2021 NFL Draft: Greg Newsome II slowly trending into first-round material

When it comes to cornerbacks in the 2021 NFL Draft class, there are two guys who seem to be locked as the top prospects at their position. Those players are Caleb Farely out of Virginia Tech and Patrick Surtain II out of Alabama. After that, you get other promising talent cover guys that fall between the first-round and early second-round potential.

Greg Newsome II is an exciting prospect at the corner position that is trending in the right direction and has the potential to sneak into the end of the first round of the 2021 NFL Draft. Newsome stands at 6-foot-1 and weighs a solid 190 pounds, making him a bigger corner than the average size at the position. At Northwestern, Newsome showed great feet and hip flexibility, by breaking up routes or switching positon to help runs after the catch. A reason why Newsome is trending and could even more after his pro day is the kid will test off the charts by showing his speed and leaping abilities.

Last season, the stat sheet did not wow you like other guys in the 2021 NFL Draft class, but at the corner position, it is not all about the stats you put on paper. On 387 snaps this past season, he only let up 98 yards on 34 targets and only 12 of them were catches.

Newsome shows the ability to jam receivers at the line of scrimmage well, and like mentioned above, he has a great hip turning ability to pressure guys outside and use the sideline to his advantage. Newsome plays the game smoothly and is fluid with his motions, not stiffness in his motivates which add to his creative skills in coverage.

On tape, Newsome shows to be better in man than zone coverage because of his excellent footwork but always recovered when his zone wasn’t covered. Has a great ability to attack the ball carrier after the catch is made to eliminate yards after the catch. Newsome uses his bigger frame and athleticism to be a solid resource in the run game when it gets to the second level. He showed a lot of promising traits to be the effective outside corner and still with room to grow only playing three years at Northwestern.

At the start of the 2021 NFL Draft process, Newsome was looked at as a mid-to-late Day 2 pick, because of having a great sophomore year before his junior season. He only played in five games this past season, missing time with a groin injury. But when Newsome was on the field, he showed impressive playmaking ability on the outside.

This guy is an impressive athlete who should test well. With Newsome’s Pro Day coming up on March 9th, his stock is about to rise with the strong athletic testing that we expect to see. In the end, this guy could easily end up being a first-round pick in the 2021 NFL Draft.