Did the Chicago Bears draft a future All-Pro cornerback in Kyler Gordon?
With their first pick in the second round of the 2022 NFL Draft the Chicago Bears selected Washington cornerback Kyler Gordon to be their immediate starter next to Jaylon Johnson. The similarities between Gordon and Johnson are quite unique. Both played in the Pac-12, and both were drafted in the second round. Both were slated to come in and start right away with both Gordon and Johnson seemingly up to the task.
Scanning over some of Kyler Gordon’s game tape, it becomes immediately clear why the Bears were enamored with the former Husky. Gordon is a very smart football player with a ton of discipline. He doesn’t bite on false movements and stutters from the wide receiver and basically knows what the WR is trying to do to get him to bite. As a result of this fundamental discipline and intelligence, Gordon doesn’t get taken out of the play very often and certainly doesn’t get beat for touchdowns. Gordon didn’t allow any touchdowns over the last two years.
Gordon has plenty of speed, and it’s not just straight line game speed that you see show up, he has quick feet to transition to make plays on the ball or run with the receiver down the sideline. He shows very good acceleration out of his breaks and never seems to get out of position in transition. He has the prerequisite smooth hips that so many scouts drool over and is very disciplined with his eyes.
As a tackler Gordon is just as strong as any other tackler from the CB position you can watch on tape. He breaks down well and runs through the ball carrier. He’s not afraid to be physical and doesn’t get out of position when he sets his feet to make the play.
Gordon’s overall athleticism is off the charts, He’s 5-foot-11 1/2 which is an ideal size for a corner, has a 39.5-inch vertical leap and a 10-foot-8 broad jump. He was rated as one of the top athletic freaks in the country heading into the 2021 college football season.
Lastly Gordon plays with swagger. He has all the confidence in the world for a CB and it shows up on tape. It’s not arrogance, although even if he was a bit arrogant it hasn’t hurt him because he played so disciplined in college.
Overall it’s extremely hard not to get too carried away with what you see on tape with Gordon. He portends to have the ideal package for a corner and if his transition to the NFL is as predicted the Bears’ defense will be a lot better than people are predicting.
With Kyler Gordon and Jaylon Johnson on the roster the Bears could quickly shift money from the front seven to the secondary in the not too distant future. Gordon represents one of those players where sometimes your own personal bias and excitement may get in the way of minor flaws he might have. Overall though he looks like a Pro Bowl caliber CB who will be playing at a high level for the Bears for the next 10 years ala Peanut Tillman.
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