Desmond King, CB, Iowa: 2017 NFL Draft scouting report and analysis

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Oct 10, 2015; Iowa City, IA, USA; Iowa Hawkeyes defensive back Desmond King (14) signals for the first down late in the fourth quarter after Iowa recovered a fumble against the Illinois Fighting Illini at Kinnick Stadium. Iowa beat Illinois 29-20. Mandatory Credit: Reese Strickland-USA TODAY Sports /

Weaknesses

While King is one of the quickest cornerbacks in this year’s draft, he’s not necessarily one of the fastest as far as his deep speed.

King answered some questions about his speed when he decided to only run at the Iowa pro day, and there he posted a 4.5 second 40-yard dash. Some have still complained that the reported timed speed is a bit too vague, but all that is important is what NFL teams think of him.

There were definitely times at Iowa where King couldn’t keep up with speed all the way down the field, and he would get beat deep. Those times were few and far in between, because despite the fact that King doesn’t have the deep speed of someone like Marshon Lattimore, he’s able to recover and more often than not, make a play on the ball.

Still, moving to the next level, deep speed could be an issue if he’s caught out of place too often, and that’s why the conversation has started about him possibly moving to safety.

In addition to concerns about deep speed, some scouts wonder about King’s foot quickness in mirroring quick receivers at or near the line of scrimmage.

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