Scouting Free Safeties - Markelle Martin
This entry is the first in a series that will examine the Free Safety prospects that were outlined on Monday. I will be examining Markelle Martin of Oklahoma State. Supposedly this guy is one of the top FS prospect that has declared intent to go pro. Martin projects to be selected in the second or third rounds, but his stock is on the rise.
#10 Markelle Martin, 6'1"- 198lbs
The video here is certainly a small sample size, but it does show Martin making plays, and making mistakes. In fact, it seems as if his mistakes are more glaring than the positive plays. That said, this is a higlight reel, that is often showing positive plays for the offense, so it can be misleading.
What Martin does show in this video is (1) he has good coverage skills, rarely getting beat for YAC, (2) he makes quite a few TD-saving tackles, (3) the Texas offense generally tries to avoid him, but has a high motor and flies to the ball.
However, Martin shows a few obvious negatives in this video, (1) Sometimes fails to wrap up RBs, relying on impact tackling, (2) occasionally looks indecisive in pursuit angles, and (3) plays upright too often.
All this is simply my scouting report from a small sample size, but now lets look at the popular opinions of Markelle Martin. The first thing that stands out is that most scouts view Martin as a very well-rounded Safety that could play at SS or FS. He displays excellent positional versatility, sometimes playing slot corner as well. This is certainly a big plus in the eyes of a coach like Bill Belichick.
He is an aggressive defender that plays downhill, often delivering punishing hits. However, he does need to wrap up better. His tackling issues often result in big plays, and that is probably his greatest weakness. Nevertheless, on the other side of the coin, Martin does have a knack for making big plays. He often makes QBs pay for late throws with good anticipation. He not a liability in man-to-man, but should not be asked to do it too often.
Best of all, Martin won a team award for academic excellence in 2010, so he is obviously a very bright kid. I think that this may be one of the biggest upsides when projecting him into the Patriots' system. Overall, I think that Belichick would be wise to give this guy a hard look. His positional versatility, intelligence, and prototypical size make him an excellent pick. His fundamental breakdowns are correctable, and he will be shown plenty of tape of himself making tackling mistakes if he comes to New England. I am fully on board to take this guy at #48. I wouldn't take the chance and wait until #63, but maybe Belichick will trade down into the #50-55 range and scoop a 5th rounder for good measure.
#10 Markelle Martin, 6'1"- 198lbs
What Martin does show in this video is (1) he has good coverage skills, rarely getting beat for YAC, (2) he makes quite a few TD-saving tackles, (3) the Texas offense generally tries to avoid him, but has a high motor and flies to the ball.
However, Martin shows a few obvious negatives in this video, (1) Sometimes fails to wrap up RBs, relying on impact tackling, (2) occasionally looks indecisive in pursuit angles, and (3) plays upright too often.
All this is simply my scouting report from a small sample size, but now lets look at the popular opinions of Markelle Martin. The first thing that stands out is that most scouts view Martin as a very well-rounded Safety that could play at SS or FS. He displays excellent positional versatility, sometimes playing slot corner as well. This is certainly a big plus in the eyes of a coach like Bill Belichick.
He is an aggressive defender that plays downhill, often delivering punishing hits. However, he does need to wrap up better. His tackling issues often result in big plays, and that is probably his greatest weakness. Nevertheless, on the other side of the coin, Martin does have a knack for making big plays. He often makes QBs pay for late throws with good anticipation. He not a liability in man-to-man, but should not be asked to do it too often.
Best of all, Martin won a team award for academic excellence in 2010, so he is obviously a very bright kid. I think that this may be one of the biggest upsides when projecting him into the Patriots' system. Overall, I think that Belichick would be wise to give this guy a hard look. His positional versatility, intelligence, and prototypical size make him an excellent pick. His fundamental breakdowns are correctable, and he will be shown plenty of tape of himself making tackling mistakes if he comes to New England. I am fully on board to take this guy at #48. I wouldn't take the chance and wait until #63, but maybe Belichick will trade down into the #50-55 range and scoop a 5th rounder for good measure.
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