2021 NFL Draft: Oregon S Jevon Holland a tough projection to next level
By Cory Kinnan
Where Jevon Holland shows room for improvement
At Oregon, Holland predominantly lines up in the nickel for the Ducks as they run a variety of nickel and dime sets defensively. However, this makes it a strenuous task to figure out where to fit him in at the next level. While he can match up with tight ends down the field with a high-level of muscle, his hips and feet remain a bit stiff, putting him at a disadvantage against wide receivers in the slot in man coverage.
The next level of frequency where Holland plays is in the box with the big boys along the Oregon defensive front. While he is intelligent, Holland struggles to disengage blockers and can get washed relatively easily in the trenches. At the next level, this will prove to be a difficult task to overcome unless he can add this element of his game to his portfolio in his Junior season.
He is not a sure tackler in space, another area to improve upon this season, and is not a next-level athlete to overcome some of the flaws in is technique. Mainly this would not be an issue as most deep safeties struggle with these above flaws in Holland’s game, however, the Oregon safety has not shown the common ability to play in the deep second or third parts of the field in coverage.
Given the above breakdown, we now attempt to evaluate Holland, his 2021 NFL Draft stock, and how he projects at the professional level.