Devon Witherspoon fits what the Eagles look for in corners and will realistically be available with where they could prioritize a corner in this upcoming class.
“Spoon” started as an Eagle – a Pine Forest High School Eagle – and Philly should look hard at making him one again in the 2023 draft. I wrote here on what Philly’s roster priorities should be with, no surprise, defensive line and running back being the most obvious needs. Add in offensive line and Howie will likely continue to prioritize the positions he always has.
But corner is an emerging need as Bradberry may not be affordable to bring back, Slay is getting up in age, and the other CBs Howie has been collecting are unproven.
Corner is one of the hardest positions to hit on which is why I think Howie avoids it with top draft capital. Even in the 2021 draft, Adam Herman reported here that Howie feigned interest in Patrick Surtain and Jaycee Horn to land DeVonta Smith. But Howie now invests here – the Eagles are 13th this year in cap space spent on CBs and forecasted to be top in the league next year with Slay’s cap hit ballooning.
I don’t think this class has a top-10 or even top-15 pick like Sauce, Surtain, Horn, and Stingley the past couple of years. We get a lot of long corners this year, but I have worries on each of the current top guys. But one name I keep coming back to is Devon Witherspoon. Currently viewed as a day 2 guy (although I wouldn’t be surprised if his actual draft slot creeps up), “Spoon” may be the best value on day 2.
What others are saying
There are a million draft opinions and they are what they are, but including here some of the common themes others mention just so you know the public perspective on him. Some of these are only found on older evaluations which I have noted:
- Physical, hyper-confident corner that serves him well but can get him in trouble with penalties
- Some have concerns on size, but athletic with good speed. Likely to test better on agility than pure speed
- Clean footwork, stays patient mirroring receivers with good short-area quickness
- While he gets his hands on balls, he has not converted into interceptions
- Gives up too many receptions per target (primarily on 2021 film evaluations)
- Inconsistent technique, particularly in zone coverage (primarily on 2021 film evaluations)
- Some concern on quality of opponents he has faced
- Viewed anywhere from a 1st to 4th round prospect
Coverage stats
Devon didn’t start playing football until his junior year of high school and has markedly improved year after year. He is having his best year in 2022, playing at an elite level while matching up against the opponent’s best receiver every week.
36.8 passer rating against, 3rd best in this draft class and 6th in FBS. As a reminder, a QB throwing the ball into the ground generates a 39.6 passer rating. And he has done this with only 1 interception this year meaning he isn’t getting the benefit of turnovers pulling passer rating down, it is consistent coverage.
35% reception rate 2nd best in this class and down from 59% his junior year.
22% pass break up rate, 3rd best in this class behind Joey Porter Jr. and Eli Ricks and a higher rate than any of the corners in the 2022 draft class.
6th best run stop rate in this class with 13 run stops on 233 snaps. When you watch Devon play, his play anticipation and willingness to close jumps out.
2.00 YAC average allowed, 2nd best in this class behind Jaylon Jones and better than any 2022 corner drafted except Trent McDuffie.
5 penalties, which is a lot and weirdly this year, most of the top CB prospects have a high penalty rate (Kelee Ringo, Cam Smith, Jaylon Jones, Emmanuel Forbes, and Eli Ricks all have slightly higher rates). More on Devon’s penalties below with the film clips.
You obviously can’t just stare at numbers and have them guarantee success, but they do mean something. The 2022 corners that are succeeding in the league all stood out in some way. Sauce had an insanely low target rate and absurd 22.6 passer rating allowed… Trent McDuffie was elite on YAC allowed and 3rd best passer rating allowed… Tariq Woolen and Martin Emerson were solid across all stats.
Film clips
All-22 is severely lacking at this point so most of this is broadcast copy which has limitations. Games watched: 2022 Purdue, Nebraska, Michigan State, UVA
Coverage
Witherspoon breaks well on balls, both in man (which Illinois primarily plays) and in zone. Here he sits in zone at the goal line but breaks on 6’4″ Malachi Fields in the back of the endzone for a PBU.
Some knock Devon’s size, but again covering a bigger receiver, this time Michigan State’s leading WR, 6’4″ Keon Coleman.
On 4th and 2, Witherspoon breaks on a comeback route for a PBU and force a punt. We won’t know the coverage call, but Devon played off and the WR didn’t help his QB as he had more room to come back toward the pass. A better route and pass may complete, but it shows Devon’s anticipation, close speed, and ability to get a hand on the ball.
Run Stops
One of my favorite clips and it reminds me of Trent McDuffie’s famous cross-field tackle from last year. On 2nd and goal from the 7, Devon follows MSU’s Jayden Reed on an end-around across the field for a TFL.
Devon again shows his closing speed, coming downhill from 15 yards out to stop a QB scramble for no gain.
And the clip that everybody has seen by now where Devon jumps the RB screen and murders Indians’s Shaun Shivers.
Penalties
As mentioned above, Devon has had several DPIs called on him this season. He plays aggressive but I am not as concerned on there. A lot of corners will be grabby in routes, protecting themselves when beaten downfield or on change of direct. But I don’t see that with Devon.
This one was all over Twitter where Devon was called for DPI against Purdue’s thousand-yard receiver Charlie Jones. A flag was thrown so it is what it is, but this is good, tight coverage on a really good receiver. And if you watch to the end, I think this was more likely offensive pass interference as Jones grabs once Devon wins the inside position.
And another DPI on a quick goaline slant vs. UVA. Again, probably should have been a no-call. There were some hands, but all within 5 yards and just good coverage where he is able to slip in front of the receiver for the PBU.
Of the games I have watched, his DPIs are all this type where it is a tightly contested ball at the catch point, not where he is beaten and being grabby in the route.
Quality of opponents
It would be nice to see Illinois play Ohio State, but Devon has covered receivers like Purdue’s Charlie Jones, MSU’s Jayden Reed and Keon Coleman, UVA’s Keytaon Thompson and Dontayvion Wicks and for each, gave them one of their worst games of their seasons.
Take Charlie Jones, a 5th year senior who is the Purdue offense with 1,010 yards and 10 TDs in 10 games. Devon matched up all day against Jones and allowed 3/5 for 29 yards. He did have two DPIs, one of which is in the above clips and I believe is questionable (the other was DPI).
Joey Porter Jr (PSU): 5 for 58 yards and 1 DPI
Garrett Williams (Syracuse): 6 for 152 yards, 1 TD
Intangibles
If you look at what Howie and Sirianni want it is players you would describe as:
High-character… competitive… leaders… athletes… team-oriented…
While it will never come close to what teams have access to, I try to watch player interviews to understand the player. There are talented players that just aren’t “Eagles guys”. Devon fits what the Eagles look for.
As mentioned above, there is no lack of confidence. Devon explained “As an outside corner, you’re on an island by yourself. I live for that moment. That’s one-on-one; me versus you.”
This shows up on almost every play as you see Devon in receivers faces reminding them they are in for a tough day.
“This is a guy that literally wants to get into a street fight every pass play” J Leman, Big-10 analyst and All-American Illini linebacker, said about Devon on the Illini Inquirer podcast here.
And one last clip. Here Devon giving up 5 inches and 75 pounds, refuses to let Purdue’s Payne Durham pick up a critical 1st down, forcing a punt late in a one-score game.
And his defensive backs coach Aaron Henry spoke about his preparation. “I couldn’t have a better player in the room. He studies the game the right way. He’s up here late at night watching film. He can dang near tell you whatever formation that team’s in, their favorite concepts and what they like to do. Then just off of where the ball is on the field, he knows what concepts, routes, and things that he knows what they are before they happen. Devon is one of those guys.” Again this shows up watching his games as he will direct others pre-snap.
Draft projection
I’m not sure Howie will even look to the draft for a corner – he really hasn’t in his tenure in Philly. The Eagles will surely prioritize one of the top defensive linemen early in this draft so it makes sense to look at corners that could fall in a range where it is realistic that the Eagles may actually look for one.
Devon will end up going higher than where he is currently projected as a mid-day 2 guy. Corners are always drafted heavily and this corner class, in my opinion, doesn’t have the clear top guys like the past two seasons. I didn’t dive into the other guys but I have some concerns on short-area agility and ability to stay with receivers with some of the big name guys.
This past draft the following CBs went between picks R1-21 and R2-42: Trent McDuffie (after Sauce, my personal favorite last year), Kaiir Elam, Roger McCreary, Kyler Gordon, and Andrew Booth. With Devon improving on each area of his game in 2022, he should fall somewhere in this range.
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