— Very good athletic ability with great balance and movement skills in space. Fluid hips in coverage. Has quick feet in coverage with good burst in short areas. Has good range as a deep safety to cover the sideline.
— Good football IQ and play recognition in both run and pass game. Plays the quarterback's eyes well and has a quick reaction to what he sees.
— Very good ball skills. Tracks the ball well in the air to where he is able to high-point the ball and undercut routes. Uses his hands well to catch the ball away from his body.
NEGATIVES
— Can have too much separation at times. Has below-average recovery speed when caught out of position. Runs well but lacks the top-end speed to match elite receivers downfield.
— Inconsistent tackler. Does a good job of being physical with his tackles but often dives at legs and ankle bites without the consistency of wrapping up. Allows extra yards to leak when tackling at times.
OVERALL
Javon Bullard is an athletic safety with great coverage ability. He's a versatile player who gives enough scheme flexibility to play in both zone and man coverages.
An aggressive defender, Bullard does a great job of playing from multiple levels and positions. He played in 11 games his freshman year and became a full-time starter during his sophomore year at Georgia.
Bullard is an athletic safety who does a good job of playing both the run and pass but has a bit of an edge in his pass coverage. He's a fluid athlete who possesses quick feet and balance in his pedal, where he rarely is caught outside of the framework of his body. He's also a smart player who understands the routes and how he's being attacked.
When breaking, he has a very good burst to stay in phase, but he lacks the recovery speed to catch up if he's caught out of position. His loose, fluid hips allow him to seamlessly flip and swivel to open downfield.
As a zone defender, he does a very good job of anticipating the quarterback as well as identifying threats. He has very good range as a deep defender, using his athleticism to get off the hash and cover the sideline. When in phase, he has the ball skills necessary to pluck the ball out of the air or at least get his hand in to deflect passes.
When playing the run, Bullard does a great job of triggering from all levels. An aggressive defender, he tracks the ball-carrier with great leverage and quickly closes the ground. Bullard uses his short-area quickness to defeat blocks, along with his aggressiveness to take on with his hands to maintain his leverage.
When tackling, he shows he isn't afraid to come up and get into the mix, although he is an inconsistent tackler when he doesn't wrap up and dives at ankles. When in tough spaces, he is able to unload his hips and deliver big hits.
Ultimately, Bullard is an all-around safety who excels in pass coverage but is more than adequate in the run game. He will need to continue to add weight and strength, along with improving his coverage skills. Either way, Bullard will be one of the top safeties taken in the draft and will have the potential to play within the first few years of his NFL career.
From Packers Assistant Director of College Scouting
"Moore said Bullard is a very smart player. Said they didn't see him as a particular type of safety. Said he's a solid, physical tackler. Said he has the ability to play nickel if they need him. Said he could do that more than some of the other safeties they were considering. Said Bullard can play enough different spots that teams won't be able to zero on him just playing in the box."
Nice, he's a good DB. I didn't get too into him because I didn't think GB would be due to the size, but I am glad they are because he can help at S and nickel.
The more I watch of Bullard combined with how the draft went for us I think we are going to see him in the nickel a lot. I think his coverage is damn good but the one thing I’m seeing that I don’t like is his tackling. He can hit, no doubt about that but if he isn’t going all out to throw his weight into a player I don’t think he’s that consistent. I think we end up playing him in the nickel and let him cover slots and blitz him. He plays the run still better than most nickel CBs I just don’t know he does that as we as most safeties.
Now you out Oladipo in that box that role… well then you’ve got yourself a true run supporting S.
I watched this kid his whole college career down the road in Athens, a solid FB player. Kirby Smart plugged him in all over and he delivered every time. Really nice pick by GB, he'll be around awhile.
The more I watch of Bullard combined with how the draft went for us I think we are going to see him in the nickel a lot. I think his coverage is damn good but the one thing I’m seeing that I don’t like is his tackling. He can hit, no doubt about that but if he isn’t going all out to throw his weight into a player I don’t think he’s that consistent. I think we end up playing him in the nickel and let him cover slots and blitz him. He plays the run still better than most nickel CBs I just don’t know he does that as we as most safeties.
Now you out Oladipo in that box that role… well then you’ve got yourself a true run supporting S.
I think the goal is to platoon less, not sure Oladipo has the coverage ability needed at safety to do that part, we needed to get more then just one safety and in round 5 your not expecting starter talent in year one, imo he was just a solid draft pick.
our goal should always bee to make other teams play catch up, teams tend to run less in catch up mode, not to say we don't need to improve against the run, but coverage ability is goal 1, jmo.
The more I watch of Bullard combined with how the draft went for us I think we are going to see him in the nickel a lot. I think his coverage is damn good but the one thing I’m seeing that I don’t like is his tackling. He can hit, no doubt about that but if he isn’t going all out to throw his weight into a player I don’t think he’s that consistent. I think we end up playing him in the nickel and let him cover slots and blitz him. He plays the run still better than most nickel CBs I just don’t know he does that as we as most safeties.
Now you out Oladipo in that box that role… well then you’ve got yourself a true run supporting S.
I think the goal is to platoon less, not sure Oladipo has the coverage ability needed at safety to do that part, we needed to get more then just one safety and in round 5 your not expecting starter talent in year one, imo he was just a solid draft pick.
our goal should always bee to make other teams play catch up, teams tend to run less in catch up mode, not to say we don't need to improve against the run, but coverage ability is goal 1, jmo.
There's a saying that Round 3 and beyond are not drafted to ever be starters. Round 3 and beyond is for Special Teams, Depth, and hope you strike lightening and get a real player at least once out of your 4+ picks every day 3 of the draft.
The more I watch of Bullard combined with how the draft went for us I think we are going to see him in the nickel a lot. I think his coverage is damn good but the one thing I’m seeing that I don’t like is his tackling. He can hit, no doubt about that but if he isn’t going all out to throw his weight into a player I don’t think he’s that consistent. I think we end up playing him in the nickel and let him cover slots and blitz him. He plays the run still better than most nickel CBs I just don’t know he does that as we as most safeties.
Now you out Oladipo in that box that role… well then you’ve got yourself a true run supporting S.
I think the goal is to platoon less, not sure Oladipo has the coverage ability needed at safety to do that part, we needed to get more then just one safety and in round 5 your not expecting starter talent in year one, imo he was just a solid draft pick.
our goal should always bee to make other teams play catch up, teams tend to run less in catch up mode, not to say we don't need to improve against the run, but coverage ability is goal 1, jmo.
There's a saying that Round 3 and beyond are not drafted to ever be starters. Round 3 and beyond is for Special Teams, Depth, and hope you strike lightening and get a real player at least once out of your 4+ picks every day 3 of the draft.
And players drafted after Round 4 are called "stooges" -!!
The more I watch of Bullard combined with how the draft went for us I think we are going to see him in the nickel a lot. I think his coverage is damn good but the one thing I’m seeing that I don’t like is his tackling. He can hit, no doubt about that but if he isn’t going all out to throw his weight into a player I don’t think he’s that consistent. I think we end up playing him in the nickel and let him cover slots and blitz him. He plays the run still better than most nickel CBs I just don’t know he does that as we as most safeties.
Now you out Oladipo in that box that role… well then you’ve got yourself a true run supporting S.
I think the goal is to platoon less, not sure Oladipo has the coverage ability needed at safety to do that part, we needed to get more then just one safety and in round 5 your not expecting starter talent in year one, imo he was just a solid draft pick.
our goal should always bee to make other teams play catch up, teams tend to run less in catch up mode, not to say we don't need to improve against the run, but coverage ability is goal 1, jmo.
There's a saying that Round 3 and beyond are not drafted to ever be starters. Round 3 and beyond is for Special Teams, Depth, and hope you strike lightening and get a real player at least once out of your 4+ picks every day 3 of the draft.
obviously those that say those things aren't familiar with our OL
There's a saying that Round 3 and beyond are not drafted to ever be starters. Round 3 and beyond is for Special Teams, Depth, and hope you strike lightening and get a real player at least once out of your 4+ picks every day 3 of the draft.
Round three and beyond not drafted to ever be starters?
I sure hope the Packers GM and scouting staff don't subscribe to this. If their accepted expectation for round three picks and beyond is basically backup roster churn and to "hopefully catch lightening in a bottle", fire your entire GM and scouting staff.
There's a saying that Round 3 and beyond are not drafted to ever be starters. Round 3 and beyond is for Special Teams, Depth, and hope you strike lightening and get a real player at least once out of your 4+ picks every day 3 of the draft.
Round three and beyond not drafted to ever be starters?
I sure hope the Packers GM and scouting staff don't subscribe to this. If their accepted expectation for round three picks and beyond is basically backup roster churn and to "hopefully catch lightening in a bottle", fire your entire GM and scouting staff.
I mean would you not agree that finding a long term starter on Day 3 is a massive success?
I think you're a little too surprised here.
I mean last year is insane because we might have TWO maybe even THREE in Wicks, Brooks, and Valentine. That is absolute elite status if we get three long time starters beyond pick 100.
I think the goal is to platoon less, not sure Oladipo has the coverage ability needed at safety to do that part, we needed to get more then just one safety and in round 5 your not expecting starter talent in year one, imo he was just a solid draft pick.
our goal should always bee to make other teams play catch up, teams tend to run less in catch up mode, not to say we don't need to improve against the run, but coverage ability is goal 1, jmo.
There's a saying that Round 3 and beyond are not drafted to ever be starters. Round 3 and beyond is for Special Teams, Depth, and hope you strike lightening and get a real player at least once out of your 4+ picks every day 3 of the draft.
obviously those that say those things aren't familiar with our OL
It is very well known and envious of how good GB is on Day 3. Especially on the Oline.
We have 5 elite players and another 1 - 3 okay Olinemen drafted on Day 3 since the TT era (about 20 years)
