Big Board ranking: #6
Positional ranking: #1
Overview
Position: CB
College: Penn State
Class: Junior (RS)
Age: 22
Measurables
Height: 6’2 1/2”
Weight: 193 lbs.
Arm length: 34″
Hand size: 10″
Athletic testing
40-yard dash: 4.46 sec.
10-yard split: 1.50 sec.
Vertical jump: 35.0″
Broad jump: 129.0″
Bench press: 17 reps
3-cone drill: N/A
Short shuttle: N/A
Strengths
Very long frame with outstanding length. Phenomenal reach to jam in press coverage. Excellent play strength. Light feet and impressive change-of-direction skills at his size. Fluid hips for a bigger cornerback. Elite top speed. Able to smother outside releases in press coverage. Patient in man coverage. Has the length, reaction time, and speed to recover when beaten early. Great ability to locate and swat throws away. Exceptional awareness and feel at the catch point. Very effective reaching around to breakup passes. Tremendous overall play recognition. Quick reaction time on underneath throws in zone coverage. Stays low and looks to jump routes as a soft zone defender. Instantly identifies screen passes. Wraps up with excellent range as a tackler. Will be physical to bring down opponents in space. Experience playing at both left and right cornerback. Played great in matchups versus talented wide receivers for Ohio State (2021/2022). NFL bloodlines as the son of former Steelers outside linebacker Joey Porter.
Weaknesses
Gets grabby and needs to clean up hand placement on the shoulder of opponents. Mostly played sides and wasn’t used in shadow coverage. Drifts too much out of press transitions versus short in-breaking routes. Not as effective in soft man coverage. Susceptible to digs and in-breaking routes when giving a cushion. More of a deflector on interception opportunities. Can be better disengaging from blocks on the perimeter.
NFL comparison
Sauce Gardner
Conclusion
Overall, Porter Jr. is an extremely long cornerback that is at his best when able to play press-man coverage and stay close to opponents. His intelligence, physicality, and performance versus top competition should make him an early first-round pick.