Jermod McCoy isn't your typical fourth-round draft pick. But the Las Vegas Raiders have eased their Day 3 rookie in just the same, in large part due to concerns about his longevity if they rushed him along, but also because he is a first-year player who needs to learn the ropes in the NFL.
And after a rough debut in limited snaps all the way back in Week 2, McCoy has climbed back into the rotation over the last two games and is showing improvement. In fact, he was one of the few bright spots in the Raiders' Week 9 loss to the San Francisco 49ers.
Last week, following his 34 defensive snaps played against the New York Jets, defensive coordinator Rob Leonard gave a candid review of where the first-year cornerback was in his development and how he thought McCoy played.
“Good. Some ups and downs, but he’s learning. He’s very coachable and competitive. I really like where he’s at," Leonard said. "I think you’ve seen traits of that since he got here, and it’s just him feeling through his process, and just watching and observing and seeing where he’s at, but he’s flashed since he’s gotten here, in and out, and you’re looking for consistency.”
Following another 26 snaps against the 49ers, Kubiak was asked on Monday what he had seen from the rookie corner over the last two games.
"A player that's ascending, that is making us play multiple DBs because he's covering at a high level," Kubiak said. "He's improving. Again, there's a guy that we all didn't know if he was going to play football this year. He's not missing practice. He's playing in games. He's staying healthy. He's progressing, getting better with reps."
To fully evaluate McCoy, we watched every snap from both games. Here are the things that McCoy is doing well, in addition to the things that he needs to do better at this juncture.
What Raiders' Jermod McCoy has been doing well
In a simple sense, McCoy can flat-out cover.
Against the Jets, he had several great reps where he perfectly mirrored Garrett Wilson and Adonai Mitchell, and he was sticky on a handful of other plays, too, particularly near the goal line. Although he wasn't always at the line of scrimmage in man coverage, McCoy largely did well pressing receivers.
He mainly played out wide, but McCoy even had a nice rep in the slot against the Jets, and he also had a few where he lined up in the box. The key right now is to learn his assignments and prove that he can do the basic things required, but unlocking some versatility will only raise his ceiling.
What surprised me most was that McCoy's zone instincts were very good, as he keeps his head on a swivel, appears to clearly communicate and pass off, and he locates the QB. He drops when he needs to and triggers when the ball is thrown. While mainly a man guy, McCoy has nice zone ability as well.
After getting beat a handful of times in the Jets game, McCoy learned from his mistake on the next drive. New York ran the same concept at him, and McCoy did not get fooled or have to play from behind again. It is important that young players make these adjustments on the fly.
To finish off the contest against the Jets, he clung to his receiver and forced a Geno Smith overthrow, which landed in the hands of Jeremy Chinn for a game-sealing interception. Against the 49ers, it was a lot of the same, although McCoy was a bit better against the run (more on that in a minute).
McCoy looked very good in both man and zone coverage again versus San Francisco, but he had two of his best plays of the season as well. On one, he displayed incredible closing speed to meet the ball at the catch point and break it up in zone coverage.
On the other, McCoy had a textbook man coverage rep where he mirrored the wide receiver, turned his head and located the ball, and then high-pointed it for another pass breakup. These were on consecutive plays, and they were the final two for him in the contest. A high note to end on.
There is a lot to like about the way that McCoy is playing.
What Las Vegas still needs Jermod McCoy to improve on
While a great player in coverage, McCoy still needs to grow as a run defender. Against the Jets, he was slow to identify run plays, outside of one nice rep in which he triggered downhill and maintained gap integrity. McCoy didn't get burned on this... until he did.
New York ran right at McCoy, and he got sucked inside on what he thought was a route being run by a Jets receiver. He failed to maintain the edge and ran into Chinn as he tried to recover, and Braelon Allen practically walked into the end zone at a pivotal point in the game as the two stumbled.
As we mentioned, his run defense was better against the 49ers. He set the edge well and didn't overcommit to gaps that weren't his, and he got downhill quicker a few times. Twice, McCoy kept his head up and shed a block perfectly to make a big tackle on a ball carrier, which is an improvement.
But I'd still like to see him take better angles and not give up ground in the run game, as he'll often get lost in the fray or get blocked out of the play as a result. Again, it was better against San Francisco, but McCoy is still a work in progress against the run.
McCoy also had one really rough sequence in coverage against New York. He got beat on an out route by AD Mitchell, as McCoy bit on his inside move, and Smith zipped a perfect pass in for a completion near the sideline.
Things snowballed, as they often do for young players, and on the next play, McCoy failed to get his hands on the receiver at the line of scrimmage and lunged out of position. He got run by rather quickly and held the wideout, but still gave up a touchdown in his lowest moment of the afternoon.
He also got lost in the fray when the Jets lined up three wide receivers on one side, as McCoy got behind the play and could have given up a large gain on a slant route, had Smith seen it. Against the 49ers, McCoy also got flagged for an illegal use of hands to the face penalty, another negative.
While McCoy has certainly enjoyed some highs, he is expectedly going through his share of lows, too. But McCoy has displayed more good than bad in his expanded role, and if Kubiak's word is gold, then Raider Nation should expect to see more from him. Let's start finding that high ceiling that he has.
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