NFL Draft Preview: Leodis McKelvin

College: Troy

Class: Senior

Height/Weight: 5'10", 190 lbs.

Projected pick: Early-to-mid first round.

Strengths: McKelvin is a tremendous athlete with pretty good ball skills. What he lacks a bit in size, he makes up for with a 40" vertical and good hands, leading to plenty of chances for interceptions or challenged passes. His 4.4 40 time leaves NFL scouts drooling over his deep coverage ability, but McKelvin possesses more than straightaway speed, too. His quick feet and above average agility allow him to adjust to passes pretty easily and he has great closing speed if a receiver does find a way to get by him. McKelvin also has two years of special teams experience under his belt, as he was a tremendous punt returner at Troy.

Weaknesses: As previously mentioned, McKelvin lacks quite a bit in size over top-of-the-line NFL receivers. Eight of the top ten receivers in 2007 (based on receiving yards) were 6'1" or taller, showing a push by NFL teams to bigger, tougher receivers. The good news for McKelvin is that most teams get a physical corner to handle those types, while he can stick with the Steve Smiths of the NFL world. Also because of his small stature, McKelvin doesn't have tremendous hitting skills and is prone to having his tackles broken. He also has troubles jamming a bigger receiver at the line or knocking a jump ball down. Also, his experience at Troy didn't challenge him with great talent, so it is difficult to project how he will do against NFL receivers.

Projected Teams:

7. New England Patriots - The Patriots need to get younger on defense, period. Add in the fact that Asante Samuel and Randall Gay both skipped town in free agency, and New England has to be concerned about their secondary. Picking a corner with the number seven pick is almost a certainty at this point, but questions remain as to which CB will be taken here. Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie had a fantastic combine and fits the same mold as McKelvin, a smaller, quicker type corner. Aqib Talib is a very physical corner who can provide a nice solid presence in the secondary. Personally, I think McKelvin is about 75% here, while the other two are about 10% each and other corners make up the other 5%.

10. New Orleans Saints - The Saints secondary was just plain awful last season, and rumor has it they are looking for a complete overhaul. They must still have images burned in their brain of Reggie Wayne burning Jason David time after time way back in week 1, and drafting an explosive playmaker like McKelvin could be the beginning of the answer in the Big Easy. The good thing for Leodis here is that the receivers in the NFC South aren't of the "big" variety, with the biggest threats being Steve Smith and Joey Galloway, two players that McKelvin could stack up well against.

18. Houston Texans - I truly believe that McKelvin will be gone by this point in the first round, but if he does somehow slip, the Texans would be thrilled to have him. The first step to being a playoff team is to beat the teams in your own division, and since Houston hasn't been able to beat the Colts consistently since they came into the AFC South, adding a corner to try and stop the Colts' passing attack is a smart move. If McKelvin can keep with Reggie Wayne, who is more of a speed receiver, and Dunta Robinson can focus on Harrison, the Texans might have a chance at corralling the Colts for years to come.

Sources:
Leodis McKelvin, ESPN.com
NFL Draft Order, Walter Football