Latest / Scouting the League / 2027 Draft Scouting - KJ Bolden DS
Transcript
- Rodrik David @RightStepAdv: Hey everyone and welcome to Scouting the League. Back today as we march toward the 2027 NFL draft and we head back to the defensive side of the ball with an exciting high upside safety of the Georgia Bulldogs, KJ Bolden. A lot to like, a few question marks as well. We will talk about all of that today. If you love Scouting the League, make sure you let us know. Yesterday I talked source development and sources. Tomorrow, Neil and I talk with former Jet Greg Nejma, a fascinating big picture scouting conversation that gets into the weeds. Certainly have fun on that one. To let them let us know how much you like it. Make sure you head over, like us, subscribe, share, comment wherever you're listening and watching. Give me a follow on Twitter at right stepadv. Share this with a friend, most certainly. Make sure you check out my website, rsafootball.com, and check out all I'm doing with reports over at right stepscouting.com. Yes, all the reports you need ready to go in one nice spot. That is rightstepscouting.com. Make sure you check out thescoutingcommunity.com. If you're a spy scout or aspiring scout, we talk a little bit about the need for some of that stuff in today's episode. And make sure you get the best insoles on the market at blue maca.com. Use code scouting20 at checkout to let them do know we sent you and get a little discount on that. As we jump into 2027 and we continue to update our draft boards, in my opinion, it's easier than ever to push guys out another year. Yes, guys like Arch Manning, I've already moved him to 2028. Underclassmen who prior to the NIL world we now live in would likely jump ship, maybe take their chance in the NFL. Now they've got a lot of incentive, financial and otherwise, to stay in college. So whether it's transfers, whether it's money, whatever it is, this quarterback group. Specifically, he's gonna end up a lot thinner than I think everybody had anticipated. Anybody projects. I think Arch at this point has to be a 2028 guy. No reason for him to jump shift. He's got a lot to work on, plenty to like, a lot to work on, though, as well as he tries to capitalize on everything he's given. On the other side of the ball, KJ Bolden, he's gonna be a converse part of this conversation of underclassmen who are going to be jumping ready to go, because there are a lot of really good traits. So let's get to it with KJ Bolden. As we look at KJ Bolden's profile here again, listed at 6'195, I think that looks pretty accurate on tape as a nice, tightly wound, good-looking athlete. He is from Buford High School in Georgia. If you know anything about Georgia football, you know the powerhouse that Buford is a five-star prospect. Certainly looks like that on film. A true freshman, all-American honoree. Again, played some, didn't start, but did. have an impact on that defense last year started all 14 games. Again, the game continues to grow this year. He has certainly played a bunch of good football, like a lot of what he does. This Georgia team, they're going to keep winning. Should see them at the top of the board, top of the leadership board, ranking board, and in the college football playoff certainly making a run toward that national tide. Got some really good pieces in place. Now when we start talking about KJ specifically, some really fun stuff to talk about. some stuff that I'm gonna wanna question and talk about. So let's go over to the film now. As we start start to talk about the safety position, again, the things that we're always going to be looking at. We're going to look at coverage, his ability in man, his ability in zone, how he's playing in coverage. We're going to talk about his range. Always important for safety is be able to cover some ground. We want some run support. Certainly something KJ can do. Ball skills, versatility. Again, everything on this is going to play. And this guy's going to be a scheme versatile player that can do a lot of good things. Again, starting on the coverage side, because that is so much. Of what safeties are able to do these days. Again, not a ton of man snaps that we're gonna find on film. We've got some coverage snaps here where he is in position. But this is a player who takes his chances, who wants to make plays on the ball, and that can lead to some spots where it's like, all right, we don't like this, but the traits are absolutely there. This guy can cover inside, outside from the top down. I think his range. is maybe one of those spots when when it comes to that deep middle coverage where again you'd like to see a little bit more. I thought he had some chances to range red line to red line and again was a little bit late getting go, which is surprising because he really tries to anticipate and make plays across the board kind of whenever he can. He is a player that wants to make plays on the ball and can get out of position as a result. Those assignments His thinking, his processing is going to be a question. I think he can process. He just is a player that either has the ability, has been given that the leeway to hey, go make some plays, lean on a route. There's some routes. He makes an interception here where he absolutely is beat over the top. He is cheating on an underneath route. The quarterback underthrows it on a bit of a scramble. Ball goes right to him. So again, there's going to be some opportunities where he can get beat. But the traits on the back end are good to very good. He's got good ability to play in man coverage, physicality, length. He's got the burst. He's got the twitch, the speed to run with players, can be a little bit mechanical, has a little bit of stiffness, but he is able to run with just about any player he's gonna get matched up with. Not gonna be an ideal candidate to match up as a nickel against some of those quicker guys. I think the route anticipation again guesses sometimes. I don't think it's always reactionary. But he certainly has the traits to do it. Again, this player is better top down than he is going true laterally or playing backwards. I think that is where you're going to see this player again too high system, absolutely all day. He can play downhill in that system. From the deep middle, this is a player. Typically, I I don't love seeing players get back at 15, 20 yards and playing downhill, but I think that's where this player is best because of the twitch, the speed, the close. That's where this player's gonna stand out a little bit and where teams I think are gonna want to play him is working downhill as opposed to playing truly lateral or truly backwards on the back end. he's a playmaker who takes chances. And again, the traits are going to tell you this player is absolutely a first round player. The instinct, some of the decisions he makes in the past game are going to tell you hey, we've got a lot to sort through to decide how much we like this guy. He's going to be a starter early on in his career. As we get down to the run support, this guy is a versatile defender. Again, we're going to talk about that way, the way he works down, his aggressiveness. This guy does want to be a bit more of a thumper than he does a true space tackler or racer. He hits it full speed. I think there's going to be some teams that hey are a little bit wary of the way he approaches a ball carry here. He's not going to shy away from contact. He's not going to be afraid to to bring a good hit. But there are some times where he's sliding off tackles, missing glancing that NFL players are going to be able to sidestep, make a play, stay on their feet. This player has to get better Closing and finishing tackles consistently out in space because this guy does have some of that strong safety, enforcer, thumper type mentality, which you love. It just needs to come at a time and a place when he knows that can be what he does. Again, when it comes to ball skills, I think he's got good ball skills, good finish, good ability to come play through the ball, whether it's in man, end zone, attacks the ball in the run game. This has this is a player with good To very good traits across the board. He is going to be a day one starter. There are just too many traits that are hard to find at that safety position, especially when it comes to making plays, that playmaking ball, get after it mentality. Not a player that's just gonna play it safe over the top and let a lot of other guys do the work. He wants to get after it, bait guys. He's going to have to, you know, understand. with whatever NFL team and scheme he goes to, there's gonna be a time and a place where hey we can be aggressive, try to make a play. There's gonna be a time where we gotta play over the top as well. so that's gonna be it for for KJ Bolden. As we look at our beautiful draft board here again, it's gonna look a little bit thinner, a little bit different as we go week to week as I bump some of those players to 2028 draft again. But KJ sitting up here at the top of my 2027 draft class. Again, I think for me right now, I can't put a first-round grade because I haven't interviewed. I'm th I certainly think this is going to be a first-round safety, though. This is a top-tier starter. I don't think he has the ideal. back in safety. I think there's going to be some teams that don't love him in their single high system. I think this guy is a better the closer he gets to the line of scrimmage. Playing him at 10 and 10 to 12 yards and downhill. A team that plays a little bit more split safety, where this guy can play a little bit more of that strong safety role. He is better coming downhill. He is better moving forward than he is backwards or truly lateral. This guy's a first round player though. I think he gets drafted in the first But for me, I'm putting a second round grade until I sort out exactly what it is from a mental standpoint that he's either seeing, not seeing, understanding what he's able to do, what he's able to get away with from an anticipation, jumping routes, jumping plays, because that is my concern. There are going to be NFL teams that can take advantage of this player if he doesn't sort some of those things out. He is a Going to be a young safety that takes chances that wants to make plays at the NFL level that will get exposed. That again, that being said, he is an absolute starter, I think, early on in his career and is going to have a good career. So I'm putting him he is a 2-0 grade for me, a top-tier starter. I think he ends up in the first round. I think he's got a lot to like. He's sitting at the top of my safeties board, but not just about what I think. What do you think? Let me know. Head over to Twitter at right step A D V is where you can let me know. Is he a first round, second round, third round? I completely miss you the best defensive player in this class. Some of you Georgia fans might have some thoughts on that. So let me know at Right Step A D V. Make sure you tune in tomorrow as we talk with Greg Nejma of all about the Jets, all about scouting. Head back, listen to Scouts Scouts Sources, sourcing information as we talked about that Monday, all about what scouts are doing. As we do everything here on Right Step Advising and Scouting the League, you know we're going to keep scouting.