6’2″ – 218 lbs. – 4.60e
Brother is former first-round pick Kevin White. Spent two seasons at Lackawanna College before transferring to the Mountaineers. Stepped into the starting lineup in his first year at West Virginia and reprised that role this past season, enjoying two highly-productive campaigns to close out his college career. Has plus size for a pro safety, with a thick build, especially in the lower body. Splits his snaps between lining up as a deep safety and, more often, playing as more of a big nickel (“Spur”) defender opposite opposing slot receivers. Pretty consistent cover man whose responsibilities tended to involve working in either man coverage against opposing slot receivers or in shallow zones. Has a controlled and technically-sound backpedal, if not a particularly quick one. Able to use his strength to get physical at the line of scrimmage. When working in man coverage against opposing receivers and tight ends, exhibits a conservative temperament, allowing some completions but keeping opponents in front of him to avoid giving up big plays down the field. Does a good job of keeping himself in position to limit yards after contact. Work in deep zones was a little bit more limited by virtue of his defensive role, but overall temperament and feel suggest that he should be able to handle cover-two responsibilities. Ball skills were difficult to evaluate based on the games reviewed but broke up nine career passes and intercepted three balls this past season. Not particularly fast but plays with good instincts and discipline, allowing him to end up around the ball often and rack up a lot of tackles. Navigates through traffic effectively. Does a good job of using his arms and hands to play off of blocks and flow to the ball; attacks opposing blockers with intensity. Able to funnel opposing ballcarriers back inside to his teammates. Explosive into contact to help set the tone, providing plenty of thump; however, could wrap up more consistently. Also has some experience lining up on the edge and rushing the passer; flashes a good closing burst to finish his rushes with sacks and hits on the quarterback. Requires some imagination to project to a deep coverage role and will need to time well to solidify his draft stock, but does what he does very well, offering teams a big, physical safety with good instincts, reliable tackling, and a responsible style of play. Those traits could eventually make him a starter at the pro level.
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