2023 NFL Draft Scouting Report: Brian Branch, CB/S, University of Alabama

Brian Branch is regarded as a top 20 pick in the 2023 NFL draft. We break down the skillset he brings to the table here.

Branch is one of the safer prospects in this draft class. He is a jack of all trades as he has good coverage skills and is exceptional in run defense with his instincts and tackling. The question is how high is the NFL willing to draft a slot corner?

The scouting report is also available in a video format here. I strongly encourage everyone to watch that video as it allows you to visualize everything I discuss in this scouting report.

Overview

Birthdate: 10/22/2001

Height/Weight: 6-foot-0, 193 pounds

High School: Sandy creek High School (Tyrone, GA)

Recruit (247): 2020 Class No. 61 Natl No. 3 Safety

2022 Stats: 74 tackles 43 stops 2 INT 6 PBU

2022 PFF: 89.5

2021 Stats: 45 tackles 22 stops 4 PBU

2021 PFF: 76.6

Strengths

• Coverage
  • Plays with good leverage and consistently puts himself in good positions in coverage.
  • Has the closing speed to make plays on the ball when necessary.
  • Coverage grade of 86.4 was 16th of 433 qualified safeties in the FBS.
  • Alabama plays a lot of coverages that require him to pass off receivers depending on route combinations – which is something he excelled at.
  • Someone who you can put a lot of trust into to not make mistakes and consistently be where he’s supposed to be in coverage.
• Run Defense
  • Instincts against the run are phenomenal – could play LB if he wanted to.
  • Excels at playing near the LOS because of how many plays he makes in the run game.
  • 90.7 run defense grade in 2022 was second of 433 qualified safeties in the FBS.
  • 88.1 run defense grade in 2021 was ninth out of 515 qualified corners in the FBS.
• Tackling
  • Great technique as a tackler – takes good angles to ball carriers & doesn’t let them out of his grasp.
  • Combination of instincts & closing speed puts him in position to bring down ball carriers often & he almost never misses the tackle.
  • Missed just four tackles in his entire career at Alabama.
  • 2.3 missed tackle % in career – which is outrageous.
  • 90+ tackling grade in all three seasons at Alabama.
• Blitzing
  • Very smart as a blitzer – times his blitzes well & his speed closes the gap between him and the quarterback quickly.
  • 20 pressures and five sacks on 98 pass rushes in his career.
  • Skillset that will be beneficial in the NFL a couple of times a game if utilized correctly.

Weaknesses

• Positional Value/Upside
  • Good athlete, but not the type of freakishly athletic DB that you normally see go in the top 10/15 picks.
  • Played primarily as a slot corner at Alabama (Career snaps: 1,182 slot, 300 box, 101 FS, 59 DL, 40 cnr).
  • In today’s pass heavy NFL slot CBs do have value, but not nearly as much as other positions on defense.
  • Safe projection to be a good player in the NFL, but teams may rather take chances on finding stars at high value positions first (QB, WR, outside CB, EDGE, OT…) in first 10-15 picks

Final Evaluation

Pos Rank: S1

Projection: Top 20 Pick

Branch is one of the best bets in this draft to turn into at least a good player in the NFL.  I would strongly consider taking him in the top ten as he is a jack of all trades and someone any DC would love to have in their defense.