DeMarcco

Hellams

The second-year safety suffered the injury in the team’s preseason game against the Dolphins and was carted off the field. After being selected in the seventh round of last year’s draft, Hellams emerged to appear in 15 games while making four starts. He totaled 40 tackles and one TFL and is expected to play a meaningful role as added depth in the secondary this season.

Hellams was carted from the field with an air cast applied to his left leg. Although he recently lost out to Richie Grant in the competition for the Falcons’ No. 2 safety role, Hellams remained a capable rotational defender. He played 249 coverage snaps last season without giving up an explosive pass play (15-plus yards) when in primary coverage.

Hellams (6’1/203) is a former four-star recruit who was considered the eighth-best safety from the 2019 prep class. He logged most of his snaps at free safety but is comfortable mixing it up at the line as well, finishing third in the SEC with 108 tackles last season. A two-year full-time starter, Hellams is a downhill finisher who rarely lets prey escape his grasp, recording an exceptional 10.5% missed tackle rate with a PFF tackling grade of 80.0+ in three consecutive seasons. His 1.56s 10-yard split was a solid 83% mark, but the rest of his athletic testing was troubling, as his 7.28s 3-Cone (20th%) and 4.57s shuttle (6th%) were brutal marks that dragged down Hellams’ 4.53 RAS. While he can survive in coverage against TE/RB’s, his limited athleticism really shows up in slot coverage. Despite tight hips, Hellams is very effective in the open field and plays with a pugnacious demeanor. He could have a future as a rotational box-safety.

Hellams (6'1/204) has upside as both a receiver and a safety for the college game. Rivals analyst Adam Friedman passes along that Penn State, for one, is viewing him as a safety and notes that if he’s truly keen on the Nittany Lions, he might need to push up his commitment due to the program’s interest in other defensive back prospects. In addition to Penn State, Clemson, Virginia Tech and USC have also been in heavy contact with Hellams. Rivals ranks the Hyattsville, Maryland, native as the No. 83 overall prospect in the 2019 class.

Hellams (6'1/204) is additionally interested in Virginia Tech, Penn State and Clemson. USC is in the mix, too, with the four-star athlete hoping that he can carve out time to visit them down the road. He said that he plans on making his commitment prior to his senior season at Dematha Catholic High in Maryland. On the 247Sports composite board, he lands at No. 92 overall in the 2019 class. He has upside as both a safety and a wide receiver.

Hellams (6'1/204) was deciding between Clemson or Alabama and chose to add onto what’s already the top recruiting class in the country. He has played both wide receiver and safety in high school but has “prototypical size” for a safety in Nick Saban’s defensive system. Hellams is currently ranked as the No. 4 safety and No. 92 overall player in the 2019 recruiting class.