Vikings Draft Profile: A.J. Terrell, CB, Clemson
Kirby O'Connor
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The Minnesota Vikings issues at cornerback are well publicized. In a couple of seasons, they’ve gone from having one of the best defensive backfields in the league to an absolutely average one that is about to lose major pieces to free agency.
The problems start with Xavier Rhodes. Rhodes, although he appears to have only lost a step or two, has fallen off a cliff. In the last few years, Rhodes was regarded as one of the only true shutdown corners in the league, but now he’s in danger of being cut from the team.
In a very different situation, Trae Waynes and Mack Alexander are both facing the possibility of free agency. Waynes has received criticism for not being a true number one corner, and being prone to getting handsy on anything other than vertical routes, but he’s shown enough to warrant a very large paycheck somewhere. The Vikings have no way to pay Waynes enough to keep him.
Alexander is in a similar position, but he won’t receive as much as Waynes on the open market. Mack has been the Vikings nickel and a very good one. However, teams don’t pay slot corners like they do outside guys. The Vikings might just make some moves to keep Mack who is only 26 and still has room to grow under Zimmer.
If the Vikings keep Alexander, it might make sense for them to target A.J. Terrell in this year’s NFL Draft. Terrell plays at Clemson, Alexander’s (and Jayron Kearse’s) alma mater. Terrell fits the Zimmer mold too. He’s not as large as Xavier Rhodes, Rhodes weighed in at 210 lbs and Terrell at 195 lbs, but his other measurements are similar. Terrell and Rhodes both stand 6’1” and Terrell ran a 4.42 40-yard dash when Rhodes ran a 4.43. However, Terrell had a much shorter vertical leap at this weekend’s NFL combine.
During Terrell’s three seasons with the Clemson Tigers, he recorded 101 total tackles (74 solo, 27 assisted), six interceptions, 13 passes defended and one touchdown. The Tigers record during Terrell’s tenure was 41-3 with two national championship appearances and one national championship title. Terrell scored the first points of the 2018 CFP Championship game on a pick six. Terrell also collected third-team All-ACC honors in 2018 and first-team honors in 2019.
Watching tape on Terrell, you see why he is one of the top defensive backs in this year’s draft. He has incredibly smooth feet and hips, and mirrors receivers very well. This is one characteristic that Mike Zimmer has shown that he cares about in his defensive backs, both Rhodes and Waynes were extremely fluid in their college days.
Terrell also sticks to receivers extremely well. It’s often hard for young defensive backs to stay with receivers after cuts, but Terrell is very pesky and stays with his man more often than not. Staying close to receivers he can use his length to knock down balls at the catch point or at the very least take guys down right where the catch is made and prevent run after the catch.
One of the things that always impresses me about corners is when they know how to use the boundaries to their advantage. Terrell does this very well, and knows how to steer guys out of bounds on deep shots to the sideline. However, he can get a bit grabby in situations where he doesn’t run the guy off and this can lead to pass interference penalties.
Where Terrell really struggles is using his strength. He has good upper body strength, but lacks in his lower half. This means that he can hold his own in press coverage, but can have issues with being the aggressor on open field tackles. He certainly plays hard and isn’t afraid to bang into guys, but he doesn’t wrap up often enough and lack of leg drive means guys get second chances to break his tackles.
My final concern with Terrell is with his low vertical leap. It makes sense with the slighter lower body, but he had times where he was “big bodied” by tall players on jump balls. He’ll face this even more in the NFL with being asked to cover tight ends who are converted power forwards. Of course, some of this can be negated with good technique and splitting hands using his length, but it could limit him from becoming a true shutdown guy one day.
If the Vikings want to get Terrell, they will either have to make a move to get him, or hope that he falls to them at 25th overall. It is possible that he gets there, but teams that are already sold on him aren’t going to be scared away by a low vertical. Terrell also has tons of experience in high leverage situations with Clemson’s recent CFP success, which could mean a lot to a playoff team like the Vikings looking for a plug and play guy.
Terrell could be a good, cheap way to help shore up the Vikings cornerback situation. However, I think it likely that Spielman and Zimmer feel the true answer is already in-house and targeted a different, bigger need in the first round.
Projected Draft Position: Mid-Late 1st
Best Traits: Smooth and quick feet, Sticks to receivers, Using the field to his advantage
Biggest Drawbacks: Strength, Jump balls, Grabby on deep routes