NFL DRAFT 2018: SEAN CHANDLER

The NFL draft is just days away, and by this point each player has been analyzed, scrutinized, and romanticized by every NFL guru from Kalamazoo to Calcutta. We here at pigskinpress.com turn once again to our director of scouting Nathan Cooper to help us look deeper into the draft at some guys from the group of five that may be a real steal on draft day!

Sean Chandler College: Temple

Position: Free Safety

Year: 4SR

Jersey: #3

Hometown: Camden, NJ

Games Scouted: 2017 #1 @ Notre Dame, #3 UMass, #5 Houston, #11 UCF (Live) 2017 Stats: 12 GP, 74 Tackles (52 Solo), 1.5 TFL, 2 Int, 5 PD, 1 FF, 1 FR, 9 PR Yards Career Stats: 48 GP, 259 Tackles (178 Solo), 13.5 TFL, 3 Sacks, 9 Int, 31 PD, 2 TD, 4 FF, 2 FR, 280 PR Yards All-Star Game: NFLPA Collegiate Bowl

Background/Notes

2017 Honorable Mention All-AAC as a Safety (Coaches)
2016 Second Team All-AAC as a Safety (Coaches)
2015 Second Team All-AAC as a Cornerback (Coaches)
Major in Kinesiology
3-Star Composite in 2014 (247Sports)

Character – A

2017 Game Captain

Medical – B

2016 – Suffered a bone bruise in his knee during a practice in which he missed four games

Strengths

Good 3-level ability
Very good open-field tackler
Good quickness and pursuit
Very good special teams player

Weaknesses

Struggles to accelerate
Lacks great COD/transition
A bit slow in his play recognition

Summary

Chandler projects as a backup Free Safety, a #4, with the ability to play some slot corner as well. He began his career at Temple as a Cornerback, but made the switch to Safety in 2016. Temple had him playing some linebacker at times in 2017 and not just as an in-the-box Safety. He’s a good athlete that competes with a high motor on every play. He grew up in and out of homeless shelters as a kid, so he has realized nothing is given to him and he works hard to earn everything he gets. He also has good toughness and physicality to his game. In the run game, he isn’t afraid to stick his nose in piles to take on blockers or make tackles. He’s also an outstanding open-field tackler. When he’s one-on-one with a ball carrier, he rarely misses and is able to wrap up and make a good tackle. He has good 3-level ability and is able to play deep and near the LOS. He does seem a bit slow in his play recognition, but has decent recovery speed to get where he needs to be. He’s quicker than fast and it takes an extra split-second for him to accelerate and get to top speed, but once he’s there, he is able to run down plays from behind. He also seems to not be as fluid when changing direction and transitioning at the top of his back pedal. He has decent coverage ability, but plays zone a bit better than man. He is able to play well in zone coverage as a deep safety. In man, he can stick with some receivers, but struggles to stick with most due to poor transition at the top of his back pedal. He’s able to play well when pressing receivers, but when he’s in off-man, that’s where his poor transition is most apparent. As a former Corner, he has decent enough skills to play the slot at times, but will get exposed against quicker receivers. He shows decent ball skills as he finished his career at Temple with nine interceptions, although a majority of them came when he played Corner early in his career. On 3rd downs, he fits better as a deep safety, but has the toughness and physicality to play in the box on short-yardage. He should come in and compete as a depth Safety with some slot flex, but will make a name for himself on special teams due to his physical nature and high motor.

NFL Comparison: Eric Murray, Chiefs (4th Round, 2016) Chandler and Murray are similar in build and playing styles. They both played corner in college before moving to Safety (Chandler in college and Murray not until the NFL). Both play with physicality and are very solid special teamers, but struggle with their transition.

Grade: 5.8 (Mid-Late 5th Round)

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