Cornerback/wide receiver 

Alabama

5-9 197

40 time: 4.52

Draft board overall prospect rank: #48

Draft board cornerback rank: #5

Overall rating: 78*

1/23/10: He could be a decent nickelback and showed good abilities at the cornerback position this year in his 2^nd full season at the position, with 70 tackles, 5 sacks, and 5 picks, but his value is as a kick returner. He is one of, if not the best kick returners in the nation so in addition to being a solid nickel corner at the next level, he’ll be a great kick returner as well. He may also pull a Devin Hester and switch over to wide receiver as he’s shown good hands and abilities in the open field.

            9/12/09: Javier Arenas is probably the most gifted punt and kick returner in college football since Devin Hester. He has 6 special teams touchdowns, all on punt returns, in his career, and has averaged an amazing 25 yards per return on kick returns over the past 2 years for Alabama. He did not miss a beat last season on returns, despite playing more at cornerback for the first time in his career. In 2007, he had 27 returns for 657 yards on kickoffs and 25 returns for 323 yards and a touchdown and last year he had 26 returns for 610 yards and 55 punt returns for 650 yards and 3 touchdowns. He has shown that he can play all 3 positions without missing a beat. However, NFL scouts have some reservations about his ability to play cornerback in the NFL. He has struggled some in both man and zone coverage at cornerback and has really only spent 1 full year at the position. He has room to improve with experience, and he’ll have to do that this year if he wants to go in the first round, but if it weren’t for his return abilities, he’d probably be a late round prospect at best. When he gets the ball in his hands, he’s deadly, but he hasn’t shown the best hands, with only 1 interception in his career, though he did return that for a pick-six. Whether his low interception total is a result of bad hands or average skills in man coverage is a bit of a mystery at this point. He did only have 7 pass breakups last season so it may be more of the latter. If he can show he can make catches, he could move to the offensive side of the ball and play wide receiver, which would greatly help him longterm. The more positions he can possibly play, the better his draft stock is, for obvious reason. He’s not small. At 5-9 he weighs 195 pounds which is a pretty big frame for someone of that height so there are no size concerns, with the exception of height. He wraps up really nicely and is a strong helper against the run, part of the reason why Alabama’s run defense was so good on the whole last season. He breaks through the jam at the line of scrimmage well. He had 3.5 tackles for losses and 2 sacks last season. His straight line speed is very average. Its his quickness and agility that makes him so deadly with the ball in his hands. He should run a 40 in the 4.41-4.45 range. His lack of straight line speed hurts him in pass coverage some because he doesn’t have elite recovery speed when caught out of position. He should be a 2^nd round pick because of his ability to change the game on special teams, added with his potential at cornerback, or possibly at wide receiver, but I don’t think he’ll ever be anything other than an amazing special teamer who provides nice depth at either wide receiver or cornerback.

NFL Comparison: Ellis Hobbs

*=For a breakdown of what this means, click here