Notre Dame Football: Where will Troy Pride Jr. land in 2020 NFL Draft?

Notre Dame football’s Troy Pride Jr. is a good cornerback in a deep 2020 NFL Draft class. Where will he land during the selection process?

The number of NFL-caliber players at Notre Dame in the last two seasons prove how well Brian Kelly and the Notre Dame Fighting Irish staff have recruited over the past four years. Troy Pride Jr. is an example of how well the Irish have recruited.

Pride was a standout wide receiver in high school who decided to go to Notre Dame and spurn Clemson. The Irish converted him to cornerback and the rest is history. Pride finished his career in South Bend with 88 solo tackles and four interceptions.

Pride started part-time as a sophomore and became a full-time starter as a junior. His senior year he was part of one of the best secondaries in college football.

Pride is a tremendous athlete with all of the measurables scouts look for in a defensive back. He is still raw given that he came to Notre Dame playing receiver in high school primarily. His elite speed and athleticism give Pride a high ceiling.

Strengths

The Notre Dame corner possesses tremendous physical and athletic gifts. He had one of the faster 40 times at the combine among defensive backs. He is smooth coming in and out of his breaks. You see his receiver traits in his overall foot quickness.

Though Pride is not tall (he’s 5-foot-11), he is long. He uses that tremendous length to his advantage in coverage. He measurables are all professional level including his elite speed. His speed was on display every spring as a sprinter on the track team.

Pride might be the best zone cornerback in this draft. He has fantastic instincts when everything is in front of him and he can read the quarterback. He drives on the ball and covers his zone as well as any corner in this draft.

Weaknesses

Pride is one of the players in this draft where the tape does not match the athleticism. Teams have to decide whether they think it is because of poor football instincts or if he is just scratching the surface of what he can become as a cornerback.

He is not super aggressive and does not tackle well at times. Though he has great instincts in zone coverage, his four career interceptions show he is not a ballhawk. He has sufficient coverage instincts, but his ball skills leave much to be desired.

Pride seems unsure of himself in man coverage. Though he has great speed, he can get beat in man coverage because he does not press. He does not track the ball in man coverage and does not high-point 50/50 balls though he was a former receiver.

NFL.com summed it up best, “Pride has pro traits, but he also has NFL backup tape.”

Draft Prediction

There are few players in this draft that need the right scheme as much as Pride. He needs to be part of a scheme that plays a lot of zone coverage and off-man. He is in the middle of the second-tier of defensive backs in this draft. The third round is a reach for Pride and the fifth is a steal. Look for Pride to come off the board in the mid to late fourth round. Look for the Cardinals at No. 131 or Seattle at No. 133 to snatch Pride in round four.

Projection: Fourth round (Nos. 131-133)