Hot Take Tuesday: Julius Brents is a First Round Talent

NFL Draft Bible's Jack Borowsky explains why the Wildcats' cornerback will be a first round pick in the 2023 draft.

Who is the most underrated player in this year's class? Each year some prospects seemingly go under the radar during the season and then skyrocket up media draft boards by the day of the draft. Players such as Quay Walker and Tyler Smith went from solid prospects at this time last year to top 25 picks. That player in this year's class is Kansas State cornerback Julius Brents.

Coming out of high school, Brents was a rare true freshman starter at Iowa. In 363 snaps, Brents only gave up ten receptions while recording one interception and three pass breakups. After his third season at Iowa, Brents decided to transfer to Kansas State for his redshirt junior season.

On his redshirt junior film at Kansas State, Brents was really good. The first thing that stood out was his size. Brents looks the part of an outside cornerback, with great size and a really good frame. For a cornerback of his size, Brents is a fluid mover. He displayed natural hip fluidity to stay with wideouts when they changed direction. Brents consistently stayed in receivers' hip pockets.

Brents could be an effective zone cornerback with his patience and football IQ. Off the bat, Brents was a scheme-versatile cornerback with athleticism, fluidity and excellent size. To top it off, Brents flashed immense ability in the run game. Run defense has been an afterthought in the past, but defensive coordinators have continued to take advantage of cornerbacks who can't tackle.

In this class, there is an argument to be made that Brents is the best run-defending cornerback. He comes downhill fast, hits hard and continually makes wow plays in the run game.

The trump card, which is why I felt Brents could be a big riser, is his arm length. Multiple reports said Brents measured 33 ⅞ inches. It's rare to find cornerbacks with 33-inch arms, let alone almost 34, which is almost unheard of for a cornerback.

Length is critical for a cornerback to succeed, which is why Brents is so enticing. Everything Brents brought to the table is why I graded him as a day-two prospect coming into the season.

To move into that round-one range, I needed to see Brents track the ball downfield better and dominate against his best opponents. So far this season, he has exceeded my expectations. Brents has done an excellent job tracking and finding the ball downfield, and he has been able to stay in phase downfield and use his length to prevent receptions.

Against his best competition, Brents has battled, making big play after big play. Brents has been consistent and is a big reason for Kansas State's success this season. Assuming Brents' on-field athleticism translates at the combine, Brents' will be the complete package.

As a prospect, there are a lot of similarities between Brents and Ahmad Gardner. Brents won't go as high as Gardner did but seeing the success of Gardner will only help Brents' stock.

In a weaker cornerback class, Brents has all the talent to develop into a lockdown number-one cornerback at the next level. He has rare measurables, elite athleticism and multiple years of high-end tape. Not only that, there is a lot of untapped potential with Brents, and he's just scratching the surface of what he can become. Brents is a top-five cornerback in this class, and he has the makings of a first-round pick come April.

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