Carolina Panthers general manager Marty Hurney wasn't messing around when he said he wanted to add speed at every position.
A night after taking Maryland wide receiver D.J. Moore in the first round, Hurney selected blazing fast LSU cornerback Donte Jackson on Friday in the second round with the 55th overall pick.
Jackson, a two-year starter for the Tigers, was part of an SEC-winning relay team at LSU and tied for the fastest 40-yard dash time among corners with a 4.32-second clocking at the combine.
For good measure, he knocked a hundredth of a second off his 40 at LSU's pro day.
Jackson also does not lack for confidence.
Asked if he considers himself the fastest defensive back in the draft, Jackson said he thinks he's the fastest skilled position player in the draft.
"I think my speed is unique, it's different. I can get out of bed any day and I'll run fast. I don't think a lot of guys can honestly say that," Jackson said on a conference call with Charlotte media. "I have a lot of confidence in my speed."
The knocks on Jackson are his slight frame (5-11, 178) and his subpar coverage and ball skills.
But he brings a swagger and confidence to the field _ and the Panthers need another corner opposite James Bradberry.
Jackson said he will play nickel and outside corner for the Panthers, who signed veteran Ross Cockrell after trading starting corner Daryl Worley to the Eagles in March.
After the first round of the draft ended Thursday and Jackson hadn't heard his name called, he tweeted about how the "chip on my shoulder just got bigger."
Jackson, who watched the draft with his family in his New Orleans hometown, was asked how big that chip was.
"The size of this hotel I'm in," Jackson said.
There's little question that Jackson has game-changing speed. He was a state champion in the 100 and 200 meters in high school, and was part of an LSU 400-meter relay team that finished first in the SEC outdoor track championships in 2017.
Scouts are less certain about Jackson's coverage ability. He had four interceptions in three seasons at LSU, but had a solid junior season with 49 tackles, 10 pass breakups and one pick.
Jackson had plenty to say about his critics.
"If there's guys that sit there and say that I can't cover or I'm too small, they obviously haven't looked at the film. They obviously haven't looked at me playing in the SEC," Jackson said.
"They've obviously never seen the edge that I play with. They don't know me. ... The film says it all."
Jackson, 22, says he's not satisfied arriving in the NFL as a second-round pick.
"Yeah, it's a high draft pick, but I've got way more milestones to fulfill," he said. "I want to be doing this for a long time. So I want to be a Hall of Famer. That's the only thing that's on my mind."
