender.
Players like JOK are the future of the NFL, and anyone picking after the 6th or 7th overall pick should sprint their card to select him in the first round. You only need to listen to this man speak one time to see the true conviction and dedication that he puts into his game. A multi-year starter, at a blue-blood program, has helped shaped him into one of the best leaders in the draft this year. If your team selects Jeremiah in the draft on April 30th, your entire fan based should be ecstatic on the true game changer that will be coming into your team’s locker room.
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