DJ Turner Scouting Report: A Special Type Of Athlete At Corner

DJ Turner is an exhilarating Cornerback prospect with stellar potential in a suitable scheme. Out of Michigan, Turner didn’t start his first two seasons but made a legitimate impact the moment he stepped on the field. He’s had back-to-back impressive seasons and recently had a ridiculous combine performance. Turner ran a blistering 4.26 40 and put up nearly 11 feet on the broad jump. With proper technique and discipline, you’d think there’s no way he can fail, but he comes with a significant red flag. That would be his size and physicality. Despite his excellent demeanor and competitiveness, he is relatively undersized. His weight is in the 5th percentile for Corners, and he doesn’t possess ideal arm length either. The fact of the matter is he can be an exceptional player, but it will need to happen with him playing the proper role.

Three all-22 games and his highlights were evaluated, and clips from his film are broken down here. All relevant traits were graded based on his film. His scouting report also factored in stats and analytics, such as PFF grades. Use promo code TREYSCHNEIDER on Underdog Fantasy to match your deposit up to $100. Please gamble responsibly and leave your feedback on Twitter @FBIntellect.

Coverage Stats

Clip Analysis

In this clip above, Turner forces an incompletion and shows a fantastic route squeeze. He opens his hips cleanly and stays in the receiver’s hip pocket as he breaks on his route.

Here, he’s in press-man and prevents a passing TD. He lets the Receiver gain outside leverage and does a good job of staying in front of him. This is a quality mirroring technique. He then does a fine job of playing the receiver in phase.

This Twitter clip exemplifies his superb mirroring technique as well as his solid ball skills.

Grades

Traits/ Skills (see bottom of the page for scale)

Each trait/attribute is graded 1-7.

Player Notes

DJ Turner Bio

• DJ Turner is an undersized but extraordinary athlete who projects in an off-coverage system. Preparing him to start on the perimeter will take some time, but his makeup tools are remarkable. He currently ranks 43rd on the FBI 2023 Big Board.

Pros

• The combination of speed and burst is about as good as it gets.
• Fluid change of direction movements.
• The ability to click and close is something out of this world.
• Speed is so good that he can get beat in press coverage and still catch up to the route.
• Very disciplined in coverage; doesn’t get too grabby.
• Uses an efficient one-handed jab in press coverage.
• Throttles down smoothly and showed an impressive ability to ‘squeeze’ routes.
• Handles double moves rather well.
• Always stays in the proper position to make a play on the ball in zone coverage.
• Is a very willing run defender despite his size.

Cons

• Lack of size shows in 50/50 situations and will get pushed around by bigger Receivers.
• Lacks the length needed to excel on the perimeter – which limits him to an off-coverage scheme.
• Press-heavy teams couldn’t make good use of this guy.
• Run defense ability isn’t quite good enough to be a high-end slot.
• Lack of experience which occasionally would show on tape; also doesn’t have the best reactionary skills.
• Only three career picks.

Final Conclusion

DJ Turner is someone impossible not to be intrigued by. With such fluid hips and his explosive speed, it’ll be disappointing if he doesn’t work out. Teams who run a quarters-heavy defense should have this man on their radar. His skill set is too valuable to pass up on in the second if you’re one of those teams.

Combine

40 yd: 4.26

10 yd: 1.47

Shuttle:

3 cone:

Broad: 131

Vertical: 38.5

Bench:

Arm Length: 30 3/4

Hand Size: 9 5/8

Grading Scale

Pot=Potential: players’ highest upside

Imp=Impact: player’s immediate impact