Logan Ryan – Rutgers
Height: 5111
Weight: 191
Age when drafted: 22
Hometown: Berlin, NJ
Position: CB
Collegiate Number: 11
Combine notables: 4.56 40 with 1.50 split, 32.5” vertical, 9’8” broad, 6.69 3-cone, 4.06 short shuttle
Games Viewed: 2012 – Arkansas, Syracuse, Virginia Tech, Connecticut 2011 – Iowa State
BACKGROUND:
Logan Ryan attended Eastern High School in Voorhees, New Jersey. At Eastern HS, Ryan earned All-State honors at quarterback and cornerback. He was a four-star recruit by Rivals.com.
Ryan redshirted in 2009 as a true freshman. He saw action in all 11 games as a redshirt sophomore making 9 tackles and 1 pass broken up. As a redshirt sophomore, Ryan emerged as one of the top corners in college football. He made 67 tackles, 5.5 tackles for loss, 3 interceptions, and 14 pass break ups. Ryan continued his phenomenal play in 2012. He notched 94 tackles, 5 tackles for loss, 4 interceptions, and 17 pass break ups.
SIZE/ ATHLETICISM/STRENGTH:
Logan Ryan is a shade under 6-foot-0 and weighed in at 191 pounds. He possesses solid overall musculature and plenty of bulk for the position.
Ryan is an average athlete for the cornerback position that lacks top end speed that teams covet. Really struggled to flip his hips and run with speed, most of which was due to the lack of recovery speed. He’s not as explosive as some of the other top corners which is probably the reason he’ll make it to late day two.
He’s a physical player that plays aggressively with strength and pop in press coverage. His physicality shows up in the run game. You could make the argument that Ryan is the top tackling corner in the draft.
MAN COVERAGE:
Logan Ryan isn’t going to make his money in the NFL as a man corner. That said, there are skills that transition well to the next level. He’s physical at the line of scrimmage in press technique. Strong, heavy hands that consistently stunned receivers and disrupted routes. He’s a ball magnet that finds the football no matter the technique. He mirrors down the field well and can keep pace vertically. Teams that play a ton of off man coverage may want to stay away. Ryan’s backpedal is sloppy and really struggled with his back to the ball.
ZONE COVERAGE:
Pure zone corner that should be high on teams boards that play heavy zone coverage schemes. His instincts with the ball in front of him were very impressive. Looked very natural passing receivers off in zone coverage and picking up assignments with his eyes.
TACKLING:
As I said, Ryan could be the top tackler in the draft. He’s physical and isn’t afraid to stick his nose into contact. In comparison to others at the position, Ryan displays solid tackling technique. He’s a tough blocking assignment on the outside as he looks to deliver contact rather than wait around to be stalk blocked by a receiver.
RED FLAGS:
None.
OVERALL:
Logan Ryan can play press man, off man, press zone, and zone coverage, meaning he’s scheme diverse. As a pure zone corner, he would be my No. 2 corner on the board. Teams that rely heavily on zone schemes could value Ryan very highly and for good reason.
His technique is average, at best. Sloppy back pedal and footwork overall needs work. That’s all things are fixable at the next level. Doesn’t have great top end speed and struggled flipping and running with speed receivers and Cobi Hamilton. Takes a few too many chances and plays overly aggressive at times.
Ryan plays with an edge especially in the physical side of the game. He’s a tough, hard-nosed kid that is at worst a No. 2 corner in the right scheme. I think he’s a day one contributor, possibly in the slot or as No. 2 outside cornerback.
Teams would be wise to take a shot on Ryan in round two. I have a high round 2 grade on him, although I wouldn’t be surprised if he fell into round three with the depth at the position.
VIDEO LINKS: Virginia Tech, Connecticut, Iowa State (2011)