ESPN shares best fit, player comparison for Kelee Ringo
Kelee Ringo has been on the radar of NFL Draft experts for quite some time. The No. 1 cornerback coming out of high school, Ringo was three-and-out at Georgia and left a legacy – most notably because of his pick six that sealed the deal on the Bulldogs’ 2021 National Championship over Alabama.
After the interception, Ringo seemed at or near the top of just about everybody’s draft boards. His size and speed made him somewhat of a can’t miss prospect. However, he had some ups and downs during the 2022 season. He’s still one of the best in a very talented cornerback class but maybe not quite as high as he once was. ESPN’s Matt Miller lists Ringo at No. 6 as he shakes everything out at that position.
“If we had done this exercise last summer, Ringo would have been higher. He was one of the top prospects in the entire class before the 2022 season began, but Ringo struggled last year as teams picked on him with breaking routes that challenged his change-of-direction skills,” Miller wrote. “At 6-2 and 207 pounds, he has fantastic size and legitimate 4.3 speed (4.36 at the combine), but final appearances against LSU (six catches allowed for 104 yards) and then Ohio State in the College Football Playoff (five catches allowed for 75 yards) have stuck in evaluators’ minds. And against the Buckeyes, it wasn’t all just Marvin Harrison Jr.”
“One defensive backs coach thinks a position change might help, though: ‘I almost think you move him to free safety if you run a man defense. It’s that bad,'” Miller continued. “Ringo has impressive metrics and did record four career interceptions. He also broke up 10 passes last season and had 42 tackles. There’s no doubting the elite size, tackling ability and recovery speed, but the man coverage traits need developing if he stays at cornerback. ‘He’s probably safely a Round 2 guy, but I think he has to play in Cover 3 or make a position change,’ said an AFC area scout.”
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Miller has the Seattle Seahawks, San Francisco 49ers and New York Jets as the best fits while comparing him to Trevon Diggs of the Dallas Cowboys. Devon Witherspoon, Christian Gonzalez, Joey Porter Jr., Deonte Banks and Emmanuel Forbes are the five corners ahead of him.
Ringo recorded 42 tackles including two for loss in 2022, starting all 15 games for Georgia, earning All-SEC honors from both the Associated Press and SEC coaches. He played in all 15 and started the final 12 the year before. Ringo’s best game of the season came on the biggest stage as Georgia took on then-No. 1 Tennessee and the nation’s top passing attack. Not only did Ringo manage to intercept Hendon Hooker to prevent a touchdown, but he also had a career-high seven stops in the 27-13 win over the Volunteers. Ringo’s other interception in 2022 came off of a another NFL prospect – Kentucky’s Will Levis – just a year after he had a career-high total of tackles in a win over the Wildcats.
The 2023 NFL Draft starts a month from today in Kansas City with the first round set for Thursday, April 27th at 8:00 p.m. ET. The second and third rounds take place on Friday night before things wrap up on Saturday with the fourth, fifth, sixth and seventh rounds. ABC, ESPN and the NFL Network will have full coverage of the draft with 13 former Georgia players available: quarterback Stetson Bennett, running back Kenny McIntosh, wide receiver Kearis Jackson, tight end Darnell Washington, offensive linemen Warren Ericson, Broderick Jones and Warren McClendon, defensive lineman Jalen Carter, outside linebackers Robert Beal and Nolan Smith, cornerback Kelee Ringo, safety Christopher Smith and kicker Jack Podlesny. Georgia had a record 15 players picked in 2022 including five in the first round.
