Quinyon Mitchell NFL Draft Profile
Position: Cornerback
Height: 6’ 0″
Weight: 200 pounds
School: Toledo
2023 NFL Draft: Quinyon Mitchell Scouting Report
Mitchell played at Toledo for three full seasons but really burst onto the scene in his sophomore year (2021). The three-star recruit out of Williston, Florida had 34 tackles, eight passes defended, and one forced fumble/recovery last year. Mitchell broke out in 2022, breaking many MAC records for single-game and single-season statistics at the cornerback position. Starting in all 14 of the Rockets’ games, Mitchell had 41 total tackles along with 3.5 for loss. In the passing game, however, he was phenomenal; he had five interceptions in 2022 and also had 25 passes defended this past year.
Because Mitchell played at Toledo in the MAC, he is less known, but that is certainly not a knock on his talent. In fact, Mitchell led all of college football’s cornerbacks in the PFF grade, amassing a 92.3 overall rating ahead of one of the top prospects, Devon Witherspoon of Illinois. Mitchell also had a 92.4 PFF coverage grade, second in the country behind only Witherspoon. Although he’s smaller, he boasts great ball skills and has plenty of experience in coverage. Mitchell received First Team All-MAC honors in 2022 and finished first in pass breakups and second in interceptions for the conference.
Strengths
- Phenomenal ball skills; able to track passes well;
- Reads quarterbacks well; able to jump routes without penalty;
- Excels in zone coverage and snaps off the ball;
- Showcases great playmaking ability with turnovers, subsequent scores;
- Decent in the run game; multi-dimensional corner.
Weaknesses
- Smaller frame leads to slightly less physical play;
- Runs a 4.54 40; slightly below expectations;
- Doesn’t have much experience in playing right off the line (press or man);
- Great corner in MAC but unproven against big-time receivers.
NFL Comparison: Charvarius Ward
Teams With Need At Position: Pittsburgh Steelers, New Orleans Saints, Minnesota Vikings, Las Vegas Raiders, Arizona Cardinals
Projection: Late rounds (6th or 7th) or undrafted
Bottom Line on Quinyon Mitchell
Mitchell is a high-quality and very talented corner. His five interceptions paired with his MAC-leading 25 PDs in 2022 show he has great ball skills and does very well in coverage. He has plenty of experience in zone and deep coverages and really made other quarterbacks think twice before throwing that way. Plus, his 90+ PFF grades for nearly everything show that he is a quality player all around.
However, there are a lot of causes for concern with Mitchell and his dependability at the higher level. He has a shorter, smaller frame and has below-average speed for a player of that size. Because he isn’t as big, he isn’t the most physical corner and therefore struggles in man or press situations. There are also concerns that his great coverage grades come from facing mid-major quarterbacks and receivers, and not some of the best ones who come from Power-5 conferences. Quinyon Mitchell at best will be a 6th or 7th-round pick in the NFL Draft, but there’s a good chance he also goes undrafted. However, it’s likely he eventually gets a shot somewhere based on his insane skills and hopefully there he can convert his success at Toledo into NFL success.
Main Photo: Lon Horwedel – USA Today Sports
