When looking at cornerback prospects for your team, those prospects can make the evaluation easier with two things: A high target rate, and a minimum of big plays allowed. Any prospect that has those two things in his quiver should be highly prized.
In a loaded cornerback class, there are few prospects who check the boxes as Utah’s Jaylon Johnson does. Over three seasons with the Utes, Johnson was targeted 190 times on 1.256 coverage snaps. He allowed just 93 catches for 1,009 yards, three touchdowns, and seven interceptions. He never allowed an opponent passer rating higher than 57.6, and last season, on passes of 10 or more air yards, he gave up just four receptions on 31 targets.
Physically, Johnson looks like the prototype — 6-foot-0, 193 pounds, a 4.5 40-yard dash at the scouting combine. But when I spoke with him regarding four plays from his 2019 season, it quickly became apparent that the one thing that sets Johnson apart is the ability to take comprehensive tape study and take it to the field.
That was evident from the beginning — in his freshman season of 2017, Johnson had 310 coverage snaps, allowing 26 receptions on 55 targets for 277 yards, no touchdowns, one interception, and an opponent passer rating of 54.9. Johnson was a highly-regarded prospect out of Fresno, California, but the extent to which he was able to beat the usual adjustment issues when transitioning from high school to college rested in the prep work he did.
“The biggest thing I did was get in and get the playbook down,” he said. “Because I knew that if I didn’t know what I was doing, I couldn’t make plays. I couldn’t play as fast as I needed to play because I didn’t even know my assignment. How am I supposed to line up? So, for me, it was just coming in and learning the playbook. After that, it was just trying to focus on the technique and not be all over the place and not just play off of athleticism but also know what I’m doing. It was a lot mentally, just going into it, the focus, technique, learning the playbook, and ultimately, I was in condition to make plays.”
Over and over, against high-flying PAC-12 offenses, Johnson was able to not only shut receivers down, but did so with very little help. Often, Johnson was the island cornerback to the wide side of the field, tasked with the opponent’s best receiver. As he said, that’s not just about physical gifts — there’s a required mentality.
“I don’t think that’s something you can acquire,” Johnson said of the ‘island cornerback’ mentality. “I feel like it’s in you or it’s not in you, but that’s a different level of confidence. I mean, a lot of corners have that confidence, and a lot of corners have that swag about them but it’s different when you’re by yourself. You’re all alone, and it’s just you. You know if you don’t make the plays, nobody else is going to make them. So for me it was just, it was always in me to do, it just got brought out in my second year at Utah. I feel like it’s just something that people are born to do. You have to have a different mentality and a different mindset about yourself. It’s not just about confidence; it’s also short term memory and knowing you’re going against that number one guy. You’re going to give up the catch, but how many can you keep stopping? How consistent can you be?”
In Johnson’s case, consistency has been the order of the day. Let’s go to the tape to find out how that happens.
Doug Farrar: Let’s start with the pick against Washington State. Can you run me through what the coverage was, what your assignment was and how you got this pick? Because first of all, Anthony Gordon, the quarterback, is extending the play. How does him rolling out affect you, because you’re going to face guys like this in the NFL all the time.
Jaylon Johnson: Right here, we’re in a Cover-2, and I’m just trying to get a reroute on their No. 1 receiver. Forcing him inside, and just having eyes on the quarterback. I also had a guy coming across the middle, so I was just trying to get under him and just make a play on the ball when he threw it.
DF: So, your first assignment is the guy you’re pressing and then you have the slant, or the horizontal route? Are you playing bail there?
JJ: No, I’m not bailing, I’m just trying to get a reroute. I was honestly just disguising man coverage as I was pressing, but I had underneath coverage and I was just disguising a man look.
DF: Then, Gordon breaks the pocket and you kind of stop — what is your thought process there?
JJ: Just to find who’s around me — to find the nearest guy. But once [Gordon] stepped up, I was making sure that I didn’t have anybody around me. That’s when I saw that receiver coming across, so I just tried to stay in between him and the running back that slipped out.
DF: When you guys studied Washington State’s passing offense, it’s obviously high volume and a lot of different things going on. What were some of your scouting points and coaching points going into that game?
JJ: It was a lot of formation-based things – when they come out in this formation expect these couple of routes, or expect these concepts. A lot of it was based on formation and we were able to call out or give different alerts to different route combinations that may have occurred. So, it was just being locked in on the formation they were in
DF: What’s the formation on this play?
JJ: This is “Spread Doubles Gun.”
DF: The second play, and I know you’ve talked about this before, is the pick-six against Washington I think at the combine you went into detail about this. Looking at the overhead here, walk me through what you saw something based on the formation and what tipped you off as to what you could do>
JJ: Right here, we called it “Near Doubles Gun.” If you see that tight end and how he’s off the line of scrimmage, and then the other receiver that’s on the same side as him — he’s close to the formation. Then, with the No. 2 receiver, the slot receiver on my side, how he’s tight as well. They like to do crossing routes, so those two would do crossing routes. Then, that receiver at the top would run a dig route, and No. 1 would run an out route. It was 100% of the time these routes would be this way. [My receiver] ran a dig to the field side, and I knew they were going to run that.
DF: He runs that out route, and you’re back pedaling to jump the route. Are you trying to slow play the receiver to make him think you think he’s going to run a more vertical route?
JJ: Yes and no. Yes in that I knew the route was coming, but I had to backpedal to get myself in the right position. Because if I had jumped on it too early, [Jacob Eason] wouldn’t have thrown it. It was just about staying true. Also, they could’ve had an adjustment too – I’m using my pedal, but also thinking in my head that he’s going to break on this out route. So, it was about pedaling and getting myself in the best position to be able to play any route. And with the out route, being able to come in and undercut it.
DF: You have all the physical traits you need to be an NFL cornerback, but film study obviously plays an incredible role in what you do.
JJ: It’s a big tool, and I feel like it’s almost more important than the physical aspect. If you have all the tools physically, but you never know where the offense is going or how to try to attack the game, I feel like you’re not going to be in a position to make plays. But if you know what the team’s doing, and you know how the team’s trying to attack, you can always be in position to make a play on the ball whether it’s interception or a pass broken up. So for me I like to use both my advantage Offense I want to give you (10 and 2)(?) I want to have the keys to what they’re going to run and how they’re going to attack based on alignment and formation. Why not take advantage of that and give myself an opportunity to make plays?
DF: So, this play against Colorado — this is you against Leviska Shenault? I mean you’ve got him and then he eludes you. What is so tough about covering this guy?
JJ When going against him, I thought I was how it the ball was just thrown, it was a great ball and great timing on when the ball came. As soon as I looked, the ball had passed my face and it was outside. I was kind of late reacting, but he’s definitely a bigger guy. You can see on this play that I’m not trying to get to close to him. I don’t want to give him the opportunity to be able to push off of me or create too much contact. It’s just the ball was well placed, and I really didn’t see the ball till I saw him turn up the field. I’m like, okay, he has to have the ball then. He’s just a bit athletic guy and he’s trying to get to the touchdown. I mean, he’s a dynamic playmaker and I was just trying to limit that as much as possible
DF: Did your coaches say anything about that play, or was it just, “Hey, good throw — you just gotta tip your hat and move on?”
JJ: I don’t remember them saying anything outside of whether I was able to see the ball. Because they were able to see that I kind of stopped and then took off again like I was confused on what was going on. Other than that, no — I mean, I think that was probably his biggest play that he had this game
DF: With angular routes, what are the challenges with guys who can run quick angles like that?
JJ: You just have to be able to start and stop and change direction just as good as they do. If not, it’s going to cause problems just because it’s a reacting game at that point. You just have to move when you see them move and if you’re not a good reactor, it’s going to be very hard to move and stay beside them.
DF: Who was the toughest receiver you faced in college?
JJ: I would say [former Washington and current 49ers receiver] Dante Pettis.
DF: What was so tough about him?
JJ: Honestly, I wonder if I’m saying it because I played him a while ago, but he ran really good routes. We battled at the line of scrimmage, so I wasn’t too concerned about that area but in terms of off coverage stuff, he ran really good double moves and really good routes. It just had me feeling uneasy against him in off coverage
DF: The final play I want to talk about against Oregon, and this is a really interesting sequence. Justin Herbert is standing back there like Ken Stabler with the 1974 Raiders with four Hall-of-Famers on his offensive line, so you have to cover your receiver for about half a day. Here, you’re establishing inside position, and then he runs the cut back in, but you’re trailing him all the way. Can you just walk me through what the coverage was? Because when you have to cover a guy for that long, it’s like, how long can you hold your breath? Kind of take me through that play in general
JJ: It was just that, because I mean you can see he ran through two and a half… he stopped, he went in, went back up, It’s just trying to stay on him as long as possible and hope that he throws the ball or that somebody gets to him. But that’s exactly what it is, just holding your breath and trying to do your job as long as you can
DF: The jersey grab was a nice touch, by the way!
JJ: [laughs] I had to, definitely!
DF: which NFL cornerbacks do you look at and admire and maybe model your game after?
JJ: I like to study a lot of them, from Stephon Gilmore to Jalen Ramsey to Patrick Peterson. Just those bigger, more physical cornerbacks. They all have high IQs and they all know what they’re doing and compete at a high level doing it. I just like to watch those top guys and try to implement as much as I can to my game.
DF: In a couple days a team is going to draft you probably in the first half of the first round, what kind of player and person are they getting?
JJ: They’re going to get a competitor. We talked about being on an island, and it takes a different level of confidence and a different level of attitude. They’re going to get a competitor. A dog. They’re going to get somebody who’s smart, somebody who cares about the game and cares about everything they’re into. I have a family. I have a daughter, I’m not a low character guy, I have a high character. I care about my family and I do things the right way on and off the field.
