Strengths: 

  • Good Instincts Keep Him Around the Ball

When watching UCF’s defense one thing that was extremely noticeable was that Richie Grant was always around the ball. He plays with great instincts and anticipates where the ball is going which is why he is frequently able to make plays.

  • Closes Quickly

Richie Grant does a great job closing on the ball and closing downhill extremely quick. When playing deep he has a quick trigger and great explosiveness to come down to make a play as soon as possible.

  • Good Ball Skills

Richie Grant has played a lot of snaps at the safety position and over time he gathered phenomenal ball skills which he uses to frequently break up passes and even make plays on the ball with interceptions. He also hunts the ball when tackling ball carriers, forcing quite a few fumbles in college.

  • Willing and High Effort Tackler

Richie Grant is always around the football because of his phenomenal instincts and he cashes that in by being a good sound tackler who’s willing to deliver hits as well.

Weaknesses: 

  • Slow Processor When in the Box

Richie Grant is a good player at free safety because he uses and acts on his instincts well but Grant is not a good processor especially in the box when he reads plays slow and results in coverage busts.

  • Not Great in Man Coverage

Richie Grant is very good in zone with his eyes in the backfield but when he is faced with one on one scenarios he’s not quite as good at keeping up and mirroring quicker guys, or playing with the physicality of bigger guys.

  • Takes Bad Tackling Angles

Richie Grant can fall victim to taking bad angles when in pass coverage because he overrates his speed and it results in big plays on the backend.

Player Comp: I’d say Jimmie Ward is a solid comparison for Richie Grant. Both guys are great instinctive zone safeties who thrive when playing free safety in two deep looks and having their eyes on the quarterback. The instincts and ball skills really pop out for both guys and they are always around the football. They have a quick trigger coming downhill and decent movement skills which make them solid free safeties. The weaknesses of taking bad tackling angles, and being bad in the box because of their processing and man coverage deficiencies is also very similar. I think Grant isn’t as quick but other than that solid comp and Grant can be just as good.

Final Thoughts: My top 5 safeties are all going to be bunched up really close in the early mid portion of round 2 so the fact that Grant is in that conversation means I probably higher on him than most. He’s a guy who’s pretty scheme specific but if put in his ideal role of being a zone free safety in two high looks he’s going to excel because of his instincts and his tendency to not only be around the ball but also make plays when he’s around the ball. I’d say early mid round 2 is a good fit for him. The Raiders are a good fit because with the hiring of Gus Bradley they will be a zone team that plays 2 high safeties, and they have a need at the free safety position currently receiving inconsistent play from Karl Joseph and Erik Harris. Richie Grant also has the instincts and high effort play, especially to be around the ball often which Las Vegas will love.