The Tennessee Titans inked a grand total of 17 undrafted free agents at the conclusion of the 2022 NFL draft, and Rutgers cornerback Tre Avery was among them.
Avery appeared in 35 games over four years at Rutgers and finished his career with 53 total tackles (five for loss), four interceptions, 11 passes defended, and one sack.
In order to get more information on Avery, who is a long shot to make the 53-man roster out of training camp, we’re taking a look at what experts were saying about the Rutgers product in pre-draft scouting reports.
Positives: Nice-sized defensive back who is best facing the action. Battles opponents throughout the route, displays a burst to the action, and possesses good hands for the interception. Flies around the field to defend throws and works hard to make plays against the run.
Negatives: Does a lot of face guarding and rarely gets his head back around. Slow transitioning to stay with receivers out of breaks. Consistently bites on receiver’s moves and often gets beat.
Analysis: Avery is a hard-working college cornerback whose only opportunity will be in dime packages. He must play well on special teams to have any chance of making it out of camp next summer.
Pros:
Avery has experience playing on the outside and inside of a defense and has had success at both areas of the field. He has adequate speed and can carry receivers downfield. One of his best traits would be his ability to play trail-technique and make a play on the ball when it reaches its catch point. He has tremendous ball skills and times his swat really well and has enough physicality to his game to dislodge the ball from the receiver. He does a great job coming downhill with phenomenal burst and instincts to read the quarterback and understanding of the route combination. He times his break nicely and has good hand-eye coordination to get his hands in between the receiver to make a play on the ball. Avery has a strong half-man technique and his fluid hips help him change direction to stick with his man. His football IQ in zone coverage is tremendous and has an understanding of where his teammates are, when to pass routes off, and when to carry his receiver’s route. He clearly has done his homework on opposing offenses because he has a great understanding of route combinations, knowing what’s in front of him, and executing his plan in coverage.
Cons:
Avery is very inconsistent in coverage. There will be times where he’s stuck to his man and makes a great play on the ball, and then there are others where he’s getting burned by a simple head-fake, leaving his man wide open in the middle of the field. He’s not the most athletic corner as ankle flexion and lower body fluidity aren’t the greatest strengths to his game. He gets overaggressive in man-coverage, attempting to beat his receiver to his spot, but ultimately losing his leverage and allowing space to make an easy thrown and catch. Biting on double moves comes into play when he’s manned up with his receiver. His footwork and technique gets lost in man-coverage as he finds himself with his back turned to the receiver, giving him an easy blindspot to lose Avery throughout the route. He doesn’t have the biggest frame and isn’t the strongest in run defending. He’s very passive and you won’t see him getting in the mix near the line of scrimmage. His tackling technique could use some work if he’s playing in the slot.
Summary:
Avery is a smaller corner that has experience on the outside but will be predicated to the slot in the NFL. He struggles in a big way when he’s in man coverage and teams will have to play him as a zone coverage corner. His best trait is his ball skills and downhill burst, which will be great for him in zone coverage, allowing him to read and react to the play in front of him. He has enough speed that he could contribute on special teams early on in his career and rotate in the slot in dime packages. He’s not going to be a physical player, meaning he’s not going to be the alpha-dog in man coverage and isn’t the strongest run defender.