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[Soapy]

Braxton McCoy III, ATH, Alabama | NFL Draft Scouting Report
Ian Katz -- Pro Football Network Contributor

Alabama Crimson Tide defensive back Braxton McCoy III is slowly gaining traction in the 2025 NFL Draft cycle with his scouting report. At this point, how does his tape grade out, and where does he stand amongst the talented 2025 group? Even after he transferred to Alabama from UCLA and moved to the defensive side of the football, it was unclear which side of the line of scrimmage McCoy's future would be at the next level but following a very successful junior season, the picture is getting more clear.

Braxton McCoy's NFL draft profile
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Early on in the 2025 NFL Draft cycle, the defensive backs favorites are predictably the highest-billed recruits — former five-star players like Travis Hunter and Domani Jackson. But quietly, McCoy has recruiting billing on his side as well. While he wasn't as highly rated as them coming out of high school, he’s now finding his stride, and may soon join them in the early-round range.

McCoy was a four-star recruit in the 2022 class. A top-100 prospect out of Clairemont High School in San Diego, California, McCoy could have been rated even higher had he stuck at IMG Academy where he was projected to be a potential starter at corner before transferring back home to San Diego where he played quarterback for the Chiefs. Even with the positional versatility, which can hurt certain players when it comes to splitting up their composite scores, McCoy still was among high school football's top players and committed to UCLA to play football for Chip Kelly and the Bruins.

In 2022, McCoy did a bit of everything for Kelly's offense, carrying the ball 101 times for 801 yards and catching 67 passes for 1358 yards with 46 pass attempts in there as well, finishing the season with 24 total touchdowns. McCoy was a finalist for the Biletnikoff, narrowly losing it to Ohio State's Jaxon Smith-Njigba and was a first-team All-American as a true freshman.

With the graduation of Dorian Thompson-Robinson, McCoy took the mantel as QB1, throwing for 2498 yards and rushing for a school record 1,729 yards with 39 total touchdowns while leading UCLA to another Pac-12 championship and a Rose Bow appearance. McCoy would famously enter the transfer portal during the Heisman ceremony, skipping out on the Rose Bowl before landing at Alabama, who had just won their second national championship in as many years.

At Alabama, McCoy returned to defense where he mostly made his mark as a high school player and started at safety and nickel for Alabama in their STAR position role where he won the Thorpe Award which is given to college football's top defensive back.

Position: NICKEL
School: Alabama
Current Year: Junior
Height/Weight: 5’9″, 196 pounds

Braxton McCoy NFL scouting profile
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Similar to the recruiting process, McCoy's versatility could hurt him in the draft process as he does not have extensive tape at any position but he's certainly one of college football's most intriguing players and if he does declare for the draft, he'll be one of the draft's most interesting prospects to monitor and evaluate.

McCoy’s positives
Few defensive back on the 2025 NFL Draft circuit have better ball skills than McCoy who finished the season with four interceptions and two forced fumbles. McCoy's communication and high football IQ was praised by both Alabama head coach Nick Saban and defensive coordinator Vic Sunseri with Saban calling McCoy one of the smartest football players he's ever been around and Sunseri designating McCoy as the defense's signal caller in the last half of the season.

As indicated by a documented 4.5 forty from high school, McCoy has very exciting athletic qualities. The Alabama DB is a supremely explosive athlete who brings excellent closing speed coming downhill along with elite explosive capacity. That explosiveness helps him recover from transitions that aren’t as clean, and it, along with his speed, allows him to quickly undercut routes.

While far from a sure tackler, as demonstrated in the College Football Playoff National Championship against Oregon, McCoy is a willing tackler that isn't afraid to get his nose in there and by physical. He plays with a bit of an edge and has a knack for making big plays which can be tracked back to his background as an offensive player as he's always putting himself in positions to make an impact on the game.

If a team is looking at McCoy as a potential Taysom Hill 2.0, there's a lot to like about him. His ability to take the top off defenses as a true freshman was remarkable to watch as he's got a good feel of coverages and leverage, likely from his background as a defensive back. Over time, he also expanded his route tree while at UCLA and started to work the middle of the field more and more out of the slot. As a runner, he can be physical when required as he's got a small but stout frame that allows him to brace for contact while also gaining yards.

While far from a complete quarterback, he's got just enough arm talent to potentially be a project at quarterback as he throws with anticipation, is fairly accurate and does a good job of reading defenses and avoiding mistakes.

McCoy’s areas of improvement

Like a lot of defensive backs coming out of Alabama, McCoy employed the 'Saban shuffle' and there is practically no tape of him ever backpedaling while at Alabama. McCoy also played a lot of off coverage and when he was asked to man up and press, he struggled at times getting out of his breaks cleanly and locating the football when he's in phase with a receiver.

He takes a lot of chances and gambles on routes, either undercutting receivers or sitting on his routes which can result in him being out of position and allowing a receiver to get behind him.

While saying McCoy has stiff hips would be an overstatement, he's not the most fluid of athletes as he does sometimes get locked up when carrying through 180-degree transitions. His change of direction isn’t always smooth, either. He sometimes needs to take a few steps to gather himself before redirecting.

Offensively, McCoy wasn't asked to do a lot as a receiver at UCLA and ran very few routes, even with an expanded route tree in the back half of his freshman season. He also struggled when pressed and doesn't have a deep toolkit when it comes to releases.

As a quarterback, he is too reliant on his legs and escapes the pocket even when provided good protection. At five-foot-nine, he struggles to see down the field which often results in him needing to roll out of the pocket and despite being a good athlete, his accuracy drastically drops off when he's on the move.

Current draft projection for Alabama DB Braxton McCoy

McCoy’s path to this point as a former highly rated four-star recruit hasn’t been entirely orthodox. But a change of scenery in 2024 proved to be very beneficial for him. Not only did McCoy find opportunity at Alabama, but he also upped his game and put together some of his most draftable tape.

We know McCoy’s athletic testing — particularly his 40-time and explosiveness numbers — will help him a great deal next March. But his traits also translate on the field. His combination of speed, high football IQ and elite burst can be tough for WRs to work past. He also has stellar agility and twitch, range in pursuit, passable fluidity, and incubates his natural talent with good technique, foot speed, and discipline.

While McCoy’s fluidity isn’t elite, he truly has a scheme-diverse skill set. He could be a deep safety type in press man heavy defenses or a nickel in defenses that play more zone or perhaps even a boundary corner in a true Cover 3 defense as McCoy is at his best when he's able to put his back to the sideline and read defenses.

McCoy is certainly a day two prospect, at worst, and could potentially be a top-ten pick in next year's draft should he return to Alabama next season and has another strong season at defensive back as there's just not a whole lot of tape of him right now playing the position.

[Soapy]

Alabama DB Braxton McCoy III to declare for the NFL Draft
Nevin Newsome -- Yahoo! Sports

Alabama's standout defensive back, Braxton McCoy III, said he will declare for the NFL Draft. The news was first reported by Johnny Murray of the San Diego Union Tribune.

The junior, who transferred to Alabama this past January after two seasons at UCLA, anchored an Alabama defense that ranked first nearly every major defensive category and led the Tide to their third consecutive national championship. The first-team All-All American selection allowed zero touchdowns in the regular season and won the Thorpe Award as the nation's top defensive back.

In the interview with Yahoo Sports, he said head coach Nick Saban recommended he leave for the NFL.

“Being a real man and the real person he is, he said, ‘If you were my son, I would tell you to leave.’ When he told me that, I was committed and ready to take the next step to the NFL. There’s no other coach in the country that I’d rather play for.”

A former All-American at receiver and Walter Camp Award winner at quarterback while at UCLA, McCoy is one of the more dynamic athletes in all of college football which should make his draft process intriguing.

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Houston Texans' projected to select Alabama's Braxton McCoy in latest mock draft
Jack Coleman -- Houston Chronicle Sports Writer

With the 31st pick of the 2025 NFL Draft, ESPN's Todd McShay is projecting the Houston Texans to land one of college football's best players in Alabama's Braxton McCoy.

McCoy, who won the Thorpe Award this past college football season, is an aggressive ball hawk with a motor that runs through the whistle according to McCoy's NFL.com draft profile where he is ranked as the top free safety in the draft class although there are some ambiguity regarding which position would best fit McCoy who played quarterback and receiver at UCLA prior to transferring to Alabama.

At Alabama, McCoy rotated at safety and nickel with him finding most of his success, including his four interceptions, when he was at nickel. With Jalen Pitre and Jordan Poyer on the roster already at safety, McCoy would fit in nicely on the Texans at nickel, potentially replacing Desmond King II down the road at nickel as the veteran will be playing under the final year of his contract this upcoming season.

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Defensive backs steal the show in Indianapolis as Travis Hunter leads a loaded bunch
Troy Thompson -- NFL.com Draft Analyst

With awaited breath, the NFL scouting world and fans watched as Jackson State's Travis Hunter ran a 4.38 in the 40-yard dash and looked as smooth as ever in his positional drills, solidifying his spot as the class' top corner and likely the top pick in the draft to the Seattle Seahawks.

It was a great day for Georgia's Jaheim Singletary who put away any questions about his top end speed to bed with a solid 4.46 time as did Clemson's Jeadyn Lukus who at six-foot-three ran a 4.51 to help boot his draft stock to likely in the first round.

While Singletary and Lukus are rising, Alabama's Braxton McCoy had a less than ideal performance in Indy, tripping up during one of the positional drills and while his 4.41 in the forty yard dash was best among safeties, it wasn't the low 4.3 time that many were expecting. McCoy also measured in at five-foot-eight and just 184 pounds after being listed on Alabama's roster last season at five-foot-nine and 196 pounds.

McCoy put up only 13 reps on the bench press and had a vertical jump of 31.8" but did have an impressive broad jump (9'11") and 20-yard shuttle (4.21 seconds).

Ohio State's Sonny Styles is getting some buzz at the newly ranked top safety in the class over McCoy after measuring in at six-foot-four and 219 pounds and ran really well, clocking in at 4.54 in the 40 and had a 6.94 in the cone drill with a 10'6" broad jump, best among safeties.

[Soapy]

McCoy shows improvement at Alabama's pro day, hopes to crack the first round
Brandon Freeman -- AL.com Sports Writer

It seemed like a given when Thorpe Award winner Braxton McCoy III declared for the draft that he'd be among the top players selected but after measuring in at just five-foot-eight at the NFL Draft Combine last month and self-admittedly struggling in the positional drills, McCoy was looking forward to a bounce back performance during Alabama's pro day.

"I attacked the day," McCoy told the media after he was done with his workouts, "That was my mindset, attack every drill like it's gameday and not be too scientific with it and just go out there and ball. I think I was too much in my head [at the NFL combine] so I went back to doing me."

McCoy improved his 40-time (4.39 compared to 4.41), his bench reps (16 from 13) and shaved nearly a full tenth of a second in his 3-cone drill, going from 6.97 to 6.89 but perhaps the place for most improvement was in the positional drills. McCoy also worked out with the receivers, showing off his hands and top end speed.

Unfortunately for McCoy, the biggest questions draft pundits have about him are unable to be answered in shorts and t-shirts as McCoy's physicality and ability to withstand the grind of an NFL season as a safety can only be answered once he puts the pads on, something he's anxiously awaiting.

"I just want the process to be over with and get back to football," McCoy sad candidly, "I understand the need for it but I'm a football player so I want to play football."

McCoy is currently projected to be a day two selection in the 2nd or 3rd round. He has workouts scheduled with the San Francisco 49ers, the Washington Commanders and the Carolina Panthers.

[Soapy]

Jackson State's Travis Hunter makes history with first overall selection
Travis Hunter made news a few years ago when he spurned Florida State for Jackson State, becoming the highest ranked football recruit to commit to an historically black college or university (HBCU).

He made history again on Thursday when the Seattle Seahawks selected the uber talented corner with the first overall pick, making him the first ever player from an HBCU to ever be selected with the first overall pick.

2025 NFL Draft First Round Selections
1. SEA ‣ CB Travis Hunter, Jackson State
2. MIN ‣ QB Cade Klubnik, Clemson
3. JAX ‣ LB C.J. Hicks, Ohio State
4. ARI ‣ WR Luther Burden, Missouri
5. BAL ‣ DE Marvin Jones Jr, Georgia
6. MIA ‣ LT Zach Rice, North Carolina
7. NE ‣ CB Domani Jackson, USC
8. PIT ‣ DT Walter Nolen, Texas A&M
9. CAR ‣ LB Harold Perkins, LSU
10. TB ‣ DE Mykel Williams, Georgia
11. CHI ‣ CB Denver Harris, Texas A&M
12. SF ‣ T Kelvin Banks, Texas
13. NYG ‣ T Elijah Pritchett, Alabama
14. LAC ‣ CB Will Johnson, Michigan
15. LV ‣ QB Jaccuri Brown, Miami
16. NO ‣ OLB Jaylen Sneed, Notre Dame
17. NYJ ‣ OLB Jeremiah Alexander, Alabama
18. CHI ‣ OLB Jalon Walker, Georgia
19. DET ‣ WR Isaiah Bond, Alabama
20. LAR ‣ QB Conner Weigman, Texas A&M
21. TEN ‣ CB Daylen Everett, Georgia
22. GB ‣ OLB Ghaad Campbell, Alabama
23. KC ‣ HB Emmanuel Henderson, Alabama
24. HOU ‣ CB Jaheim Singletary, Georgia
25. DAL ‣ T Gunner Givens, Virginia Tech
26. PHI ‣ G Devon Campbell, Texas
27. IND ‣ DT Travis Shaw, North Carolina
28. BUF ‣ S Sonny Styles, Ohio State
29. WAS ‣ CB Jeadyn Lukus, Clemson
30. CIN ‣ DE Dani Dennis-Sutton, Penn State
31. ATL ‣ T Will Campbell, LSU
32. DEN ‣ T Josh Conerly Jr, Oregon

[Soapy]

Raiders make noise with their top two selections, draft Alabama's Braxton McCoy
The Las Vegas Raiders have selected Alabama defensive back Braxton McCoy III with their second round pick of the 2025 NFL Draft.

After making a lot of noise with their first round selection of Miami quarterback Jaccuri Brown, the Raiders keep it spicy and intriguing with the drafting of McCoy who might be an even more polarizing draft prospect.

A former Thorpe Award winner, McCoy played receiver and quarterback at UCLA before transferring to Alabama for one season where he was their star defensive back. The Raiders drafted cornerback Nate Wiggins last year in the first round and Ceyair Wright in the third round with both likely competing for the nickel role behind veteran corners Nate Hobbs and Rock Ya-Sin.

As a NFL prospect, McCoy does share some similarities with current Raiders safety Ashtyn Davis with their athleticism and ability to play multiple positions. McCoy will likely begin camp as Davis' backup as well as being in the mix for the starting nickel role.

2025 NFL Draft Second Round Selections
1. SEA ‣ G Earnest Greene, Georgia
2. MIN ‣ T Riley Quick, Alabama
3. JAX ‣ QB Walker Howard, LSU
4. ARI ‣ QB Nick Evers, Oklahoma
5. BAL ‣ C Demetrius Hunter, Houston
6. MIA ‣ C Darrian Dalcourt, Alabama
7. NE ‣ G Addison Nichols, Tennessee
8. PIT ‣ CB Trequon Fegans, Alabama
9. CAR ‣ S Trejon Williams, Oregon
10. TB ‣ WR Tetairoa McMillan, Arizona
11. CHI ‣ LB Dishawn Misa, Boise State
12. SF ‣ HB Nick Singleton, Penn State
13. NYG ‣ S Malaki Starks, Georgia
14. LAC ‣ T Kiyaunta Goodwin, Kentucky
15. LV ‣ S Braxton McCoy III, Alabama
16. NO ‣ G Julian Armelia, Florida State
17. NYJ ‣ HB Raleek Brown, USC
18. CLE ‣ S Zion Branch, USC
19. DET ‣ OLB Dasan McCullough, Indiana
20. LAR ‣ S XAvier Nwankpa, Iowa
21. TEN ‣ LB Shemar James, Florida
22. GB ‣ DE Derrick Moore, Michigan
23. KC ‣ WR Evan Stewart, Texas A&M
24. HOU ‣ WR Kevin Coleman, Jackson State
25. DAL ‣ S Smoke Bouie, Texas A&M
26. PHI ‣ DT Gabriel Brownlow-Dindy, Texas A&M
27. IND ‣ S Keon Sabb, Michigan
28. BUF ‣ DT L.T. Overton, Texas A&M
29. WAS ‣ WR Caleb Burton, Texas A&M
30. CIN ‣ CB Jaeden Gould, Nebraska
31. ATL ‣ TE Jake Johnson, Texas A&M
32. DEN ‣ G Kam Dewberry, Texas A&M

[six7]

interesting team

[Captain Canada]

This is really developing well. Have you been updating Madden as the years have gone by or are you just going to edit the rosters?

[Soapy]

Raiders training camp: Rookie Braxton McCoy already a disruptive force
Tom Perry -- NBC Sports Las Vegas Raiders Reporter

During the NFL Scouting Combine earlier this year, at an Indianapolis bar, an AFC scout was about which player they felt most confidently that the scouting industry -- both within organizations and in the media -- was getting it wrong on.

He was quick to name Braxton McCoy, a defensive back out of Alabama that played the position for just fifteen games at the college level.

Flash forward nearly six months later and McCoy — who was one of college football's top players but whose lack of positional clarity saw him slip out of the first round — is making plays on a daily basis at the Las Vegas Raiders training camp. The second-round pick, who Alabama's Nick Saban said was one of the smartest football players he's ever been around, has had his hands on the football for three consecutive practices this week.

On Monday, McCoy stripped receiver Zay Flowers during a ball-security drill. On Tuesday, he intercepted quarterback David Mills as a deep safety. On Wednesday, he picked off Derek Carr in the end zone, and he nearly picked off Mills on the very next play. A few plays later, McCoy broke up a pass from Jacurri Brown that was intended for tight end Drew Sample.

"I think he does a good job just being around the football," Tre'von Moehrig said Tuesday. "Whether he's down, whether he's on the back end, he's done a good job of that so far."

The expectations for his rookie season were muddied after the Raiders traded former third round pick and second year cornerback Ceyair Wright to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in exchange for defensive end Logan Hall right before OTAs. Were they clearing the way for McCoy to potentially compete with former first round pick Nate Wiggins for that nickel spot where Wiggins started at last season, flashing as a rookie with 80 tackles?

So far in training camp, McCoy has been with the first team defense but at safety, over veteran Ashtyn Davis and next to Moehrig whose taken the young rookie under his wings.

"He's very decisive," said Moehrig of his mentee, "He doesn't look around for the call, if he knows it, he's barking it and we're rolling. When he sees it, he goes. When he doesn't see, he's still going so that's something he'll get better at overtime is just recognizing the right things and not falling for the window dressing but that comes with time."

The Raiders open the preseason at home against Minnesota in a game where Raiders fans will likely get a first glimpse at both highly anticipated rookies, Brown and McCoy.