Tennessee cornerback Jermod McCoy could have been the top cornerback in the country in 2025, and the top cornerback in the 2026 NFL Draft.
Unfortunately, his season was over before it began thanks to a torn ACL suffered in January of 2025. That injury wiped out his season and threw his draft stock into question. McCoy’s 2024 tape was so excellent that he’s still expected to be a first round pick despite not playing a down in well over a year. But even so, few players will have more riding on the 2026
NFL Scouting Combine than McCoy.
Not only is his workout eagerly anticipated, but his medical checkup will be key to his stock.
The New York Giants could find themselves in need of a cornerback by the time the draft rolls around. Could they really select one who hadn’t played football in 488 days?
Prospect: Jerod McCoy (3)
Games Watched: vs. Alabama (2024), vs. Georgia (2024), vs. Ohio State (2024 College Football Playoffs)
Red Flags: Torn ACL (suffered 1/15/25)
Measurables
Height: 6-foot (unofficial)
Weight: 193 pounds (unofficial)
Strengths
Best traits
- Coverage
- Fluidity
- Disruptiveness at the catch point
- Ball skills
Jermod McCoy is a competitive, physical, and highly skilled cover corner.
He has a very good blend of size and athleticism, as well as a very solid grounding in press-man, off-man, and zone techniques. McCoy appears to be comfortable and confident in every coverage scheme called in Tennessee’s defense and played well pressing on the line of scrimmage as well as when playing off.
He has a balanced, fluid backpedal with quick feet and a smooth transition to either driving on the ball or turning and running. McCoy has fluid hips and appears able to carry speed when transitioning to running down the field. He doesn’t appear to be an elite speedster, and doesn’t have excellent recovery athleticism, however he does have enough speed to carry most receivers vertically.
McCoy excels at staying in phase with receivers throughout their routes and is exceptionally sticky in coverage. He does a good job of maintaining contact while avoiding pass interference calls, and seldom gives up much separation. He does a very good job of locating the ball in coverage, and then either attacking at the catch point to disrupt the pass or take the ball away. His awareness also presents itself in zone coverage, keeping his eyes in the backfield and allowing his processing to give him a very quick trigger.
McCoy wastes no time driving on the ball or coming downhill in run support from zone coverage. He has enough range and play strength to disrupt larger receivers when playing off coverage, and is also able to hold up when taking on blockers. He seems to understand positioning well enough to leverage the ball back to his help.
Weaknesses
Worst traits
- Health (knee)
- Tackling
- Hand discipline
The biggest and most obvious concern with McCoy is the health of his knee. It will have been well over a year since the injury by the time of the draft and he’ll have gone through the Combine’s medical checks, so teams should have a handle on the joint’s status and long-term prognosis.
Teams will also have to grapple with the fact that his most recent tape is a year old, leading to less surety and more projection in his evaluation.
On tape, McCoy’s biggest issue is easily his tackling. He is, frankly, a poor tackler at this point. His angles are too often over-aggressive and his technique is simply poor. He routinely opts for a shoulder or hip check and rarely brings his arms to wrap up. McCoy is a willing hitter who arrives with violence when he takes a proper angle, but his failure to wrap up leads to too many missed or broken tackles.
Game Tape
(McCoy is the Tennessee cornerback wearing number 3, with long hair.)
Projection
Jermod McCoy’s projection depends completely upon the health and status of his knee.
If we assume his knee is healthy and has a good long-term prognosis, McCoy may be the best all-around cornerback in this draft class. He is capable of playing any coverage scheme and looks like a “lock down” corner at the collegiate level. That should translate to the NFL level, considering he routinely played, and put up great tape against, against NFL caliber receivers at Tennessee. He could have a bit of a learning curve when it comes to adjusting to the NFL’s tolerances for contact and pass interference rules. However, he should be able to make the jump just fine, and has the potential to be great if he can learn the subtle art of being physical without getting caught.
McCoy has the talent to be a high first round pick, but teams will have to decide for themselves just how comfortable they are with a player based on year old tape and with a relatively recent injury.
Does he fit the Giants? Potentially, health permitting
Final Word: A first round pick
