One of the players that I am absolutely in love with is the 2020 NFL Draft is Minnesota safety, Antoine Winfield Jr. If the name sounds familiar then you probably already know that he is the son of former NFL cornerback Antoine Winfield. The son doesn’t play corner. Instead, he is a rock star single high safety prospect. A damn good one at that. Winfield Jr has been a late riser during the pre-draft process which begs the question. Does Antoine Winfield Jr have superstar potential? You bet your ass he does.
I’m not like these other NFL Draft guys that tries to pretend. A lot of NFL Draft experts lie. The first time I really I spotted Winfield Jr was when Minnesota played Penn State this past year a little later on in the season. Then Winfield proceeded to make one of the best plays I’ve seen from a safety in college ever.
Oh, yeah. FEED ME MORE OF THIS! Don’t worry, Winfield wasn’t done.
Single high safety patrolling the entire deep part of the field. Winfield Jr gets to his spot and picks off the ball. The man is incredible. Antoine Winfield Jr beat Penn State by himself. It was at that point where I knew this was something special. It’s only a matter of time until the Minnesota product turns into a rockstar.
There are not a lot of safeties that you can just plug in at single high and let them patrol centerfield. Grant Delpit and Winfield Jr are the only players in this draft with the neccessary instincts and ball skills to do it.
You can see his dad in him. Cornerback like feet and hip twitch combined with rare ball skills. Winfield Jr had 7 interceptions this past year which is an absurd number. You can’t teach those instincts and ball skills. Ball production translates to the NFL.
The only real downside to Winfield Jr is his height. Winfield Jr measured in at 5-foot-9 at the combine which is on the shorter side for the position. It’s not like it’s a death sentence. It’s the same height at Tyrann Mathieu. Oddly enough, both had similar ball skills in college. Winfield Jr can bang with tight ends and hold his ground in the run game. Height won’t be an overlying issue.
I also can’t get that combine performance out of my head. Antoine Winfield Jr put on a damn SHOW! All this guy did is fire on all cylinders. 4.45 speed and rocked all of the movement skills. He looked like a missile flying around the field.
Put it all together. A safety with elite ball production, plus athletic tools, and NFL blood lines. Where do I sign? I can’t get enough of Antoine Winfield Jr. If he winds up being the best safety in the 2020 NFL Draft, I wouldn’t be shocked. Actually, if Winfield Jr is anything short of a quality starter I won’t believe it. We’re looking at a dynamic safety prospect here who should be on everybody’s radar.
