Scout- Jack Bourgeois
College: Florida State
Height: 6'3"
Weight: 205 lbs
40-Time: 4.67
Vertical: 38.5
3-Cone: N/A
Athleticism: 7.32
Q.A.B./C.O.D. 6.50 Tarvarus is an impressive raw athlete with prototypical size and speed to match. His footwork is a slight weakness that will need to be groomed at the next level. He has straight line speed and acceleration but lacks quickness when changing direction due to his length and long stride. Flexibility 6.00 Decent flexibility, could improve lowering his shoulder height when backpedaling. Has shown he can stretch out and high point the ball while in a full sprint. Deep Speed 8.80 Was not beat deep throughout the 4+ games of film I watched, he’s incredibly fast for a 6'3" cornerback. Explosion 8.30 He takes a split second to get up to speed with his long frame but can be very explosive, especially off the line. He was often asked to blitz the edge if no wideout was lined up on his side. Coordination 7.00 Good coordination for his size, but very raw mechanics. He has potential to be an outstanding defensive back at the next level if he can cut time lost when getting in and out of his cuts.
Coverage Ability: 6.70
Man Press 7.50 Definitely his best attribute is his press man, he doesn’t often jam at the line of scrimmage but has shown to have the skills to do so when asked. His speed and length allows him to close in last second and bate QB’s into bad throws. He is very productive in deep coverage. Man Off 6.00 He tends to utilize a lot of trial coverage, his inconsistent footwork allows for receivers to separate on inside and comeback routes but makes up for it with his closing speed. Zone 6.50 Rarely given any zone responsibilities in his 1st season but was asked to play a lot more zone coverage in 2017. He did particularly well playing cover 3 and was utilized all over the place, lining up as a safety and a linebacker when playing zone on several occasions. His reaction time is slightly delayed but again makes up for it with explosion and closing speed. Hand Fighting 6.00 Any form of hand fighting was hard to find on tape, he typically trail his opponent or go step for step alongside them but wouldn’t engage in hand fighting to not disrupt his coverage balance. Once the ball was in the air he becomes very physical with his WR to establish body positioning. Hips/Turn Ability 7.50 Quick, loose and fluid hip movement allows him to go step for step when facing a deep threat but has shown a trend of getting turned around when facing wide outs with sharp route running.
Play Making: 7.10
Closing Quickness 7.80 His footwork tangles him up at times when making sudden adjustments on hard braking routes. He can’t cut on a dime due to his length but is quick once he’s determined his path. Ball skills 8.00 Had 8 Int’s in 2016, so was rarely targeted in 2017. Above average ball skills but has dropped quite a few gimme It’s in his career. Route/play Diagnosis 5.50 McFadden still has room to grow in this category. He played a lot of his time in short side press man coverage, which means he’s typically defending the deep ball and rarely kept his eyes on anything but his man. Several times I noticed McFadden wouldn’t read the run to his side and would turn his back to the ball carrier, allowing 3 rushing TD’s that could have been prevented.
Run Support: 6.50
Quickness Upfield 7.50 This leads back to play diagnosis, when he assess the run he will quickly attack and meet the ball carrier as close to the line of scrimmage as possible, but often doesn’t read the play well enough to break off from coverage and make a play against the run. Fight Through Blocks 5.50 He has trouble disengaging blocks, he has shown to be vulnerable against lead blocking TE’s and has been blocked out of a play allowing chuck yardage on multiple occasions. Tackling 6.50 Though he has trouble with diagnosis and block disengagement, he excels in pursuit and as a tackler. He doesn’t shy away from contact and is a very aggressive around the line of scrimmage.
Competitiveness: 7.83
Toughness 8.00 Shows a willingness to hit anyone with the ball, doesn’t shy away from any form of contact. No history of injuries, has made ever start he’s been called upon. Production 8.50 After an 8 interception sophomore year, he quickly became a no fly zone and teams refused to throw his way this year. He was rarely targeted and made the most out of his minimal opportunities. Consistency/Motor 7.00 Inconsistent technique plagued his coverage when facing slot corner types but he has a high motor that takes him through the 4th quarter.
Intelligence: 7.33
Instincts 6.50 Still very raw when is comes to knowing where to be in zone, he’s still learning the nuances of the position and shows hesitation before reaction at times. Learn/Retain 7.50 Made tremendous strides from year one to year two as a starter, especially learning to play a versatile role for FSU, he played short side man coverage as a corner, cover 1–3 as a safety, as well as playing inside the box and blitzing off the edge on occasion. Teamwork 8.00 Tarvarus is an outstanding team player and vocal leader of the defense along side Derwin James. Constantly redirecting teammates in coverage and being the first one to his teammates to celebrate a big play or turnover.
STRENGTHS
Tarvarus is a strong physical corner, with speed and the ball skills to match. He doesn’t get beat deep, nor does he get bullied at the line of scrimmage. He plays with aggression and is a big help in run support when he can recognize the play early. He has tremendous closing speed and explosion once he’s determined his target. He’s better suited for press man coverage but has shown potential to play in multiple zone coverage schemes. His biggest attribute is his versatility, FSU often asked him to rush off the edge, play deep zone and cover one on one with no help over the top.
WEAKNESSES
McFadden has plenty to work on from his mechanics and inconsistent footwork, to his indecisiveness in zone, and the lack of quickness changing directions in and out of breaks. He typically loses to wideouts with elite route running skills, often allowing separation against hard tight cuts to the inside. Florida State strictly kept him to the short side of the field throughout his colliagent career, which most likely had to do with the limited route tree he’d have to face, allowing Tarvarus to utilize his speed and keeping his lateral movement to a minimum.
BIG PICTURE
Tarvarus Mcfadden is a prototypical corner, he has the height, length and speed needed to play in the NFL. He is best suited for a Seattle type defense that plays a lot of cover 3-man and asks their corners to play physical. McFadden is an extremely versatile corner that can line up at multiple positions and could see a hybrid defensive back role in the NFL similar to LaMarcus Joyner, who plays corner, both outside and in the slot, can line up at free safety, and in the box. He matches up well against physical wide receivers and should be a great match up for the receiving tight ends of today’s NFL. Tarvarus had huge upside and potential to be a shutdown corner if his mechanics can be sharpened. I project him to be a early to mid 2nd round pick but could easily jump up into the 1st round barring a run at DB early in the draft.