ESPN's Mel Kiper Jr. on former ISU CB T.J. Tampa: "(He's) worthy of being a first-round pick"

[The Rob Gray]

ESPN's Mel Kiper Jr. on former ISU CB T.J. Tampa: "(He's) worthy of being a first-round pick."

Nov 18, 2023; Ames, Iowa, USA; Texas Longhorns wide receiver Adonai Mitchell (5) misses a catch in the end zone as Iowa State Cyclones defensive back T.J. Tampa (2) defends in the first half at Jack Trice Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Sara Diggins-USA TODAY Sports ESPN NFL Draft expert Mel Kiper J

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[Cycsk]

Hard to imagine that Tampa is "underrated" because he has been so impressive to us, but I suppose he could be now that he is in head-to-head competition with the rest of the country.

 

[Jer]

What hurts him is that there are so many 1st round QBs and OL projected this year. Cooper DeJean is projected ahead of him so he being pushed down to early 2nd round on most projections.

 

[Aclone]

What hurts him is that there are so many 1st round QBs and OL projected this year. Cooper DeJean is projected ahead of him so he being pushed down to early 2nd round on most projections.

There also happen to be a horde of corners who ran very good forty times at the combine. Who didn’t necessarily play all that well in college.

The question becomes how many teams grab those players for their forty times, assuming that their coaches can coach a kid up to be a pro bowler.

The answer is that most teams are that arro—er, confident in their coaches. However, I’m not sure that empirical evidence backs that up.