Deone Bucannon: Scouting the NFL Draft

Feb 25, 2014; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Washington State defensive back Deone Bucannon runs the 40 yard dash during the 2014 NFL Combine at Lucas Oil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports

Tonight, as the NFL draft continues to rapidly approach, we take a look at Deone Bucannon. Bucannon is a safety from Washington St, and another player off of the player interest list of our buddy Jake Steinberg.

Whether you are a fan of Jake or not, his list always has good merits on it. He introduced us to a guy known now as “Snacks”, so Jake has a good pulse on things.

So, Deone Bucannon we go.

We begin with Bucannon’s career stats so far:

Defense & Fumbles

It is certainly more than worth noting the fact that his interception totals went up every year. Not only can he hit, but he can cover too.

He measures in at 6’1″, and 211 pounds. At the Combine, Bucannon ran the 40 yard dash at a position-leading 4.49 seconds. His vertical jump was 36.5 inches, the broad jump was 125 inches, and he performed the 3 cone drill in 6.96 seconds.

All in all it was a good afternoon had by Deone Bucannon.

Here is some video on Deone:

PROS: Bucannon can hit. This is not in dispute, and he does it cleanly, without head-hunting. He tackles through the ball-carrier, ending his run and often separating him from the ball as well. He has increased coverage skills, can disguise in coverage well, and has good hands to make the INT when the chance comes.

CONS: Here are his weaknesses from the NFL.com profile:

Average speed — struggles to recover from missteps and will not track anyone down from behind. Some tightness in his hips. Man-coverage limitations (struggles to match with slot receivers). Can be overaggressive and miss tackles. Does not always arrive under control in space. Misjudges angles.

This is definitely a player in Deon Bucannon that could step in and make a difference. Personally I like Jimmie Ward a bit better, but if the Jets were to choose Bucannon on day two or three? That would be a pick that would be fine by me.