Top Safeties in NFL Draft: Kyle Dugger

A Division II phenom checks in at No. 2 in our ranking of the top safeties in the NFL Draft.

A Division II phenom checks in at No. 2 in our ranking of the top safeties in the NFL Draft.

Typically, a Division II player such as Lenoir-Rhyne’s Kyle Dugger who’s trying to make the leap to the NFL would be one of those feel-good, underdog stories.

“I kind of like the underdog role,” he said at the Scouting Combine. “It’s something that’s going to continue to drive me.”

Sorry, Kyle, but you’re no longer an underdog.

Before the start of free agency, a longtime NFL scout was discussing this year’s crop of inside linebacker prospects. Did he think Oklahoma’s Kenneth Murray or LSU’s Patrick Queen would be available at the end of the first round? “One guy to keep an eye on is Dugger,” he said. “I wouldn’t be surprised if he goes in the first round.”

At 6-foot 7/8 and 217 pounds, Dugger is a freak capable of playing deep safety, in the slot or subpackage linebacker. At the Combine, he ran his 40 in 4.49 seconds and posted a 42-inch vertical leap. He was a man among boys against lesser competition, with the speed to erase big plays and the zest for hitting to strike fear into opponents. Despite playing in just seven games as a senior due to a hand injury, Dugger was impactful enough to win the Cliff Harris Award, which is given to the best defensive player in NCAA Division II. As a senior, he had two interceptions and six total passes defensed and a 14.6-yard average and two touchdowns on punt returns. For his career, he intercepted 10 passes, broke up 26 more and forced six fumbles on defense, and averaged 13.9 yards with six touchdowns on punt returns.

So, how did this elite prospect wind up at Division II? Because he was a late bloomer who was a part-time starter as a junior, the most critical period in recruiting. As a high school senior, he was 5-foot-11 and 170 pounds. And that was after a growth spurt. He attended one camp – Mississippi State’s – and slipped on his 40.

“I can honestly say there were a lot of times (in high school) where I stood on the sideline and asked myself, ‘What am I doing?’ But I wasn’t missing practices. I was doing what I was supposed to do,” Dugger said.

Dugger redshirted in 2014 and took a medical redshirt in 2016 because of a torn meniscus. That made him a sixth-year senior in 2019. By then, the player who wasn’t good enough in high school had become a dominating force.

“The competitor in me definitely wanted more at times, but I wouldn’t describe it as boredom,” he said. “It was how am I going to use this situation where I can’t look at everything I do well and say I’m so great. I’d really dive into the details of what I’m doing and see if I’m doing what I’m supposed to do or is it me getting away with it because of the level of the competition.”

What we like

Look at the size (he’s also got 32 7/8-inch arms and 10 3/8-inch hands), speed and production. From a pure physical standpoint, this is an elite prospect. Dugger did exactly what he should have done between the lines: dominate. All eyes were on Dugger at the Senior Bowl and he didn’t look out of place. He can hit, he can run and he can track the football. At the least, he’ll immediately make his mark as a subpackage defender and special-teams stud because the knack for finding the football is universal, regardless of level of competition.

What we don’t like

To be sure, the jump in competition will be stiff. Losing the offseason practices is a major setback. Other than a week in Alabama at the Senior Bowl, he’s never experienced NFL speed at receiver or NFL talent and nuance at quarterback.