Tennessee Titans: Shaun Calderon’s 2020 NFL Draft full breakdown

Round 2 pick 61

Kristian Fulton CB, LSU

Now, I know I said I wasn’t going to give formal grades in this article, but this selection has A+ written all over it. At the conclusion of day one, there was an outcry from the usual skeptics in the fanbase that often choose to find more reasons to complain than they do to cheer.

Many of them felt that GM Jon Robinson missed an opportunity to take a top corner at 29 and instead chose to go with someone who may be a backup tackle for all of 2020 If things go as planned with Kelly. By the time the second round was over, all of them had been silenced because J-Rob played the board perfectly and proved once again that he knows what he’s doing more than all of us.

Everyone knew that both the tackle and corner positions were deep in this 2020 draft class. However, Robinson understood that the tackle position will always be a hot spot in the draft as long as there are competent tackles. Meaning that the likelihood of there being a quality corner at 61, would be much higher than the likelihood of a quality tackle being there.

It was a gamble for sure with the team needing a slot corner more than a backup tackle in terms of the 2020 season, but Robinson’s ability to predict the way the board will play out is second to none and he proved it once again on Friday night with the selection of cornerback Kristian Fulton (LSU) with the 61st pick.

The star cornerback out of LSU joins a fantastic secondary that includes Kevin Byard, Kenny Vaccaro, Adoree’ Jackson, and Malcolm Butler. Fulton will step in and fill Logan Ryan’s role as the slot corner for 2020 and could potentially move primarily to the outside as early as 2021 should he excel as a rookie.

The Titans’ newest cornerback comes in the league with fantastic man and zone coverage skills. He showcases excellent patience and balance when shadowing routes and he makes it difficult for receivers to work into their stems with proper timing.

Fulton Does well to leverage routes and manipulate receivers to where he wants them to be. He is highly competitive and he attacks the football when challenged like an alpha which shouldn’t be surprising coming from a DB factory like LSU.

The Titans’ second round pick tends to stay disciplined and never gets anxious when the ball is in the air. Fulton is a sticky and poised defender that doesn’t allow much separation and makes quarterbacks beat him with tight throws.

His spatial awareness and feel are exceptional qualities that he possesses. Even when he gets high in his backpedal, has a false step, or concedes leverage to some of the better route runners, he remains calm and recovers wonderfully as he displayed numerous times against multiple eventual NFL receivers from Alabama and the SEC in general.

Most importantly, he is able to cover vertically on top of being able to defend horizontally and that is something that Mike Vrabel discussed being a priority in their next nickel back.

Overall his footwork is clean and he is versatile enough to play any coverage technique whether he’s lined up on the inside or outside. He does have some room for improvement in the run game, I’d like to see him stick his nose in there and wrap up more than the ankle tackles he often displays on tape. He doesn’t display the same ball skills as some of the other corners in this class, but you can also make an argument that few of them can blanket a receiver better than Fulton.

The LSU product will need to clean up some technique issues that he often made up with his athleticism at the college level. But he will need to sharpen up his instincts and anticipation skills if he is gonna maximize his ceiling at the next level. There are times when a receiver will seemingly appear to test him vertically and he will prematurely fully commit to the route leaving him as a possible liability for any in/out breaking routes against the crafty route runners that he will see on Sunday’s.

But with all things considered, there are way more things to be excited about Fulton than there are to be concerned with. Everything he does is so natural and he’s always comfortable in every situation regardless of the stage, opponent, or moment.

Fulton also has a work ethic that is second to none and is willing to do the little things that often gets overlooked on the path to greatness.

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Playing a challenging position like cornerback often leads to natural moments of panic, but Fulton is poised and built for the position mentally on top of physically. Fulton has smooth feet, fluid hips, refined and improving technique, tremendous awareness, and the physicality needed to eventually become a shutdown No. 1 corner in the NFL. He’s versatile to play any coverage technique and he handles physical receivers just as effectively as the twitchy ones.

Kristian Fulton may have been a victim of being in a deep draft at one of the deepest positions, but his slide to 61 could prove to be a blessing in disguise for everyone involved when he becomes an immediate contributor on a team that has Super Bowl aspirations.