After the Minnesota Vikings had no picks on Day 2 of the draft following their seismic Day 1 decisions, they began Day 3 of the NFL draft by addressing one of their biggest needs: cornerback. With the 108th pick, the Purple selected Khyree Jackson, a tall, lanky press corner out of Oregon. Jackson was the No. 1 junior college prospect in 2019 and transferred to Alabama in 2021 before eventually landing with the Ducks in 2023.
Here’s a quick look at some of Jackson’s highlights.
Kevin Seifert of ESPN.com noted:
The Vikings addressed the cornerback position after focusing on their front seven during free agency. Jackson will be 25 when the season begins, but the team loved his height (nearly 6’4”), length (32 3/4” arm length), and instincts. The temptation is to consider him a multi-positional hybrid player at that size, but senior vice president of player personnel Ryan Grigson said, “We think he can be a hell of an outside corner.” Jackson joins veteran Shaquill Griffin as the top-two newcomers at the position.
Here was Jackson’s pre-draft analysis from Steve Muench:
Jackson is a tall press corner with the long arms to get his hands on receivers, break up passes, and sweep the feet out from under ball carriers. He can run with most receivers, closes well breaking on passes, and has burst blitzing off the edge. He’s also an aggressive run-defender who flashes the ability to get off blocks and has good stopping power. And Jackson should make an immediate impact in the NFL covering kicks.
Bleacher Report offered an extensive breakdown of Jackson:
Khyree Jackson was a bit of journeyman throughout his college career. The Maryland native played junior college ball at Fort Scott Community College, then transferred to the University of Alabama for the 2021 and 2022 seasons before transferring to the University of Oregon. He passes the eye test with an excellent 6’3″, 195 lb. frame.
Jackson showed a range of coverages and techniques. Press-man coverage is his forte. He opts to mostly mirror receivers at the line of scrimmage and get hands on them as he rides them downfield.
He can fall behind when facing shiftier athletes, and without true recovery speed, he can panic at times and grab for a jersey to keep within range. When he’s able to get his head around, he does a great job of locating and tracking the ball. One of the keys to Jackson’s success in coverage is how well he’s able to keep his pad level down.
Although Jackson isn’t an enforcer in the run game, he does a good job of playing his position. He identifies the run and quickly comes up to support. A wrap tackler who shoots for the legs, he will throw his body around when it’s advantageous. When taking on blocks, he lacks the strength to truly shock and control, although most times he does a good job of using his length to disengage from blocks.
Jackson is an interesting prospect with a high ceiling. He still needs to shore up some essential elements of the pro game, but he has the length and skillset that teams crave. Jackson has the potential to be an impact player in the NFL.
GRADE: 7.5 (Potential Impact Player — second round)
OVERALL RANK: 41
POSITION RANK: CB6
It’s a major position with need and hopefully Jackson will fair better than recent Vikings’ CB newcomers.
