Player Profile: Terrence Brooks

Height:  5'11
Weight:  198
School:  Florida State
Position:  Safety
Ranking:  #6 Safety
Projection:  3rd Round

Strengths
-Experienced.  Played since freshman year.  Two year starter.
-Uses good speed (4.42) and quickness (1.54) to react to the ball in coverage
-Shows good range.  Able to cover deep center field or half in Cover 2
-Able to match up with receivers in the slot in man to man coverage
-Flies to the ball in coming up in run support. Gets there in a hurry.
-Good leaper (38" vertical leap) makes up for only being 5'11
-Good open field tackler. Especially when taking the ball head on
-Reads the QB eyes well. Able to cheat towards the ball
-Experience playing on special teams in the kickoff and punt return units
-Has a knack for making a big play. (INT, forced fumble)

Weaknesses
-Isn't a fluid athlete.  Doesn't change direction easily.
-Lack of height and length could hurt his ability to defend jump balls in the NFL.
-Struggles to disengage from blockers.  Can get hung up
-Fails to make an impact when asked to blitz
-Inconsistent with taking good angles.  Will force him to miss tackles or over run a play
-Isn't a punishing hitter. Not going to look to take your head off
-Lacks ball skills. Will drop easy interceptions. Short arms make it tough to get to

Summary
In today's NFL with more spread looks and hybrid tight ends, having good safeties is a necessity.  Brooks is a true free safety whose at his best when playing back in zone coverage.  He uses his top end speed and quickness to react and fly the the ball.  Brooks isn't a ball hawk, but he does enough to break up passes.  While he isn't a very fluid athlete, Brooks does have the ability to play man to man coverage in the slot.  He uses that same quickness to stick with receivers in short area.  Brooks is a good run defender because he isn't afraid of contact and will fly up to make a tackle.  He isn't going to lay the wood to the ball carrier, but he is a good open field tackler and as the last line of defense that is needed.  However when in the box Brooks will struggle because he doesn't offer much as a blitzer and will get swallowed up by blocks.  Look for him to go somewhere in the third round to a team needing a free safety.  He could challenge for a job right away but he'll for sure contribute on special teams where he was an ace his freshman and sophomore year at Florida State.