Adoree' Jackson, USC (Cornerback)
5-10, 186
Jackson was drawn out west from Illinois out of high school to help resurrect a Trojan team coming out of the dark days of the post-Pete Carroll era. He certainly gave the Trojans all they asked for, as he played both offense and defense, and on special teams during his three years in the Cardinal and Gold. He was named as a freshman All-American in his first season, as well as rookie of the year in the PAC-12 for defense. He was named first team All-PAC 12 as a sophomore, and was also a finalist for the Hornung award. He won the Thorpe award as a junior, and was named first team All-American and first team All-PAC 12 as a junior.
As a freshman, he finished with 49 tackles, four TFLs, nine PBUs, and a forced fumble on defense. As a receiver, he finished with a line of 10-138-3, and returned 23 kicks for 684 yards and two scores. He averaged 29.74 yards per return.
As a sophomore, he finished with 35 tackles, eight PBUs, a forced fumble, and an INT. As a receiver, he finished with a line of 27-414-2, and rushed for 36 yards on seven carries. As a punt return man, he finished with a line of 24-251-2, and averaged 10.46 yards per return. On kick returns, he posted a line of 30-690-0, and averaged 23 yards per return.
As a junior, he finished with 55 tackles, two TFLs, 11 PBUs, one recovered fumble, and five INTs. He caught just two passes as a receiver for 76 yards, and finished with a line of 7-51-0 as a rusher. He finished with a line of 20-315-2 as a punt returner, averaging 15.75 yards per return, and put up a line of 26-767-2 as a kick returner, averaging 29.5 yards per return there.
He also earned All-American honors on the track team.
The Good
Learned more than perhaps any other defender in the nation over the last three seasons. Hard worker and team guy.
Maintains coverage, and has emerged as a solid reader of offenses.
Can play and fit in any coverage package.
Will stay on the field as long as yo need him to.
Incredibly fast, and is one of the best overall athletes you will find in this draft.
Serious ball hawk, with 28 PBUs in three seasons.
Shows good feel for when to make a play on the ball, or when to defend the receiver. Does not get caught in PI very often.
Solid tackler, and emerged as one of the better tackling corners around as a junior.
Finishes his plays, and lets very few to get away from him.
Eight career return scores. He will be a superstar in the return game.
The Bad
Probably would have liked to have seen him turn more of those PBUs into picks, but he was emerging in that area as a junior.
Does not have great size for an outside corner.
Bigger receivers can go over him to get the ball.
He may get aimed at in the run game because of his lack of size.
Final Overview
IN a particularly weak draft class overall, the corner class is fairly deep, and in my opinion, Jackson may be the best of the bunch overall for all of the things that he can do. He currently averages out to an early second round draft grade, but if I have a pick in the bottom half of the first round, I am going after him. His abilities in the return game alone are game changing, and he is emerging as a rock solid defender who may just be coming into his own. You can use him on offense as well as an extra wrinkle. If a team that gets him knows how to take of the leash and let him fly in every aspect of the game, you could be looking at one of the ten best football players in this draft. For me, he is a lock.
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