The Georgia Bulldogs are back-to-back National Champions and can once again thank their elite defense for helping them to this incredible feat. The Bulldogs allowed just seven points to TCU in the National Championship game, as many NFL Draft prospects shined on the defensive side of the ball, in addition to the prolific offense that dazzled on their way to 65 points. One of those prospects is 6’2″ 210 lb. cornerback Kelee Ringo, who is part of a really strong cornerback class in the 2023 NFL Draft. Is Ringo worth the hype? Let’s dive into the tape!
Strengths: Ringo possesses very impressive measurables. He has fantastic size and good length. His athleticism is solid, especially for his frame. Ringo’s fluidity is impressive, as he does not lose ground as he flips his hips in transition. He is a physical cornerback who shows the ability to jam the receiver in press coverage and disrupt his route early. He also excels at using his imposing frame to crowd the receiver to the sideline. Ringo flashes the ability to use his length to break up passes. He defends the run really well, showing good effort and the ability to disengage from blocks. Ringo is dangerous when used as a blitzer because of his burst into the backfield and bend around the edge.
Kelee Ringo with the HUGE INT for the Dawgs 🐶
(@GMC) pic.twitter.com/XNJkZWlARV
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) November 5, 2022
Weaknesses: Simply put, Ringo gets beat far too often for a cornerback possessing his physical traits. He struggles to stop on a dime and receivers consistently win against him on comeback routes. Perhaps because of this, Ringo gives a sizeable cushion to the receiver in off-coverage, which results in him allowing many easy short completions. Ringo is often too passive in coverage, failing to click onto his receiver at the appropriate time. He also lacks route anticipation, often biting mid-route and giving up separation as a result rather than reading a receiver’s misdirections or anticipating his next move. Ringo is an impressive athlete for his size, but because he is one of the biggest cornerbacks out there, he struggles to mirror sudden receivers at times. He suffers from mental mishaps at times. For example, Ringo takes poor paths across the field when having to follow his receiver through traffic. He is also too grabby and draws too many holding penalties.
Bottom Line: I believe that an NFL team will select Ringo with a high pick because of his elite size and impressive athleticism but will be disappointed when he does not become the lockdown cornerback they would expect a player with his traits to become. Ringo gets beat too often in too many ways, largely for being too passive in coverage and struggling to anticipate a receiver’s route. Many issues are correctable, but they are too prevalent to make me confident in projecting him to succeed against the many talented wide receivers in the NFL.
