Cornerback  

Kentucky

5-11 183

40 time: 4.53

Draft board overall prospect rank: #128

Draft board cornerback rank: #17

Overall rating: 64*

 3/2/10: Only benched 9 reps of 225 pounds and had a 4.53 40 at 5-11 183, but he was one of the worst cornerbacks in the cornerback drills. He has really disappointed in this draft preseason and has fallen from one of my favorite underrated prospects, to a 4^th or 5^th round guy

1/30/10: Whether it be his injuries that are still plaguing him or whatever, this is not the same guy we saw at Kentucky in 2007 and 2008. He looked like a stick figure at his weigh in and was 2 inches shorter than what he was listed at in college and he really has looked out matched by almost every wide receiver he has faced this week and has had a really hard time breaking out of the jam at the line of scrimmage, which is not a surprise because of his extreme lack of bulk. 

1/23/10: He had a bit of a down year with a knee injury this year, but when healthy he’s an amazing man on man corner with future #1 corner potential. His wiry frame at 6-1 175 and his lack of elite timed speed will force him out of the 1^st round, where he would have been a lock to go last year before he got hurt.

            6/20/09: They say the one thing you can’t teach is natural athleticism. While that is true, Trevard Lindley possesses something else that you just can’t teach. Lindley is an average athlete for an NFL hopeful, with a mid to low 4.4s 40 and a skinny frame, but he has that natural ability to guard a wide receiver one-on-one that very few guys in the college game, or even in the NFL have. He rarely lets receivers get separation from him and he isn’t fooled easily. He only had 4 picks last season because wide receivers are rarely open enough when guarded by him for any quarterback with half a brain to throw to them. His man press coverage skills are very similar to those of Leigh Bodden, the man who Chad Johnson said was the best one-on-one cover cornerback in the league today. The fact that Chad Johnson gave someone a compliment other than his own reflection is very high praise for Bodden, but Lindley is just as good. The one thing cornerbacks struggle with when coming into the league, and the reason why most cornerbacks drafted on day 1 don’t play much their first year, is man coverage. That is where Lindley excels and that is why he should start from week 1 in the NFL. Like Bodden did, Lindley would struggle in a cover 2 or Tampa 2, where athleticism is valued over one-on-one coverage skills, but teams that use that defensive scheme aren’t going to draft him. He’d be a great fit for the Packers who use a press man coverage scheme. The Packers’ corners are old so they could be looking for a cornerback come draft day 2010. Lindley needs to put on about 10 pounds of muscle to be able to be at least average as a run stopper for a cornerback, but that shouldn’t be too hard. He’s young and has room to grow. While he’s not a great athleticism, skinny and average speed, he does have good height for a corner, which will also help in man-to-man coverage. He’s going to win more jumpballs than a guy 5-9 or 5-10 would and his uncanny ability to stick to a receiver like glue is going to force a lot of jumpballs when a receiver throws his way. At the end of the day, Lindley is a cornerback that can start from week 1 and soon should be able to be, with a little bit more experience against more athletic corners, that type of corner like Bodden or the Packers’ Al Harris or the Raiders’ Nmandi Asomugha who can single handedly take the opposing team’s #1 option and make him a non-factor. 

NFL Comparison: Fred Smoot

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