Position: Cornerback
Height: 6’0
Weight: 190
Stats: 2025 (8 Games) – 33 tackles, INT, 7 PBU, 13.9% Missed Tackle | 8/25, 100 yds, 28.8 QBR allowed
Class/Age: Senior, 22
Team: LSU
Positives:
Delane showcases an elite mind at the cornerback position to pair with high end athletic traits, technique, and ball skills. All in all, Delane shows to be a high caliber NFL cornerback prospect at an initial look. Delane does a fantastic job breaking down route concepts and anticipating routes, showing the ability to break off
of certain concepts to jump a route along with the ability to maintain route discipline throughout the play while reading a quarterback’s eyes to jump other concepts. In zone coverage, Delane consistently showed the ability to be patient and have an elite ability to break on concepts to each direction to make a play on the ball often resulting in a forced incompletion. The senior corner has exceptional first step quickness and lateral agility showcasing an ability to move in tight windows which helps him maintain his tight hip coverage technique with receivers. Delane pairs his good agility and explosiveness with extremely fluid hips and quick feet that work in unison and allow him to consistently break on the ball and keep acclimated with different route concepts. Delane is a physical player who will consistently fight through the route and maintain his aggression at the catch point often disrupting the play early on, this aggression shows in run defense where he consistently gets downhill at an explosive rate and tackles well. Delane shows good athletic traits along with his footwork and first step quickness showing the ability to run long with receivers and demonstrates make up speed as well if beaten. Delane has exceptional ball skills largely in part to his high end concentration and focus through route concepts, where he’s able to keep on the receiver and can tell when the ball is in the air where he shows the ability to play the receiver and the ball in order to force an incompletion. Delane’s IQ shows in the run game as well as quick pass concepts where he has an ability to quickly diagnose offensive play types and trigger on them using his athletic ability making him a dangerous boundary CB in multiple areas. He demonstrates an ability to utilize his full body through route concepts and stays agile to break on routes while maintaining leverage to force a throw into a tight window which can lead to a play on the ball. Delane also provides a history of zone and man coverage which he has clearly learned how to utilize the sideline to his advantage as well.
Weakness:
Delane can be aggressive at times which allows teams to target him with double moves or stutter concepts though he’s relatively able to play them well enough due to his athleticism being a good reinforcement. Delane will need to add muscle to his frame going forward in order to consistently keep up with the NFL style of play, and he should be able to hold that weight. Delane will need to get better as a press cornerback where he can get choppy footwork and overall just look lost at times without having a cushion against the receiver in order to read their feet. Delane has struggled over pursuing tackle attempts and can take bad angles when coming downhill toward the box leaving a larger rushing lane on the outside contain, though his aggressive playstyle does have a big play there at forcing limited rushes to the boundary (win lose situation). Delane can continue to refine tackling form, technique, along with his technique at working on leverage and not giving quarterbacks the ability to try and make a play just to jump the route. Additionally, this can show in the run game and quick pass game where Delane will get caught looking in the backfield and cause a concept to get open in quick concepts. Length is average along with shorter arms which could force him to eventually be a high caliber nickel cornerback if teams are concerned on the boundary.
Grade: 1.28 – Early 1st Round
Pro-Comp: Quinyon Mitchell
Mansoor Delane is the clear cut best cornerback in the class and should see instant NFL success due to his blend of athleticism, technique, and ball skills. This paired with an elite NFL level IQ will allow him to quickly adapt to the quicker and more complex NFL game, though Delane has shown the ability to play well vs NFL caliber offenses too. Delane is likely to fit best in a zone system, though he has the ability to play man coverage as needed. A zone system will allow for Delane’s over aggression and tendency to not trust himself to be eliminated, and overall he seemed far more comfortable with higher end production in a zone system. Delane is going to be an impact NFL cornerback and will succeed well, he’s going to need to refine minor things mainly focusing on tackling, aggression, and footwork but he’s shown an innate ability to produce well vs a variety of offenses and receivers.
