Patrick Surtain Overview

Patrick Surtain II is one of the corners in this class with famed NFL bloodlines. His father Patrick Surtain was a great corner in the league and Surtain II hopes to follow in his footsteps. Surtain is one of the smartest corners in the class and his Football IQ is what makes him such a great player. He’ll be able to play both man and zone at a high level in the NFL.

Strengths: 

  • Great Size

Patrick Surtain is 6’2 203 lbs which is ample size for a cornerback. He certainly has the height as well as the length to be a bigger cornerback who won’t get pushed around by bigger receivers.

  • Very Physical

Patrick Surtain uses his size and length to his advantage and he’s very physical. He uses his long arms to throw receivers off their timing and has the strength to move them off their spots.

  • Amazing Football IQ

Being raised by former NFL player Patrick Surtain Sr. it was likely that Surtain II was going to have a great understanding of the game, and he certainly does. From knowing when to close on routes in zone to knowing when receivers are trying to set him up Surtain has the mental aspect of playing the cornerback position down.

  • Not Fooled By Route Running

Patrick Surtain knows when receivers are trying to manipulate him into going a certain direction. He doesn’t get fooled by hard fakes and fancy footwork and has the ability to stay on the hip of the receiver he’s guarding.

  • Ability to Play Man and Zone

I think that Patrick Surtain is going to have the versatility to end up playing both man and zone at the next level. He has great instincts and spatial awareness in zone, as well as great physicality and technique in press man.

Weaknesses: 

  • Average Straight Line Speed

As is a problem with a lot of bigger cornerbacks Patrick Surtain isn’t going to have that much straight line speed. His play speed isn’t terrible but he’s still somewhat of a liability against speedy receivers.

  • Bad Change of Direction Ability

The bigger concern than the straight line speed is the issue with him not being very quick. He doesn’t change directions very quickly and this can cause receivers to get separation on him.

  • Not Amazing Tracking/Ball Skills

I wouldn’t say that Patrick Surtain has good tracking ability or ball skills. He is often late to turn his head when the ball is in the air and even if he doesn’t panic that’s still an issue. His ability to get his hands on the ball isn’t bad, but there are a lot of missed opportunities, especially when he’s positioning himself so well.

Player Comp: Jimmy Smith of the Baltimore Ravens is an adequate player comparison to me for Patrick Surtain. Both guys have tremendous size and great physicality which made them tough to line up against in press coverage. Both have long arms they use well as well as good instincts, and high effort while tackling. They also both have an average play speed that’s lower than what their 40 shows, and not great change of direction ability. Both guys also had ball skills that needed to be improved upon when coming into the league. The one key difference which can be seen as both a positive and negative is that Surtain isn’t as aggressive as Jimmy Smith is.

Final Thoughts: Patrick Surtain is a guy that I think I’m going to end up around the consensus on with him being in the early mid to mid first round range. He’s an extremely smart cornerback with great size and football IQ. The ball skills issue can be fixed in the NFL with practice and his average speed and change of direction shouldn’t hinder him too much. He’s got a lot going for him and because of his versatility I think he could be good for a team that likes to switch up their coverages a lot. Dan Quinn is a guy who likes to disguise his coverages often and switch up looks between zone and man which is why I think the Falcons would be a decent pairing with Patrick Surtain.