Buffalo Bills CB Draft Prospects: Quinten Rollins & Charles Gaines
By Dennis Amo
Feb 21, 2015; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Louisville defensive back Charles Gaines speaks to the media at the 2015 NFL Combine at Lucas Oil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports
The next cornerback that we will look at is that of Charles Gaines out of Louisville.
Gaines was a top performer in the 40 yard dash putting up a 4.44. He defended 12 passes and only had a 46% completion rate with balls thrown in his direction. He has the speed to recover if he is beaten. He looks to be a prototypical man to man cover corner that Rex Ryan absolutely gears his corners and defense around.
"Came to Louisville as wide receiver and has unique feel for what’s coming from routes. Outstanding mirror/match work in man coverage. Extremely patient and confident in coverage. Maintains balance and body control in routes. Refuses to overreact or be tilted by head fakes and jab steps within the route. Allows receiver to declare his release before opening from press. Plays on bouncy feet with above-average twitch. Can break off backpedal suddenly and accelerate forward to challenge a throw. Not overly grabby downfield. Reads quarterback, looking for clues to jump throws. Frame could use more size to match up with NFL receivers. Wasn’t challenged often in 2014, with just 56 targets against. Too ready to run routes for receivers, opening himself to double moves. Play speed slows when turning head to look for ball against go routes. Ball tracking and body adjustments to deep ball need improvement. In deep zone, allows too much space to wide receivers running deep crosses and posts. Run support? No thanks. – NFL.com"
Charles Gaines is being projected to be taken in the 3rd and 4th rounds. He is being compared to Patrick Robinson. At the 3rd round, if Buffalo has not taken a cornerback in the 2nd, this guy might be an option for Rex Ryan and his man to man cover corners.
The bottom line on Charles Gaines is…
"Field corner in college who plays with a great deal of confidence and alertness, processing with above-average instincts. Looks for chances to jump telegraphed throws. Gaines has a thinner frame than desired and will have teams running at him to see if he’ll come up and tackle. His cover skills underneath are near the top of this draft class, but he gave up a few open looks on deep balls and that could cause concern for NFL teams. – NFL.com"