Cincinnati Bengals leadership explains DJ Turner pick: 'We feel we're getting a complete player'
Michigan cornerback DJ Turner became the third Wolverine selected in the 2023 NFL Draft when the Cincinnati Bengals selected him with the No. 60 overall pick in the second round.
Turner, who ran the fourth-fastest 40-yard dash in NFL Combine history (4.26 seconds), was a two-time All-Big Ten selection (second team coaches, third team media in 2022; honorable mention 2021) and appeared in 36 games with 22 starts at cornerback. He was one of the team’s Most Improved Player picks in 2021, in addition to grabbing Defensive Skill Player of the Year from Michigan. Turner had three career interceptions in Ann Arbor and had 20 passes defended over the last two seasons.
Cincinnati is over the moon about landing Turner, who some draft pundits had as a fringe first-round prospect. Now, he gets to join an AFC Championship contender and former Michigan defensive back teammate Daxton Hill, who was selected by the Bengals in the first round last year.
“We felt like we needed to add depth there in the secondary and he’s a guy that can come in and compete in multiple roles for us and provide depth outside and inside,” Bengals head coach Zac Taylor said in a press conference on Thursday night. “So excited to welcome him to the mix.”
Turner, who stands at 5-11, 178 pounds, may not physically look the part of an elite outside corner, but the Bengals fell in love with his speed and explosiveness.
“He’s got a little bit of a ways to go from a weight standpoint,” defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo said. “You can put some weight on him. You can’t make them 4.2. The explosiveness that he has in his body, he’s a tough guy. He’ll throw his body around, so it’s not, it’s not that he won’t try to tackle or anything like that. We feel like we’re getting a complete player.
Michigan’s defense prepared Turner for the NFL and the way they mix coverages showed up on the film when the Bengals were evaluating him. Anarumo says it was a piece of the puzzle.
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“Just doing very different coverages and things like that,” he said. “There’s a lot of teams that do it, but they do some things that translate into our league. It plays a small role in in the evaluation process. It’s not the only piece but it certainly helps when you can see him do multiple things.”
Turner and Hill were Michigan teammates from 2019-21 and now have the potential to form one of the better, more athletic secondaries in the NFL. It also helps that they are big-time players with big-time experience, having won Big Ten titles at Michigan.
“They’ll know each other and, and Dax can kind of give him the lay of the land a little bit,” Anarumo said. “But if they’re out there at the same time, they’ve played together before. I certainly helps, but it’s just a piece to the puzzle. The familiarity that they both have with each other can only help.
“When they come from big programs like this, they’re gonna walk into the stadium and you know, they’re gonna, they’re gonna be used to the place being full. They’re not gonna flinch when it comes to that part of it.”
