Julius Brents NFL Draft Prospect Profile and Scouting Report
Kansas State Cornerback Julius Brents Scouting Report - 2023 NFL Draft
By markoldacres
Name: Julius Brents
School: Kansas State
Year: R-Sr
Position: Cornerback
Measurables: 6’3”, 198 lbs.
Combine: Vertical- 41.5”, Broad- 11’6”, 40-yard dash- 4.53, Shuttle- 4.05, 3-cone- 6.64
Stats:
Courtesy of Sports-Reference.com
General Info:
Experienced corner who transferred from Iowa after three years, spending his final two college seasons with the Wildcats.
Brents started just five games for the Hawkeyes before his transfer to Kansas State where he took on a more significant role and prospered.
In his final season, Brents had four interceptions and a further four pass deflections.
He turned 23 in January, which makes him a more mature prospect, but certainly not overaged considering his five years in college.
Born in Indianapolis, Indiana, Brents attended Warren Central High School.
Positional Skills:
Strengths
Brents’ all-round athleticism is his biggest strength. He posted a hugely impressive 9.99 Relative Athletic Score on a 0-10 scale compared to previously drafted cornerbacks. Brents registered elite size, explosion and agility, and good speed.
This athleticism should allow him to cover every type of receiver in the NFL and not be limited in his usage. He lined up all over the field for Kansas State.
The twitch Brents shows off the line means it’s hard to beat him quickly. He is a smooth mover and can mirror receivers, easily and consistently staying in phase.
While his 4.53 40 doesn’t suggest plus long speed, it is more than good enough and Brents is able to keep up with receivers deep.
His size should help him take the fight to receivers with physical coverage and compete at the catch point.
In Kansas State’s game versus Alabama, Brents generally never looked like being beat, he is just a very solid corner.
Brents’ run defense is serviceable and the effort is certainly there, which is half the battle when it comes to corners defending the run. He is one of the better run defenders in this corner class.
He also impressed at the Senior Bowl, showing he can compete with the better receivers in his class.
Some believe Brents may have the versatility to play safety as well as corner.
Weaknesses
Brents can be guilty of being handsy at times. He needs to trust his coverage more.
Although his speed is sufficient, it is not top end, and panic over being beaten deep could exacerbate his grabbing issues.
Disrupting receivers at the line with physical press coverage projects as a strength of his game, but he can veer away from implementing it at times.
His awareness outside of his direct assignment can be questioned, evidenced by a touchdown he gave up against Alabama where a receiver entered his vicinity late in the play. Brents was late to react and failed to compete for the ball.
Fit with the Packers:
Brents appears to be an ideal fit for the Packers for multiple reasons.
His athleticism is top notch, which is something the team covets. Brents’ willingness to come down and contribute in run defense would suit Joe Barry’s scheme perfectly.
He has the potential versatility to play as a safety, which could appeal to Green Bay in an underwhelming safety class.
Brents could be a target for the Packers on day two of the 2023 NFL Draft.
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Mark Oldacres is a sports writer from Birmingham, England and a Green Bay Packers fan. You can follow him on twitter at @MarkOldacres
Comments (14)
greengold
April 21, 2023 at 05:40 pm
Julius Brents has been one of my favorite CBs for a long time. I think he’d be ideal in the Packers secondary. From my notes:
CB Julius Brents - Kansas St R2
6-2 198 4.53 arms 34 wingspan 83 vertical 41.5 (98%) broad 138 (100%)
Tremendous ball skills with great speed/size. +hip flip. +hands are powerful. Great instincts with knack for reading QB. Fast. Decisive. Fierce competitor. Tracks well. Solid run support. Can redirect on a dime.
48.3 QB rating when targeted
stockholder
April 21, 2023 at 05:47 pm
too slow for Gutekunst.
jannesbjornson
April 21, 2023 at 06:58 pm
He likes guys who drop INTs and cannot tackle...
greengold
April 21, 2023 at 08:11 pm
There’s no discussing a CB not named DJ Turner…
I like Turner as well, and he’s definitely got the speed & skill. They’re just different players. Turner 5-11 178 4.26 vs. Brents 6-3 198 4.53. Brents has the length to hang with bigger WRs. Turner has the speed to contain.
I’d like if we added both players, really. Based upon my calculations, we ought to have enough picks to do so…
Lolz.
jannesbjornson
April 22, 2023 at 07:06 am
He's not afraid to go downhill and make the hit. He can cover close and play the bigger WRs. Brents, Trice, Stevenson, C. Valentine, Mehki Garner are guys who know the position and will not run away from contact. The blue chips will go off the board fast.
Kelee Ringo a Safety/CB prospect may fall?
GregC
April 21, 2023 at 07:08 pm
It's hard to get excited about a CB after all the draft capital the Packers have sunk into that position over the years, usually with very little to show for it. Right now they've got a first-round pick (Alexander) who's actually playing like a first round pick and another (Stokes) who looked good as a rookie but not so good in his second season and is now coming off a serious injury. I'm willing to wait and see how Stokes does this season before I start wishing for another highly drafted CB.
jannesbjornson
April 22, 2023 at 07:09 am
They currently have two healthy guys on the perimeter and I imagine Nixon is the Nickel. There is no guarantee with Stokes returning? Best to get Two more CB, one with an early pick. Shemar?
stockholder
April 22, 2023 at 07:26 am
DJ Turner is now @45
jannesbjornson
April 22, 2023 at 07:34 am
He has speed, but little mass. The two pick(s) need to go TE and WR. Who knows if he's capable of stocking the second round, or if the Jets give up their spots? If a blue chip like Porter,Jr fell to #15, I would snag him. I like the bigger CBs. You have seen this D's five cent and dime coverage get rolled with an off gap running play for big yardage and first downs. Deonte Banks has the profile. At least six CBs go in round one. Take the talent,CBs, TEs, WRs, Edge, don't worry about the trenches. He had five years to square those spots. Benton and Dexter, are guys moving into rd two. Use 2024 picks, if necessary to get more shots in this Value round. Colby Wooden as a five tech later. Silvera played for Herm Edwards, so he's well-coached.
WD
April 22, 2023 at 08:10 am
The best five secondary players should be playing in the secondary. Period. There is absolutely no reason why a great CB can not easily convert to safety. Or. for that matter even a fast smaller LB who can both cover and tackle. People get hung up on the positions. There are basically three areas on defense: the front four, the LBs and the secondary. Get the best players. We do the same thing on offense. OL players should be able to play across the line. Same for backfield. For example,there is no reason Aaron Jones can not line up as a slot receiver at times etc etc. This is why it is important for coaches to get creative and get the most out of the talent they have.. The draft should focus on play makers rather than positions. With a certain position you can get a player that can play multiple positions. This is why I think Jahmyr Gibbs is the best RB/ WR in the draft. With him the Packers would get a slot receiver as well as a change of pace RB. He is the fastest RB in the draft yet led his conference in receiving yards. Wherever he goes in the draft he will be a steal. The same can be said for Nolan Smith a football freak who could play Edge/LB/ or Safety.
PackyCheese500
April 22, 2023 at 12:30 pm
I will say, excluding the top CBs (which we likely won't be targeting), Brents is my favorite CB in the class. He is big, has ridiculously long arms, and is excellent in run support. If the Packers take a CB, Brents would be my first choice.
jannesbjornson
April 23, 2023 at 09:41 pm
Not the first choice, but he could be a Micah Hyde type of multi-tool. A smart player.
golfpacker1
April 22, 2023 at 01:12 pm
Well first off, now we add CB to the expanding list of positions that we should pick with our first rounder. CB, OT, DT, WR, and Safety have all been suggested as what we should spend our first on. Just as I said when some people jumped ship from our 2 biggest needs, TE & Edge, NO NO NO.
We don't even have a starting caliber TE on our team NOW. NONE! I guess if we had 3 first round picks we could keep discussing which position to draft with those picks. Correct me if I am wrong, we have 3 picks in the first 3 rounds. We have CBs, including one of the best in Alexander. And we spent a first rounder on a CB in 2021. We have a good O-line group. We Have the start of a good WR group. We have parts of a good D-line group. We have a need @ Safety but again we have 6 Safeties on the team now and a new talent in Moore from San Fran. Drafting a TE first gets us our favorite from 4 of the top 5 if we don't wait until the 2nd or 3rd rounds. A strong Edge with our second pick gets us a better pass rush rotation and will make the back half of the D better right away.
We need to trade back for more picks early. We can't depend on the Jets trade happening, but if it does it better start with at least #42 & #43 in 2023.
Back to Brents. He was banged up early when he was at Iowa and got passed over. Iowa has a great DC and DB coach in Phil Parker so I thought Brents would be a star. I would be thrilled with one of Brents, Battle, or Skinner to plug into our Safety need. He is a playmaker and you never have enough of them. 3rd round. Most draft gurus say Branch is not a good fit for Green Bay and we can't waste our first rounder on him when the talent is bigger, faster, and available with a later pick.
We are not going to be playing for a super bowl this year, so we should stay the course, start rebuilding our biggest needs first, TE & Edge from really strong groups this year. If we draft smartly this year we could make the TE group, the Edge group, and the WR group into young cheap strengths in this draft. Maybe also the D-line group with 2 more DTs. I like Brodric Martin as a sleeper in the middle of the draft.
golfpacker1
April 22, 2023 at 01:28 pm
Mehki Garner is one I think might make a great change cb to safety transition guy.
CBs I like but not right away are Darius Rush-South Carolina, Rezjohn Wright-Oregon state, and Riley Moss-Iowa. All 3 are 6'1 or bigger and really fast. I haven't seen Rush and Wright, but they both run in the 4.3s. I have seen Moss a lot because I am an Iowa fan too. He is sneaky good and could make GBs team.
GreenGold what do you think of these three and Is your Safety from the Niners good enough to start this year since we are rebuilding and not Super Bowl bound?