[Elvis]

It's a relatively shallow pool this year so probably less than usual...

[AltiTude Ram]

[JackPMiller]

[JackPMiller]

Troy Waner S BYU

[Elvis]

20. ALARIC JACKSON | Iowa 6054 | 321 lbs. | rSR. Detroit, Mich. (Renaissance) 7/14/1998 (age 22.79)

BACKGROUND: Alaric (AH-lair-ick) “A.J.” Jackson was born in Windsor, Ontario, and grew up on Detroit’s west side. He played youth football briefly, but basketball was his main focus and first love. Jackson attended Renaissance High School where he was a three-year varsity starter on the basketball team while also playing baseball, soccer and track. He didn’t play football, partly because his mother was “scared” of him getting hurt, but he joined the football team as a junior after a decade away from the sport. Jackson was an immediate starter on both the offensive and defensive lines, seeing time at offensive tackle, guard, defensive tackle and defensive end. As a senior captain, he earned First Team All-State and All-Metro honors with 110 tackles and a school-record 12.0 sacks in 2015. A three-star offensive tackle recruit out of high school, Jackson was the No. 57 ranked tackle in the 2016 class and the No. 16 recruit in Michigan. Since he didn’t start playing football until his junior year, his recruitment happened late but picked up quickly once recruiters saw him on the field. Jackson received almost 20 offers and committed to Iowa over Iowa State, Michigan State and Wisconsin. Michigan got involved close to signing day, but he stayed loyal to the Hawkeyes. He accepted his invitation to the 2021 Senior Bowl.

YEAR (GP/GS) POSITION NOTES
2016: Redshirted
2017: (12/12) LT Freshman All-American; Big Ten All-Freshman; Suspended for the bowl game
2018: (12/12) LT Second Team All-Big Ten; Suspended for the season opener
2019: (10/10) LT Third Team All-Big Ten; Missed three games due to injury
2020: (8/8) LT First Team All-Big Ten
Total: (42/42) LT

HT WT ARM HAND WING 40-YD 20-YD 10-YD VJ BJ SS 3C BP
COMBINE N/A (Combine canceled)
PRO DAY 6054 321 33 7/8 9 1/4 82 3/8 5.37 3.14 1.87 25 8’7” 4.92 7.69 20

STRENGTHS: Good-sized blocker to take up space…physical masher in the run game who will reestablish the line of scrimmage…has the strength in his hands to widen the run lane for his ball carrier…adequate set-up and shuffle quickness…comfortable in the open field and at the second level…improved processing skills to answer multiple pressures…changed his diet (became a vegan) and became more serious about his body composition as a senior…was considered a vocal leader in the Iowa program…four-year starter with 42 starts at left tackle (only prospect in the 2021 draft class with 40-plus college starts at left tackle).

WEAKNESSES: Short-armed lineman with questionable play strength…mistimes his punch and long-armed defenders can shed and get free…gets himself in trouble when he stops his feet…struggles to keep his feet/hips ahead of schedule vs. edge speed…panics and grabs once rushers gain the upper hand, dragging defenders to the ground…needs to establish more power with his inside step to answer stunts and counters…suspended for the bowl game as a freshman (December 2017) and the following season opener (September 2018) for a violation of team rules (two separate infractions)…battled through a right knee sprain and bone bruise as a junior (September 2019), missing three games and parts of others.

SUMMARY: A four-year starter at Iowa, Jackson was a mainstay at left tackle in offensive coordinator Brian Ferentz’s pro-style scheme. After only two years of high school football, he earned the Hawkeyes’ left tackle job as a redshirt freshman and formed one of the better tackle duos in the country along with Tristan Wirfs at right tackle. After a knee injury plagued him as a junior, Jackson played quicker and more efficiently in 2020, latching and driving defenders in the run game. He doesn’t play with the same physicality or balance in pass protection, struggling to reset his feet and answer with his hands. Overall, Jackson still is developing his technique and play/anchor strength, but he can be a solid positional blocker and backup at the NFL level if he makes the necessary improvements in pass
protection.

GRADE: 6th Round

[Elvis]

PARIS FORD | Pittsburgh 6005 | 197 lbs. | rJR. Pittsburgh, Pa. (Steel Valley) 6/6/1998 (age 22.90)

BACKGROUND: Paris Ford was born and raised in Garfield, a neighborhood in East Pittsburgh. He started playing football at the youth level for the Garfield Gators and started his prep career at Pittsburgh Central Catholic High School, playing varsity basketball as a freshman. In search of more playing time on the football field, Ford transferred to Seton LaSalle High School for his sophomore and junior seasons, starting on both sides of the ball. Prior to his senior season, he moved in with his father (Michael Ford) and transferred to Steel Valley High School, helping the program to its first PIAA state title and a perfect 15-0 record, never trailing at any point and beating all 15 opponents by the mercy rule (second half running clock). As a senior, Ford scored 22 touchdowns five different ways (rushing, receiving, punt return, fumble return and interception return) as a wide receiver and defensive back, earning 2A All-State honors. He also played basketball at Steel Valley as a senior. A four-star recruit out of high school, Ford was the No. 5 safety in the class and the No. 3 recruit in the state of Pennsylvania behind RB D’Andre Swift (Georgia) and CB Lamont Wade (Penn State). Ford verballed to Pitt during his junior year and stayed committed to his hometown team even after schools like Alabama, Notre Dame and Ohio State tried to sway him away from Western Pennsylvania. His cousin (Treyvon Hester) was a seventh-round pick (No. 244 overall) in the 2017 NFL Draft and has played for four NFL teams over the last four seasons. Ford elected to opt out of the 2020 season after seven games and enter the 2021 NFL Draft.

YEAR (GP/GS) TKLS TFL SACK FF PD INT NOTES
2017: Redshirted
2018: (9/0) 5 0.0 0.0 0 0 0 Backup cornerback before moving to safety in 2019
2019: (13/11) 97 2.5 0.0 3 14 3 First Team All-ACC; Led team in tackles and interceptions; Two missed starts were due to targeting penalties
2020: (7/7) 45 3.5 0.0 0 6 3 Opted out after seven games
Total: (29/18) 147 6.0 0.0 3 20 6

HT WT ARM HAND WING 40-YD 20-YD 10-YD VJ BJ SS 3C BP
COMBINE N/A (Combine canceled)
PRO DAY 6005 197 32 3/8 9 1/2 76 1/2 4.83 2.81 1.56 28 1/2 9’2” 4.45 7.44 - (no bench press – choice)

STRENGTHS: Loose athlete with the range to mirror line-of-scrimmage action…quick to trigger with controlled burst and doesn’t play at half speed…embraces the violence at the position, creating collisions with downhill force…competes with a physical mentality and is always looking to spike or punch the ball out (three forced fumbles in 2019)…accurate angles as a run defender…his offensive background shines at the catch point with six interceptions the last two seasons…averaged 17.2 yards per interception return with one pick-six (6/103/1)…posted 20 passes defended in 20 starts the last two seasons…experienced at both cornerback and safety.

WEAKNESSES: Flies around as a tackler, but he is consistently undisciplined, going for the knockout blow instead of wrapping…needs to streamline his tackling approach, arriving too high or too low and bouncing off his target (multiple targeting penalties on his resume)…average play strength, allowing ball carriers to run through his grasp…late to feel developing holes at the line of scrimmage, catching him out of position and late to fill…undeveloped route recognition…can get caught flat-footed at the top of routes, allowing receivers or tight ends to separate out of the break…plays fast, but doesn’t have elite recovery speed…sub-200-pound frame and physical style lead to durability questions.

SUMMARY: A two-year starter at Pitt, Ford lined up at strong safety in head coach Pat Narduzzi’s defense, initially playing cornerback before moving to safety the last two seasons. Although consistency was a major issue over his career, production was not a problem as he averaged 7.1 tackles and 1.0 pass defended per game over his sophomore and junior seasons. When he can trigger-and-go with a runway and show his speed downhill, Ford looks like an All-American, but every other play is a roller-coaster experience. Often arriving too hot, he is the type of player who is capable of multiple missed tackles on the same play due to wild tackling style. Overall, Ford is a rangy athlete who patrols the alley with an aggressive appetite (similar in ways to his former Pitt teammate Jordan Whitehead), but he is too much of a freelancer with unreliable awareness and discipline. A mid-to-late rounder based on tape, his testing numbers might drop him out of the draft completely.

GRADE: 7th Round-Priority Free Agent

[Elvis]

[Elvis]

[Elvis]

WR Landen Akers Iowa State
T Alaric Jackson Iowa
S Paris Ford Pittsburgh
S Jovan Grant Merrimack College
WR Jeremiah Haydel Texas State
OL Jordan Meredith Western Kentucky
OLB Max Roberts Boston College
DT George Silvanic Air Force
S Troy Warner BYU

[Elvis]