The Athletic Gives Harsh Assessment of Jeff Okudah

Jeff Okudah has a lot of work to do to modify opinions that taking him with the No. 3 pick was ill-advised.

Given where he was drafted, the likelihood of cornerback Jeff Okudah living up to the billing was already going to be a tall task. 

Simply, many NFL teams do not draft defensive backs with the No. 3 overall pick. 

Unfortunately, after two injury-plagued seasons in the NFL, many pundits do not see the 23-year-old rebounding to significantly aid the Lions' defense. 

In a recent story revisiting the 2020 NFL Draft, writer Diante Lee provides a grim viewpoint of the Lions pick. 

"The sample size for Okudah is smaller than most of the defenders selected in the first round of the 2020 draft -- just two of the 14 have played fewer snaps -- but evaluating Okudah’s on-field play makes it hard to classify the former Ohio State Buckeye as anything other than a whiff," Lee writes. "Billed as a lockdown corner comfortable playing in press coverage, Okudah has allowed a completion rate of 71% on 56 targets in coverage, giving up 665 yards and two touchdowns in just 10 games played."

After rehabbing all of last season from a torn Achilles' injury, Okudah is working to return to the field for his third NFL season. 

With several hurdles behind him, Detroit's coaching staff must find any avenue it can to bring out the traits many observed on his college tape. 

Lee continues, "Okudah didn’t come into the league with any obvious physical or athletic deficiencies -- in fact, his arm length and explosiveness scores (broad and vertical jumps) were well beyond the average at his position. But Okudah struggles to maintain his leverage and body positioning against NFL receivers and hasn’t made up for small technical deficiencies with ball production.

"To start justifying his draft slot, Okudah is going to have to return to a level of play he hasn’t reached since college, and the climb is exacerbated by his injury."