DRAFT PROFILE: Paris Ford, S, Pittsbugh
29 January 2021 DRAFT SAFETIES
Measurables: 6’0” 190 LBs
Paris Ford is a 22 year old safety for the Pittsburgh Panthers. Hailing from the great state of Pennsylvania, Paris was a hometown kid from Pittsburgh, where he attended Seton-La Salle Catholic High School where he played both defensive back and wide receiver. Paris ultimately transferred to Steel Valley High School midway through his junior year. Ford committed to Pittsburgh where he redshirted his true freshman season. It wasn’t until his redshirt sophomore season where Ford was the named the starting safety for the Panthers. The return on him starting was 97 tackles, 2.5 for loss, three forced fumbles, 14 passes defensed and three interceptions in route to a First Team All-ACC selection. Ford is an athletic monster, whose aggression and physicality project well to the NFL. Good range and fluidity, along with his ball skills, make him an asset in coverage as well. Ford shows + at all the boxes as a safety, but with his positives come some negatives as well. Ford shows late in some plays due to his inconsistent angles and is sometimes out of control by the time he does arrive, resulting in missed tackles. Ford would be best suited for a two deep, split safety secondary where he can develop his + ball skills and instincts, while learning to use his control with his aggression.
Strengths
- Size
- Speed
- Physicality
- Aggression
- Ball Skills
- Instincts
Weaknesses
- Missed Tackles
- Bad pursuit angles
- Route anticipation
- Deep zone inconsistencies
NFL Comparisons
Rodney McLeod. A slightly undersized safety that uses his body as if he’s 30 pounds heavier than he is. Ford plays hard from the first whistle to the last and does it at 100%. McLeod suffered from tackling inconsistencies and pass coverage hickups early in his career but worked diligently with TJ McDonald to fix those issues. Ford has the better intangibles to his game than McLeod but this is a floor expectation for what Ford can develop into.
Projection
Round 2-3. It’s going to be a matter of who likes Ford and is willing to look past his flaws. Interviews will be imperative for Ford to be able to discuss his mindset on certain plays where he takes a bad angle or uses a shoulder check over a wrap tackle. Ford is someone I could see being a late riser due to his flashy game and aggressive nature so an early-mid round 2 selection wouldn’t surprise me.
For more draft content by some of the best and brightest analysts in the game, check out the 4th and Jawn social media pages on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube and check out my content on Twitter at @SokoFFB.