As the NFL season winds down, FantasyPros will be taking a look at early NFL draft scouting reports before the combine in March. Here’s a look at Garrett Williams.

Check out all of our 2023 NFL Draft Scouting Reports & Prospect Profiles

2023 NFL Draft Scouting Report: Garrett Williams (CB – Syracuse)

Garrett Williams (CB – Syracuse)

6’0” – 189 lbs.

Background:

Has been starting since his freshman season, which was also his best campaign; finished that season having allowed 45/67 (67.2%) for 573 yards, three touchdowns, two interceptions, and seven breakups (3-2-7). Missed a little bit of time the following year but still finished with 541 snaps on the season and a line of 33/51 (64.7%), 378 yards, four touchdowns, and six breakups. Dealt with injuries as a junior which limited him to 285 snaps, allowing 14/21 passing for 253 yards, one touchdown, and two interceptions.

Positives:

Team captain. Big, well-built cornerback with three years of time in the starting lineup, which is evident in his form/technique. Good communicator on the back end. Has more experience backpedaling than most college corners, with solid balance and form; traditional man-coverage was probably the technique he played most often during the games reviewed. Does a nice job of getting depth and keeping the play in front of him. Pretty clean transitions to driving on a spot. Uses his length to pin when defending against outside releases from press coverage. Flashes the ability to jam inside releases. Uses his hands to feel routes. Fluid hips, without too much wasted movement in transitions. Able to sense/recognize routes developing underneath and break off of his man. Good technique to go for the breakup when in-phase. Was not flagged in either of the past two seasons. Locks out opponents and shows solid quickness and flexibility to work around blocks in the run game. Breaks down well in the open field, with form tackling.

Negatives:

Almost always played on the left side during the games reviewed. Has missed time over the past two years with injury. Overall speed and explosiveness are adequate, but may struggle to stick with quicker or faster receivers. Somewhat susceptible to underneath throws; more fundamentally-sound transitions than twitchy, explosive ones. Can be slightly late to get his head around and locate. Teams didn’t feel as hesitant to target him as some of the other top corners in the class, and were able to complete a relatively high rate of throws in his direction. Aggressiveness at the catch point was not quite as good as anticipated.

Summary:

A polished, technically-sound cornerback with a responsible approach to the game and the ability to play traditional man coverage, teams who favor “bend, don’t break” approaches should find a lot to like in his tape. Generally provides tight coverage, rarely finding himself out of position, but doesn’t make quite as many plays on the ball or have  quite as exciting a set of physical/athletic tools as some of the other top cornerbacks in the class, but has fewer holes in his game than most and could conceivably work on the boundary sooner than some of his peers, albeit potentially against a narrower range of receiver types.

Projection: Round 3