STRENGTHS
Patrick has the size, length, athletic talent, and high football IQ every team is looking for in a defensive back. Because of his high football IQ and ability to form tackle he can be used all over your defensive backfield at any position and in any down and distance situation. He has good cover skills and is an excellent zone defensive back. He is quick to come up and support the run and seems to take more pride when he makes a tackle behind the line of scrimmage than when he makes a pass breakup…and he does both very well. He runs with a smooth gate when running side by side with his opponent, but still has the ability to change directions quickly and explode to make a play. Patrick has excellent talent but what he truly brings to the next level that only the great ones possess, is the instincts and high football IQ to decipher opponents’ plays a second before the snap of the ball. That ability is what separates him from all others in this draft. I call him Patrick (The Professor) Surtain.
CONCERNS
He is handsy for sure, and penalties early will be an issue until he learns how to better influence the officials. I liked to see him take a more leadership role. He seems to be a bit of a loner just wanting to do his job and not wanting to be responsible for others. To take advantage of his high football IQ and instincts instead of just his talent he needs to become more of a leader and be willing to play more than just one position.
BOTTOM LINE 1.40
The potential for Patrick to be more than an excellent cornerback will be in a coach’s ability to convince him to become more of a leader on the field. Patrick’s talent can be matched at the next level but his instincts, football IQ and ability to know where a play is going and what play is most likely to happen BEFORE it happens can only be matched by a few. Right now, Patrick seems to want to keep to himself on the field and although he is still an excellent player, he is not reaching all of his potential and can be even more impacting if he will allow himself to be moved all over the defensive backfield and starts to become more of a coach on the field. Either way, you can’t lose selecting Patrick early in this draft. If he never becomes the leader I think that is in him, you still will have selected one of the best corners in this draft.
