Kirk Herbstreit calls Jahdae Barron his guy in 2025 NFL Draft, expects instant production as rookie

The NFL Draft is a little over a month away and with that, the intense scrutiny on the prospects is increasing. Amid that criticism, Texas Longhorns defensive back Jahdae Barron has stood out to ESPN analyst Kirk Herbstreit.

Following the NFL Combine, Herbstreit made an appearance on The Pat McAfee Show. There, he shared that Barron is his guy and someone who he thinks is going to be able to excel as an NFL rookie in 2025, providing instant production for whoever picks him.

“I think Jahdae Barron,” Kirk Herbstreit said. “That’d be my guy. Yeah, I saw he ran well. He worked out, which is fun to see — some of these guys opt-out for obvious reasons. This guy decided to go out and compete. I covered this guy a lot, probably called over 11 or 12 of his games and I love to see a guy.”

At the NFL Combine, Barron ran a 4.39 40-yard dash. He also had a 1.5 10-yard split, a 35″ vertical jump, and a 10′ 3″ broad jump, flashing his athleticism.

Beyond that, Herbstreit is impressed with the versatility that Barron is going to offer his NFL team. While at Texas, Barron played both slot corner and on the outside. That makes him even more valuable at the next level.

“And you understand this better than anybody, one year where he’s out there playing that slot,” Herbstreit said. “And playing it as well as anybody. When you say that to people who are fans, when you play the slot, it’s not just, okay he’s on the inside. He’s in run support, he’s blitzing, he’s playing space, he’s playing man. The versatility is off the charts with him. Then, the next year he comes back and he’s on the outside. You can explain in layman’s terms how hard that is at the elite college football and NFL level to have the skillset to play both in and out, but he did flawlessly.”

In five seasons with Texas, Barron played in 57 total games. During that time, he made 226 total tackles, 21 tackles for a loss, 2.0 sacks, eight interceptions, and 24 passes defended. The vast majority of that production came between 2022 and 2024.

“He’s got some great intangibles, great leader, captain. So, not only the numbers are gonna jump out,” Herbstreit said. “But he’s played in a lot of big games at the highest level and, like I said the versatility is what makes me think he’s really got a shot to step in year one in the NFL and be turnkey.”

In the latest mock draft from The Athletic, Jahdae Barron was mocked as being a first-round pick going 27th overall to the Baltimore Ravens.