Andrew Booth Jr - CB - Clemson
Welcome to the rookie profile for Andrew Booth Jr. Booth Jr. is blessed with the best feet in this year’s cornerback class and is known for his highlight reel plays. Booth Jr’s athleticism and instincts combined with his size makes him a talent that NFL coaches will be very excited about.
Measurables
Height: 6′ 0″
Weight: 195 lbs
40-yard dash: 4.38s
3-cone drill: DNP
20-yard shuttle: DNP
Vertical Jump: DNP
Broad Jump: DNP
Bench Press: DNP
College Stats
Notable Headlines
Booth Jr. left high school as the second ranked cornerback in the country and was a five-star recruit heading into the collegiate program. As you’d expect he attracted a lot of interest from colleges including the ‘Power Five’ with Booth Jr. committing to Clemson before the start of his senior high school year.
In Booth Jr’s freshman year he struggled to get on the field as he was battling for snaps against future 1st round selection, A.J. Terrell for playing time. Featuring on just 65 snaps, he put together an underwhelming 4 tackles. His sophomore season was a different story as he played 335 snaps across 10 games and put together much more impressive numbers as he chalked up 27 tackles, 3 tackles for a loss, 2 interceptions, a sack and a fumble recovery for a touchdown. At the end of his sophomore season Booth Jr. received second-team All-ACC honors.
Booth Jr. in this past season has made a real case for himself to be a 1st round selection in this year’s draft and one of the best corner prospects in the class. Whilst his sophomore season was impressive, we saw Booth Jr. move his game up another level in his junior year as he featured 11 times, racking up 37 tackles, 3 tackles for a loss and an interception leading him to first-team All-ACC honors.
Scouting Report
Positives
Booth Jr. standing at 6’0 isn’t the biggest corner we’ll ever see however his long 32-inch arms allow him to play much bigger than his size, this helps him with pass break ups and interceptions – often seen in his highlight reel plays.
His excellent ball skills and tracking with strong hands help give him the edge in contested catches. Booth Jr. is another cornerback who has had experience as a receiver in his high school playing days. As we all know, having good hands at the cornerback is crucial and is often the difference between making a good play or a big money play. Booth Jr’s catching ability often makes a Quarterback look in the other direction to avoid turnovers, this will be invaluable as he makes the next step in his football career.
Booth Jr. has elite awareness and an impressive ability to read the Quarterback’s eyes. His awareness is one of the main reasons as to why he is perceived as one of the top corners in this year’s class. He shows great awareness in zone coverage but also has a great ability to keep his eyes on the quarterback. I don’t think anybody can read the QB eyes as well as Booth Jr. in the class and he is excellent at anticipating when the ball will be thrown into his areas.
Athleticism is by far the most impressive part of his game. He is extremely fast, fluid and possesses a lot of energy which allows him to stay on the field as much as possible. Booth Jr’s long speed is very impressive and will allow him to stay with his man downfield and his short speed is exceptional. A loose hipped, quick footed cornerback that allows him an immense change of direction.
Negatives
At times Booth Jr. can tend to rely on his athleticism rather than his footballing IQ, something that needs improvement. Whilst this has improved year on year throughout his college career this will need to develop much quicker, especially in the NFL as he’ll get found out by the best in the business.
Booth Jr’s aggressive, physical and eager edge to his game can often get the better of him. At times he can mistime tackles and give up plays as seen in his first year as a starter; Booth Jr. was targeted 46 times and gave up 29 catches for 312 yards. This will need to be tidied up for him to make the impact he is capable of.
Pre Draft Analysis
Expected Draft Capital- Round 1
Landing Spots
One team with a big need at the cornerback position is the Arizona Cardinals. Marco Wilson has struggled for the Cards and Booth Jr. would be an automatic plug and play, instant upgrade for them in a position that needs attention. Defensive coordinator Vance Joseph likes his defenses to play man coverage, which would allow Booth Jr. to make an instant impact.
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Image Credit: Ken Ruinard – USA TODAY Sports
