Some of the best content you’ll see every year is that of NFL draft prospects getting the call from the teams that pick them, fulfilling a life-long dream.
Watch Auburn cornerback D.J. James get the call from the Seahawks.
We got ourselves a dog.@Djames00x | @QNTMFiber pic.twitter.com/G7gHpIZwmo
— Seattle Seahawks (@Seahawks) April 29, 2024
James (6-foot-1, 185 pounds) may be the most polarizing pick that Seattle made this year.
While James’ college production was strong (five interceptions, 24 pass breakups, 108 tackles) and his PFF grades superb (his 88.9 coverage grade in 2023 ranked 10th in the nation at his position), there are some concerns about this particular pick.
For one thing, the Seahawks had already used a pick on another cornerback the previous round, taking James’ teammate Nehemiah Pritchett with the first pick in Round 5. Seattle had needs at safety and offensive line and it wouldn’t have been a terrible idea to pick a developmental QB instead of another cornerback, considering how strong that unit already was. That’s hardly James’ fault though, and the team claims they had a fourth-round grade on him.
One legitimate yellow flag is James’ Relative Athletic Score score (5.82), which was the worst of the team’s eight picks in the draft. While he has awesome speed, James posted poor scores in size and agility, which could be problematic at the next level where James may find himself too small to play the boundary and not quick enough for the slot.
Then again, we can think of a couple defensive backs who also had pretty atrocious RAS scores who turned out alright. Quandre Diggs posted a 2.24 score coming out of Texas and was good enough to make three straight Pro Bowls for this team. Tyrann Mathieu had a 3.94 RAS score and has gone on to be a three-time All Pro and win a Super Bowl.
Point being, it doesn’t hurt to score well but it’s not a prerequisite for success in the NFL. Each draft pick is a gamble and time will tell which way James will go. Intangibles like coaching and exactly how much dog he has in him will be far greater factors than whatever his athletic testing says about his game.
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