NFL Combine: Safeties Jaden Hicks, Beau Brade Dive Into Their Games

Maryland's Beau Brade and Washington State's Jaden Hicks dive into their process at safety.

The NFL Combine is continuing with safeties speaking to the media on Thursday. The Indianapolis Colts could certainly use another playmaker on the backend, so it's important to keep an eye on players that could fit the Chris Ballard mold.

I was fortunate enough to talk with two of the draft's top safeties, Beau Brade and Jaden Hicks, to gain some insight into their games.

Jaden Hicks, Washington State

Jaden Hicks is a former three star recruit that spent his entire college career at Washington State. He emerged as a star playmaker over his final two seasons with the Cougars, totaling 3.0 interceptions, 3.5 sacks, and 10 pass deflections over the course of 25 games.

Hicks is an impressive athlete that has the versatility to play either safety spot in an NFL secondary. He also spent some time at cornerback in college, further adding to his impressive draft profile. He should hear his name called on day two of this upcoming draft, which could be in perfect range for the Colts to nab this talented player.

Jaden Hicks has impressive ball skills. Matches with Polk's slot fade and somehow comes down with the INT pic.twitter.com/85e8Hq8Nk1

— Billy M (@BillyM_91) February 27, 2024

We are seeing this rise in the NFL of teams blitzing which leaves safeties in more man coverage situations. With your background at cornerback, do you feel better prepared than most for the jump to the league?

JH: Definitely. I really appreciate that I went to corner because it is a man league nowadays. I'm really glad I got that technique down and got to the place where I am comfortable with it.

How do you approach those press situations? Do you like to be physical or mirror their steps out of the gate?

JH: I can do a little bit of both but I like to use my size as an advantage. I would say being physical just suits me much better.

The NFL has a need for TE erasers at the safety positon. How do you go about attacking guys like Travis Kelce or Mark Andrews at the next level?

JH: I faced a couple guys like that in college. They are all just dudes. I would just say that being comfortable in myself is a big part of it. I'm hear for a reason so the first step is just being comfortable and knowing that I can do it.

As somebody that played both cornerback and safety in college, what is the film study like for those two vastly different roles?

JH: As a safety, I'm reading everything. I like to read tendencies of the offense to find out what they like to do. At corner, you are looking at the receiver's release or some of their personal tendencies. Safety more looks at every aspect of the game.

Washington State Safety Jaden Hicks has a formal meeting with the #Colts scheduled for tonight. pic.twitter.com/NLfbZEuLQp

— Destin Adams (@TheDestinAdams) February 29, 2024

Beau Brade, Maryland

Brade is a former three star recruit that spent his entire career with Maryland. It took Brade some time to fully emerge in a star-studded Terrapin secondary, but he truly began to shine in his final two seasons with the program. He appeared in 25 games the last two years, totaling 3.0 interceptions, 3.0 forced fumbles, and 11 pass deflections over that span.

Brade was a Senior Bowl invite that stood out in the week of practices. He is a physical, athletic, and versatile player that can survive in the box or over the top in deep coverage. If the Colts are looking for another Khari Willis type of impact in the draft, Brade could bring that to them on day two.

Beau Brade comes up with a MASSIVE interception.

Terps take over with under three minutes to play. pic.twitter.com/lDJIS0k5H6

— Testudo Times (@testudotimes) October 22, 2022

Maryland has become a DB factory in recent years for the NFL. What does Maryland do in particular to prepare you guys for this jump to the league?

BB: They do a lot. I think a big reason why you see so many DB's is that we push each other day in and day out. I got there when Nick (Cross) was a sophomore so I was part of a DB room with him Deonte Banks, Jakorian Bennett -- I actually came in with JB because he came from JUCO-- and guys like Dante Trader and Glendon Miller. You'll see guys for the next couple of years from there. 

I think we just created a mindset in that room. Whoever lines up against us is going to get that work, you feel me? We feel like nobody can beat us. I feel like our mentality is really what created us into what we are going to be in the future. 

When you went down to the Senior Bowl this offseason, was the terminology similar to what you used at Maryland or did you have to quickly relearn a lot of new things?

BB: Most definitely (the terminology was similar). I've had four different position coaches and three different defensive coordinators over the past four years. Schemes haven't changed too much but wording definitely has. I know this past season, coaches tried to make it simpler which made it a bit confusing with terminology.

It all helped me with the ability to talk to scouts about their playbook and talk with coaches at the Senior Bowl to learn their playbooks whether it was special teams or defense.

Do you see a lot of Maryland's defense carrying over to what the NFL is doing nowadays?

BB: Everything that I talked about with scouts, I've played it before. It's really just about the terminology and adjusting to what they want in the NFL.

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