Kyler

Gordon

At one point, there was some speculation that Gordon (6'0/190) might luck into a first round selection. Unfortunately, he finds himself hoping for a Day 2 selection. The mocking of Gordon to the Vikings works out well for a team that already addressed one need in the secondary with the selection of Georgia S Lewis Cine. The Vikings have veteran cornerback Patrick Peterson for another season, but need to get younger at the position. Gordon turned in a strong career at Washington, and has a game that should transfer well to the NFL.

Gordon (6'0/190) is widely regarded as the second-best cornerback coming out of Washington this year. A physical player, Gordon projects best in the slot but could play on the outside if needed. With most mock drafts not including him in the first round, seeing Gordon on the invite list is a little bit surprising. The bigger surprise is not seeing his teammate Trent McDuffie on the list. He has been a mainstay in first round of those same mock drafts.

The Washington football program has churned out a lot of defensive backs over the last few years. Very few of them had the level of success that Gordon (6'0/190) had in man coverage. Per PFF, he graded out at 90.9 only 0.1 points higher than his former teammate Byron Murphy’s 2018 and 0.6 points higher than Derek Stingley Jr in 2019. He was able to win in man coverage with his quick ability to accelerate and stick with the receiver. He has the potential to sneak into the first round come April.

Gordon (5'11.5"/194) did not retest his 4.52 40-yard dash, which is quite slow, but he did extremely well at every other drill at his Pro Day. His agility scores of 3.96 short shuttle and 6.67 three-cone were particularly impressive. Those would have ranked second and fifth respectively at the combine amongst all players. He also posted a 39.5" vertical, 10'8" broad, both good scores, and 20 bench reps which is top tier for a DB. Gordon has been tabbed as a possible first round pick, and with these testing numbers (besides the 40) that makes perfect sense.

We’ve already seen former Washington CB Trent McDuffie starting to get some hype and now his cornermate might also be getting the rub. Gordon’s (6'0"/190) stock could be on the rise if you have scouts looking forward to watching his performance at the combine. He’s an explosive CB with the ability to accelerate into coverage and can get the ball quickly across the field. He’s not the conversation as a first-round pick just yet, but with this buzz, he may jump on some expert’s Day 1 boards.

Gordon (6'0"/190) declared for the 2022 NFL Draft earlier this year and is one of the most dynamic players at his position available for the taking. He finished out the 2021 season -- the best of his college career -- with 45 total tackles (36 solo), seven passes defended, two interceptions and one forced fumble. According to Pro Football Focus, he did not allow a single touchdown over 722 career coverage snaps at Washington.

Gordon (6'0/190) no longer being listed on the roster was reported via Twitter by Christian Caple of The Athletic. Although Gordon not being listed on the roster shouldn’t come as a surprise, as many suspected he would be turning pro, which may be the case here. This season, Gordon played on 797 defensive snaps according to Pro Football Focus, recording 46 total tackles while forcing two interceptions and breaking up six passes. He graded out as one of the top safeties in the nation, receiving an overall defensive grade on PFF of 87.2, while drawing a coverage grade of 89.6.

Gordon (6'0/195) appeared in four games as a true freshman, thus preserving a season of eligibility. And with Washington having some holes to fill in the secondary, the redshirt freshman who has a background in dance and kung fu will see more playing time this fall. And that will give fans the opportunity to see just how athletic Gordon is. He put up some excellent testing numbers in the spring, including a 42.5-inch vertical and a three-cone drill time of 6.52 seconds. “He’s like Gumby,” Washington DC Jimmy Lake told Feldman. “He’s so flexible, and the way he can jump and run. He’s definitely got some freakish ability.”

Both UCLA and Cal have already tossed offers Gordon’s way. USC, not so much, but the 5-foot-11, 176-pound native of Everett, Washington, believes that the Trojans may be close to showing him a little love on that front. He ranks as Scout.com’s No. 186 overall prospect in the 2018 cycle.

Gordon chooses Washington over Notre Dame, and did so on local television. He’s rated the 11th best corner by 247 Sports, and the third-best player in the state of Washington by ESPN. Scouting reports say he needs to improve his ability to break on the football, but also say he’s a physical player with good top-end speed. UW is currently loaded at corner, so they should be able to work with him and allow him to develop over a redshirt freshman year. This is a very good Washington class.