FSM Presents: Rellz Rantz - 2021 NFL Draft Profile - Jevon Holland

Photo Credit: GoDucks.com

FSM Presents: Rellz Rantz – 2021 NFL Draft Profile – Jevon Holland

Oregon defensive back Jevon Holland is flying under the radar. Not because he lacks size, speed, talent, or stats. Holland opted out of the 2020 season due to Covid-19. The Ducks standout chose to bet on himself, forcing evaluators to use prior game film and preserving his health all in the process.

Before the 2020 season, Holland was in the convention for top safety in the country. With Raiders defensive coordinator Gus Bradley running the show on the defensive side of the ball, a true do it all center fielder is needed.

Holland, an Oakland, CA native, and Bishop O’Dowd alum, stands a shade under 6’1 at a solid 207 pounds. He is explosive and athletic. He can cover anywhere along the back end. Has shown great ability and understanding to drop down into the slot.

The junior defensive back has excellent ball track skills and the closing speed to react to the throw. This, compiled with the ability to track receivers across the field, allows him to effectively time passes for defenses and interceptions. Holland has no problem coming up to full-running lanes either. He has a good feel for pursuit angles.

Franchise Sports Media’s Joe Arrigo ranks Holland as the 2nd best safety in the 2021 NFL Draft class with a late first, early second-round draft grade.

We spoke to a current NFL scout who works for an AFC team. He talked with Franchise Sports Media about Holland and gave us his scouting report on him:

Jevon Holland aligned at safety for the Ducks defense. He shows excellent versatility and football intelligence to align in multiple places in the secondary. He demonstrates good leadership and communication on the back end and easily adjusts with motion. He is an excellent athlete with loose hips, agility, and body control while in coverage. When aligned in the slot, he demonstrates the coverage upside to allow the coordinator the flexibility to make different calls. As a result, he demonstrates the skill set that will allow the defense to stay in base against 11-personnel. He has tremendous versatility and the ball skills to make him an elite prospect at the position.

Positives: Explosive, athletic safety with a well-rounded game. He does an outstanding job with coverage assignments, tracks the pass in the air, and displays a good move to the throw. Follows receivers across the middle of the field, effectively times pass defenses, and possesses good hands for the interception.

He displays terrific ball skills, flips his hips in transition, and gets his head back around to locate the pass in the air. Not a liability covering the slot receiver. Aggressive and battles receivers throughout the route. He fires up the field, breaks down well, and gives effort defending the run and stopping screen passes.

Negatives: Possesses a thin frame and struggles in battles. He will be outmatched by bigger receivers and is Inconsistent bursting to the ball.

Analysis: Holland is a good athlete and a developing safety who would’ve benefited from another season on the field in 2020. His ball skills and coverage ability are such that teams may consider him at cornerback or nickel back. Holland comes with a large upside but needs time to develop his game.

Versatility has always been a hallmark of Jevon Holland’s game. But in high school, it was a little different. At Bishop O’Dowd in Oakland, California, Holland was a two-way star. For three seasons, he was a starter for the varsity team on defense. In his junior and senior seasons, he doubled as a big-play wide receiver on offense.

Over the course of his defensive career, Holland accumulated 119 total tackles — of which 116 were solo — 5.0 tackles for loss, 13 interceptions, 18 pass deflections, and three forced fumbles. On offense, he caught a total of 47 catches for 1,393 yards and 20 touchdowns. That averages out to almost 30 yards per catch and a score almost every two receptions.

Holland’s pure production efficiency made him a coveted recruit on both sides of the ball. He was listed as a four-star athlete by ESPN and was ranked as the No. 144 recruit nationally on the same board. Holland confirmed his stellar athletic talents through testing, logging a 4.7 40-yard dash and a 37-inch vertical at 6-foot-1, 180.

Holland attracted nearly every Power-5 school west of the Rockies and gleaned an offer from Notre Dame. He chose to stay in the west. However, instead of taking in-state offers from California and UCLA, he moved north to Eugene, Oregon, where the Ducks patiently awaited his arrival.

Ideal Role: This player has the skill set to become a starting safety in the NFL.

Scheme Fit: His skill set affords him the schematic versatility to play in any scheme.

Jevon Holland isn’t as polished as some of the other top safeties but his upside might be even higher. His ball skills and coverage ability could place him rather high on the Raiders Big Board. The aforementioned ball skills to be a center fielder and the understanding of coverage assignments might be just what the Las Vegas Raiders need.

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