Chiefs Draft: Late round wonders
By Laddie Morse
CB LeShaun Sims, Southern Utah, 6-0, 201
When a prospect shows up for one of the postseason all-star reality romps like the East-West Shrine game or the Senior Bowl, and then he does the “flash-n-grab” — his skills sparkle and he grabs your attention by the balls he defends — and he does that consistently throughout the week of practice, you can’t help but sit up and go, “Whoa, who is that guy?!”
LeShaun Sims is one of those guys who made himself known during the East-West Shrine week. In a piece by Realsport.com called, “Prospects to Watch at the Shrine Game” they said this about Sims,
"“Our highest rated, and as underrated a player as there is in this draft perhaps, is Sims. 6ft tall, 200 lbs, and has been timed in the 4.3’s in the 40 yard dash. He’s more than just about measurables though, backing that up this year with sensational man coverage ability to stick right in the hip pocket of receivers. His all-round game is completed with his physicality in run.”"
Sometimes a prospect will do well in games and practices and then not shine when under the lights of the combine. In a recap of a turn drill Mike Mayock said of Sims,
"“Southern Utah’s LeShaun Sims screwed up his turn drill twice and was pretty clearly frustrated. The drills help you get an idea of how a player moves but also how they take instruction. And for guys to screw up near the back of the pack in their workouts is not a positive sign.”"
When prospects don’t “test” well it can unceremoniously drop them in the rankings and ultimately on draft day. Some guys just don’t test well. It happens. Hopefully it means he falls into the Chiefs lap, in a mid to later round. From Tony Pauline of DraftInsider.net,
"“…there are several teams here in St Pete [St. Petersburg, Florida: site of the Shrine game] who believe cornerback LeShaun Sims will be a better NFL player than his much more heralded teammate, safety Miles Killebrew. The belief is Sims, who looked terrific at Shrine practice on Monday, is a plug and play cornerback while Killebrew, who’ll be at the Senior Bowl next week, is more a product of size and speed.”"
LeShaun Sims’ teammate SS Miles Killebrew is 6-foot-2, weighs 217 lbs. and is ranked 58th overall by DraftTek.
On March 3rd, Matt Miller, Lead Draft Writer for The Bleacher Report, has LeShaun Sims ranked 218 overall. DraftTek currently has ranked LeShaun Sims ranked as the 26th best corner prospect and 228th overall. However, you should be know that DraftTek also keeps track of a prospects movement up and down the rankings and Sims movement since the last time he was ranked is +128.
Some draft analysts have caught on to Sims talents. RotoWorld’s Josh Norris ranks LeShaun Sims as the #7 corner prospect he scouted, as stated at the East-West Shrine Game. Coming away from that experience Norris said,
“There’s nothing lacking in his game, and there’s no reason he shouldn’t be graded as one of the top CB talents in this class.”
Wow… “There’s nothing lacking in his game.” That’s saying something. Lance Zierlein from NFL.com says of LeShaun Sims,
"“Ascending prospect who caught the attention of NFL scouts at the Shrine Game. Sims has the desired size and speed at cornerback and has adequate footwork to handle himself as a press-man corner despite needing to step up his aggression against the run.”"
My Take on LeShaun Sims
LeShaun Sims is a lot closer to what Lance Zierlein says he is, than the hiccup that Mike Mayock coughed up at the combine. When I’ve watched Sims perform, he can mirror wide receivers with the best of them in this draft. He’ll need to work on his footwork to make sure he doesn’t get turned around by some of the NFL’s best wideouts but he’s ready to step on the NFL stage and perform today. Meaning, he is NFL plug-and-play.
LeShaun Sims not only knows how to play tight man coverage starting at the line of scrimmage but can play off man coverage and knows how to bait the quarterback into throwing his way, in either case he has a high success rate of defending the play. LeShaun Sims has big league speed and he knows how to put that speed into action, especially when he hits. Sims seems to explode into ball carriers and his 6-foot-0, 200 lb. frame looks like he’ll be able to take any punishment he’s dished out at the big league level… and then dish out his own fair share.
LeShaun Sims looks like a very confident player on the field and I suppose some of that comes from playing next to future NFL talents like Safety Miles Killebrew and Defensive End James Cowser.
Here’s an interview with Sim’s, with some of his combine performances intertwined.
To watch some of a 5:44 video featuring LeShaun Sims go here.
Next: How about a tight end?