Big Board ranking: #48
Positional ranking: #2
Overview
Position: S
College: Penn State
Class: Senior
Age: 23
Measurables
Height: 5’11”
Weight: 203 lbs.
Arm length: 31 1/4″
Hand size: 10 1/8″
Athletic testing
40-yard dash: 4.65 sec.
10-yard split: 1.56 sec.
Vertical jump: 32.5″
Broad jump: 119.0″
Bench press: 18 reps
3-cone drill: N/A
Short shuttle: N/A
Strengths
Ideal size with long arms. Mostly a split safety but lined up all over the place. Superb instincts. Quick triggering downhill to play both the run and pass. Great reaction time and acceleration. Tremendous pursuit speed and aggressiveness. Excellent in robber coverage. Reads the quarterback’s eyes and is ready to make a play. Great awareness to cover or tackle versus intermediate routes/throws in front of him. Fast shuffling/strafing in coverage. Very good in man coverage. Physical without grabbing in coverage. Will come down to defend the slot. Outstanding ball skills and production. Tries to do damage with the ball in his hands on takeaways. Strong tackler that wraps up. Cleans things up versus the run on the second level. Blitzes from various spots. Used as a dime linebacker. Comfortable playing around the line of scrimmage. Was essentially a defensive end in a goal-line stop versus Michigan (2022). Generated pressure versus Northwestern left tackle Peter Skoronski on an inside move when lined up on the edge (2022). High energy and communicates well on the backend. Opted to play in Rose Bowl for final career game.
Weaknesses
Lacks top-end speed and sideline-to-sideline range as a centerfielder. Needs to be wary of peaking in the backfield and losing his assignment. Drifts in coverage and will open up a throwing lane behind him. Goes down to his knees too often when tackling. Will be overaggressive and overrun the action. Sometimes loses control when breaking down in space. Seems to be in no man’s land too often as a spy or delayed blitzer.
NFL comparison
Jordan Whitehead
Conclusion
Overall, Brown is an all-around safety with the versatility, instincts, and toughness to impact the game in multiple ways. He can play in a variety of schemes and should at least draw consideration in the second round.