In essence, teams must have safeties to enable them to effectively play the two-high zone coverages that were, last season at least, the most widely used solution to the explosive passing games proliferating around the NFL.
They also provide those teams with the personnel to stop the run while operating from those shells.
The 2022 NFL Draft may not have the same star quality as previous rookie classes. However, what it does boast is several of those multi-faceted safety prospects, with the headliner among that group being Notre Dame’s Kyle Hamilton.
Were the league still dominated by single-high safety defenses, Hamilton would not have found himself in the first overall pick discussion.
He doesn’t have the range of a baseball center fielder that is required to be an elite single-high safety, but his combination of versatility and college production had many asking whether he could be the first name off the board in Las Vegas despite playing a position that has typically not seen its importance reflected by high draft selections.
Hamilton has the athleticism and awareness to make game-changing plays when lined up deep in two-high looks, while he also possesses the downhill speed and physicality to be an asset against the run and the coverage ability and build to excel matched up against tight ends and receivers.
As a modern-day NFL safety, Hamilton ticks all the boxes and every team in the NFL could use him. There’s not one defense he would not fit. Still, he is unlikely to go No. 1 to the Jacksonville Jaguars.
But during a time in league history where safeties do not command the exposure they certainly deserve, Hamilton is a candidate to revitalize the fortunes of the two teams from the NFL’s biggest market.
Turnover Machine
Hamilton was deployed all over the field during his time with the Fighting Irish. In 2021, he played 222 snaps as a deep safety, 137 as a slot cornerback and 53 as a box safety.
And, as his numbers illustrate, Hamilton was extremely effective at influencing the game regardless of where he lined up.
Hamilton registered eight interceptions between 2019 and 2021, the fifth most among FBS safeties during that period.
Hamilton, who also added 16 pass breakups, had on-ball production that was a testament to his blend of instincts and athletic ability.
He excels at reading the eyes of the quarterback to drop into throwing lanes and make plays on the ball, with his eye discipline and efficiency in changing direction enabling him to pick up new assignments in coverage on the fly.
Using his 33-inch arms to stay in tight man coverage and disrupt passes at the catch point, Hamilton has additionally demonstrated prowess for recovering separation and jumping the routes of receivers, showcasing another gear to help him get to the ball when he has a chance to take it away.
While the downhill thump he offers and his long speed in pursuit are significant parts of Hamilton’s skill set, it’s the fact his versatility is supplemented by turnover production that makes Hamilton so appealing – particularly to teams like the New York Jets who have takeaways extremely hard to come by.
The Final Piece for Saleh?
The Jets, who own selections four and 10, managed just 14 takeaways last season, putting them 31st in the NFL (the Jaguars were the only team to record fewer with nine).
Pass rush plays a substantial role in a defense’s ability to force turnovers, but the Jets – even with Carl Lawson missing the entire season due to injury – ranked third in pass rush win rate last season, perhaps indicating that their struggles taking the ball away were a result of the performance of the secondary and a lack of luck.
Hamilton has the talent to significantly influence the former and would join a secondary that’s in better shape than it’s perhaps given credit for.
Starting cornerback Bryce Hall had the lowest combined open percentage (14.6) allowed across man and zone coverage of all corners in the NFL with at least 100 coverage matchups in 2021.
The Jets also added strong safety Jordan Whitehead, who during his time with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers showed his prowess for making plays in coverage and down near the line of scrimmage. Whitehead registered eight pass breakups and two interceptions in 2021 while his 14 tackles for loss over the last two seasons is bettered only by Jamal Adams among safeties (15).
Not short of talent up front, infusing Hamilton into the secondary could give Jets coach Robert Saleh the back seven he needs to compete in the AFC East. But their fellow tenants may also have designs on bringing Hamilton on board.
A Giant Strength for Martindale?
There wasn’t much good about the New York Giants in 2021, yet their defense did rank 11th in yards per play allowed (5.31).
There’s no doubt a respected defensive mind of Wink Martindale’s caliber would relish the chance to get to work with a chess piece like Hamilton. The Giants are in a great spot to give him that opportunity, picking fifth and seventh.
At the safety position, the Giants already possess one versatile and seemingly quickly improving player in Xavier McKinney. He spent 838 snaps lined up as a deep safety last season but did play 96 in the slot, with his combined open percentage allowed of 17.1 ranking third among safeties with a minimum of 100 matchups.
The secondary will likely lose a veteran player with cornerback James Bradberry expected to be traded, yet by pairing McKinney with Hamilton, they would immediately boast one of the most multi-faceted defensive backfields in the NFL. It would also give Martindale an opportunity to decrease his dependency on single-high looks after predominantly leaning on Cover 3 shells in his final year as defensive coordinator of the Baltimore Ravens.
As is the case with the Jets, the Giants still have a lot of questions to answer, especially on the offensive side of the ball, where there are doubts over two first-round selections at quarterback at different points of their career and a clear need for a further infusion of talent among both groups of wide receivers.
In an offense-driven league, it’s the answers to those questions that may determine how quickly two teams that have spent far too long in the mire can ascend back to contention.
But neither franchise is in a spot to thumb its nose at a defensive building block who fits exactly where the game is going and has the potential to become an elite player at his position. Safety has historically not been a highly valued position in the draft, but Hamilton’s ceiling is such that he could eventually be regarded as a franchise-changing selection for the team that is willing to put history to one side.
The Jets and Giants have the positional need and the potential opportunity to do just that.
Graphic design by Matt Sisneros.