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Browns 5th Rd (#152): CB DeMario Minter |
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Written by GM JR Scouting LLC
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Sunday, 30 April 2006 |
 | DeMario Minter | Height: 5-11 Weight: 191 40 Speed: 4.60* | Position: Cornerback College: Georgia Final Grade: I 6.2 | | SUMMARY | | Minter was a very enjoyable player to grade. He plays cornerback with the tough and aggressive attitude coaches like -- and that is very hard to find. He has very good natural athleticism, which allows him to cover well and break up passes consistently despite bad footwork. He has shown the ability to reach in front of the receiver to break up passes. In the games GM Jr. graded, Minter showed the hands to make tough interceptions, but it's still a concern that he did not intercept any passes until his senior season. He has good size for a cornerback, but on film he looks and plays like a short corner and can be pushed and muscled by big receivers. He consistently comes up quickly in run support, will make hard tackles and consistently get his man down out in space. Overall, Minter might slide in the draft, but he should eventually become a good starting NFL cornerback, and perhaps a very valuable cornerback because of his ability to be good in all areas of coverage and in run support. Additionally, he could become a good special-teams player early in his career while he works his way into the starting lineup. | | CRITICAL FACTORS | | Athletic Ability | M/M Off | M/M Tight | Competes | Play Speed | Instincts | | 6.5 | 6.0 | 6.0 | 6.0 | 6.0 | 6.0 | |
| STRONG POINTS | | Minter is a very good athlete with the quick feet and explosive closing burst that coaches like. He is aggressive closing on passes in front of him and does not hesitate to drive through the receiver to break up the pass. He has the body control to reach in front of the receiver to break up the pass without committing the penalty. Although he did not make any interceptions until his senior season, he showed the ability to make the excellent interception in the games GM Jr. graded (Tennessee and LSU). He has the hips and athleticism to flip his hips and turn and run without losing a step, and he can stay on a receiver's hip on deep routes. | | WEAKNESSES | | Minter's biggest weakness is his bad footwork/backpedal because it hinders his ability to consistently transition and close on passes. He is going to really need to improve his backpedal to be productive in NFL. At times, he gets a little lazy when he is covering slow receivers and allows them to get separation and make catches they have no business making. | | POSITIONAL FACTORS | | Grade | Category | Comments/Description | | 6.0 | Read & React | He reads the passer very quickly, but because of his inconsistent footwork, he does not always react fast. | | 6.0 | M/M Off | He allows an occasional catch, but really breaks and closes on the pass fast from an off alignment. | | 6.0 | M/M Tight | His raw backpedal hinders his ability to react consistently to very sharp routes, but usually is good. | | 6.0 | Zone Coverage | He does a good job of reading the passer, closing fast and making hard hits to break up passes. | | 5.5 | Break & Close | He can be very good, but his sloppy backpedal causes him to struggle to transition consistently. | | 6.5 | Hips/Turn Ability | He has very good hips and can flip them to turn and run without losing a step very well. | | 6.0 | Tackling | He is a tough, hard nosed tackler who does not hesitate to deliver a blow to much bigger guys. | | 5.0 | Hands - Interception | He showed very good hands on the few chances GM Jr. saw, but with no picks until his senior season, you have to question his hands. | | 6.5 | Hands - Fight Blocker | He aggressively takes on and fights through blockers in order to make tackles. | | 6.0 | Deep Speed | He has the playing speed to stay on a receiver's hip deep down the field. | | N/A | Return Ability | He did not return in games GM Jr. graded, but he has the athleticism to be a good one with time. | | 5.5 | Errors | Nothing glaring, but he allows separation in tight man-to-man coverage at times due to his bad backpedal. | | | ATHLETIC ABILITY | Section Grade: 6.5 | | Minter is a very good athlete, but due to inconsistent footwork he does not play up to his natural athleticism consistently. He has very quick feet and they really show in off and zone coverage because he can plant, drive and close very quickly on passes in front of him. He is a very smooth and fluid athlete with the hips to turn and run with any receiver without losing a step when his technique is on. His foot quickness and athleticism show up when he gets turned around in man-to-man coverage because he can spin around and close quickly despite getting turned around. He is a very coordinated athlete with good hands, and it helps him to make excellent interceptions when he gets his hands on the ball. | | Q.A.B. | Quick Feet | C.O.D. | Flexibility | Coordination | | 6.5 | 6.5 | 6.5 | 6.0 | 6.5 | | | COMPETITIVENESS | Section Grade: 6.0 | | Minter is no doubt a tough cornerback who consistently has stayed in the starting lineup despite injuries, and always flies upfield to make tackles on short passes and runs to his side. While he has shown the ability to break up important pass plays, he has not shown the ability to come up with the interception often enough. Before his senior season, he never had intercepted a pass. His overall production is usually good in all areas, but occasionally it varies between very good and adequate. His sloppy backpedal hinders his ability to close quickly on passes to break them up consistently. When he plays over his feet, he is good, but he needs to become more consistent in his pedal. One really great trait is that Minter consistently is productive in run support. He comes up quickly, will fight through blocks and make tackles. He's a team player who gives the effort few cornerbacks do. He's an aggressive and tough hitter/tackler who consistently has shown a willingness to come up fast on plays in front of him to blow up plays. | | Toughness | Clutch Play | Production | Consistency | Team Player | Pride/Quit | | 6.0 | 6.0 | 6.0 | 6.0 | 6.5 | 6.5 | | | MENTAL ALERTNESS | Section Grade: 5.5 | | From watching film, it is tough to get a true feel for how smart he is. He shows he has learned well when he plays between short and medium routes in zone coverage, but his backpedal is so raw and choppy, it must make scouts wonder why he has not learned to pedal better. He has very good instincts and has shown the ability to react and make plays very quickly, but he does not consistently react fast because of his sloppy footwork. He does a good job of staying focused, which helps him to be so productive despite not having good footwork and technique. | | Learn/Retain | Instincts/Reactions | Concentration | | 5.5 | 6.0 | 6.0 | | | STRENGTH/EXPLOSION | Section Grade: 6.0 | | Minter has good size for a cornerback, but on film he looks significantly smaller than his measured size. His size, athleticism and toughness are going to help him become a durable NFL cornerback. He is a very explosive athlete who can plant, drive and close on passes with an explosive burst to make a hard hit right after the ball arrives to break up the pass. He shows good playing strength as a tackler, but he can be pushed around by receivers in coverage because he is not aggressive with his hands and lets the receiver dictate things. | | Body Type | Durability | Explosion | Play Strength | | 6.0 | 6.5 | 6.5 | 5.5 | | |