2021 NFL Draft: Do not sleep on Mizzou safety Tyree Gillespie

Tyree Gillespie Film Review

Safeties in many ways are the unsung heroes of the defense. They can be called upon to serve as slot defenders, pass-rushers, impromptu flat defenders and stand as the last line of defense against the run. The best safeties can keep a quarterback psyched out all game, misdirecting them with their initial field position and drop in coverage.

How well they can dissuade a passer from throwing in their direction is proportional to their effectiveness as a defensive back. Therefore, stats are not entirely useful when evaluating the position. We must explore Gillespie’s game tape to get a good idea of what he brings to the table in the 2021 NFL Draft.

If NFL scouts want to get a good idea of what Gillespie can do, they need to watch the 2020 season opener against the Alabama Crimson Tide. Defending the field against Alabama’s multiple playmakers on offense is never an easy task for any secondary, let alone playing against the group that would go onto win the National Championship. But early in the game, we get a chance to see just what Gillespie can do.

On a third-down play in the first quarter, Gillespie flies downfield after lining up in a two-high safety look and absolutely hammers Alabama receiver DeVonta Smith on a post route, setting a physical tone right away and stopping the drive.

https://twitter.com/MizzouFootball/status/1309995011455332352

Watching the Alabama game, you see Gillespie moving all over the field, whether that was shifting to bracket wide receivers or coming down as a run defender. In another play in the first quarter (11:05, 2nd and 12), Alabama runner Najee Harris gets a huge opening from a fake screen pass, gaining almost 11 yards before Gillespie comes down and stops him dead in his tracks.

It was a great example of his short-distance explosiveness when throttling back downfield against the run. The tackle also illustrates Gillespie’s physicality at the point of contact and ability to stop ball carriers dead in their tracks.

Mizzou often lined Gillespie up in a single-high safety look with strong safety Joshuah Bledsoe, another Mizzou player in the 2021 NFL Draft. The two worked opposite each other in the secondary and showed great chemistry, often communicating and adjusting in tandem to react to offensive movements.

Gillespie was also brought down to cover slot duties on late downs, providing plenty of quality coverage footage for scouts to review. Mizzou had Gillespie covering the deep middle of the field on most plays, which made him one of the last lines of defense for Mizzou. In short, Mizzou utilized Gillespie at every level of the field.

There’s just so much to like about Gillespie as a prospect in the 2021 NFL Draft. He has shown yearly improvements since becoming the full-time starter in 2018. He’s shown that “sideline-to-sideline” speed that scouts seem to value so much, combined with solid coverage skills and the ability to throttle downfield quickly to help the front seven.

His tackling has been admittedly mixed at times, a part of his game he will need to work on in the NFL. But when he does tackle well, his strength and speed combine for a potent hit, which usually brings playmakers to the ground quickly and efficiently.

The sack in the footage above can’t be credited solely to Gillespie, as the tight end and running back clearly get confused as to who they’re supposed to be blocking. But the clip shows how quickly Gillespie processed the blunder and took advantage of it.

He made his path to the quarterback wide enough so the running back could not compensate for the error, moving faster than the Volunteers passer could finish his drop back, bringing him down before he could check the ball down to an open receiver. His tackle was a little high and could have led to the Tennessee passer breaking free. But Gillespie had the strength to bring the quarterback down for a big loss on the blindside hit.

The more you watch Gillespie, the more you wonder why he isn’t getting more attention in the 2021 NFL Draft. Against Alabama, he helped contain their bona fide first-round receiving talents. Against Florida this past season, Gillespie was part of a unit that contained the top tight end prospect in 2021, Kyle Pitts, to just 81-yards all game. The more you pay attention to the opposing team’s top offensive playmakers, the more you see Gillespie moving in their direction. The coaching staff clearly felt confident giving him these important assignments.

This isn’t to say Gillespie is a flawless defensive back. There are parts of his game that need cleaning up once in the NFL. But none of these problems are real deal-breakers when it comes to drafting Gillespie, especially if a team can get him past the third round.

There is clearly a path for Gillespie to become a full-time starter in the NFL. But where he gets drafted could determine how far he can develop once in the league. In the next section, we’ll explore three teams that would be ideal landing spots for Gillespie this spring. If Gillespie can end up with any of the following franchises he will have a real path to success in the NFL.