PSO Scouting Report: CB CJ Henderson (Florida)

PSO’s original Scouting Reports strive to be uniquely valuable in evaluating a player’s future outlook by focusing on the four main subjects that summarize a player’s likelihood of succeeding at the next level including: natural Physical Tools, College Game Film, proven Production, and overall Risk that each individual player presents to a team drafting him. For a full breakdown of PSO’s Scouting Reports, click here.

Bio

Pos: CB

Hometown: Miami, FL

School: Florida

Class: Junior

Age: 21

Height: 6’1″ | Weight: 204 lbs.

Hands: 9” | Arms: 31.88”

Bench: 20 reps | 40 Time: 4.39s

Facts to Know

1st-Team All-SEC (2019), 2nd-Team All-SEC (2018)
4-star high school recruit, flipped commitment from Miami to Florida
Excellent 80.9 PFF coverage grade, 49.4 passer rating when targeted in 2018
8th-best forced incompletion percentage in 2019 (21.6%)

Physical Tools

Pros

Terrific all-around athlete
Great long speed to keep up with deep routes
Prototypical size & length
Quick feet & fluid hips
Raw strength (20 bench reps)

Cons

Upper body strength, but lacks physical presence

Grade: A

Game Film

Pros

High-quality man coverage ability
Fantastic all-around film as a sophomore
More than comfortable in press coverage
Quick feet allow him to maintain balance and effectively mirror routes
Fast to process and diagnose the play
Doesn’t fall for fakes too often — knows his assignment and stays in position

Cons

Not the same player as a junior (likely due to ankle injury)
Lacks physicality in press, run support, tackling, and at the catch point
Some confusing mental mistakes
Trusts his recovery ability a little too much

Grade: B+

Production

Pros

1st-Team All-SEC (2019)
2nd-Team All-SEC (2018)
8th-best forced incompletion % (21.6%) in the nation
Quality blitzer — recorded a pressure on 9/19 attempts
49.4 passer rating when targeted in 2018
75.0 PFF run defense grade (2019) shows consistency

Cons

Coverage grade dropped off the table in 2019 (81.7 to 58.9)
Way too many missed tackles (22.5%)
Poor 109.0 passer rating when targeted in 2019

Grade: B+

Risk

Pros

First player to earn Florida’s #1 jersey since 2015
Top-notch press-man capability
Ideal size, length, athleticism to execute a man-dominant scheme
Experience in a diverse defensive system
Incredibly high praise from DC Todd Grantham

Cons

Physicality is a legitimate concern
Injury-plagued 2019 mixed in with some mental miscues
Will likely need time to transition in the NFL

Grade: B

Overall

After Jeff Okudah, CJ Henderson is the most naturally talented man-to-man CB in this class. While he battled a nagging ankle injury and had some head-scratching mental mistakes this past season, his sophomore (2018) film is more than enough evidence of his special man-to-man ability.

Although his game lacks physicality, his elite foot speed and hip fluidity more than make up for it, even in press coverage. His ability to mirror routes and make a play at the perfect time is uncanny, and if his 2019 film was even remotely close to 2018, there would most certainly be a case for Henderson as CB1.

There are reasonable concerns to his game that may require a certain scheme fit, but CJ Henderson’s elite traits and natural man-to-man coverage ability simply cannot be taught and will be highly coveted.

Pro Comp: CB Greedy Williams (Cleveland Browns)

Projected Round: Mid-1st Round

Prime Destinations: NYJ, DAL, LVR, MIN, KC

OVERALL Grade: B+