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Jordan Lucas is off the board, as the Miami Dolphins officially picked the versatile defensive back in the sixth round of the 2016 NFL Draft.
Lucas first made a name for himself at Penn State as a shutdown cornerback, proving a lot of people wrong about his skills on the outside. His ability to step up and be a big-time player on the boundaries allowed the Nittany Lions to push Adrian Amos to safety, forming a very dangerous secondary.
After Amos moved on to the NFL, Lucas simply followed in his footsteps. Thanks to his speed, athleticism and hard-hitting ability, Lucas was a natural fit at the safety spot for Penn State. His leadership and playing ability was a big reason that the defense hardly skipped a beat moving on from the extremely talented Amos.
His ball-hawking skills, run support abilities, speed and flexibility all point to a successful NFL player. He will likely start off his career as a special teamer, something he should excel in, but his ability to alternate between safety and corner without any drop off or adjustments needed should help him find his way onto a depth chart sooner rather than later.
From our draft preview of Lucas-
Jordan Lucas is not currently a finished product and has played multiple positions, and is a sort of tweener defensive back. As such, he'll get labeled as a day three project player. There is nothing wrong with that, but it's also not entirely fair to him. He's shown to be adept at both spots, and has the work ethic and football IQ to continue to improve as a player. He's the type of guy who can spend a very long time in the league thanks to his versatility, even if it's as a depth player rather than a starter. Whoever drafts him is going to get a player that can provide value at multiple positions and in multiple sets, be it run support or coverage outside or in the in slot. They'll also be getting someone who multiple head coaches and defensive coordinators have trusted to be leaders on their defense.
Congratulations, Jordan!