Wisconsin Football: Darius Hillary’s NFL Draft Profile
By Jim Oxley
NFL Draft Profile: How former Wisconsin football cornerback Darius Hillary looks heading into the draft
The NFL Draft is fast approaching at the end of April, and former Wisconsin football players are hard at work trying to earn a spot on an NFL team. Among them is cornerback Darius Hillary, who hopes to continue his career at the next level.
Hillary took a redshirt season in 2011 and appeared in 54 career games for the Badgers, starting for the past three seasons.
He’s totaled 138 tackles (86 solo) in his career. He has 19 career passes defended, an interception, a forced fumble and three fumble recoveries.
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He also has 14 career tackles for loss, including 11 during his junior season in 2014.
As a junior in 2014, Hillary earned Second-Team All-Big Ten honors from the coaches and honorable mention status from the media. As a senior in 2015 he was an honorable mention All-Big Ten pick by the coaches.
Hillary is now looking to extend his career at the professional level.
Here’s how scouts see the former Badgers defensive back:
Wisconsin Badgers
Measurables:
- Height: 5-feet, 10 ½-inches
- Weight: 183 pounds
- 40-yard dash: 4.46 seconds
- Vertical jump: 35 inches
- Broad jump: 10-feet, .5-inches
- Bench press: 8 reps (225 pounds)
- 20-yard shuttle: 4.27 seconds
- Three-cone drill: 6.83 seconds
- 60-yard shuttle: 11.71 seconds
(drills run at UW’s Pro Day)
Strengths: Zone coverage, speed
Hillary answered some questions about his athleticism at Wisconsin’s pro day. He tested better than many expected, putting up a big number in both the vertical jump and broad jump.
His 4.46 40-yard dash at Wisconsin’s pro day puts him right around the top 10 of the participants at the NFL combine.
His speed is what makes him excel in zone coverage, as he can break on the ball and get to the receiver. It also helped him make a bunch of tackles at Wisconsin.
Weaknesses: Production, strength
In today’s NFL – a pass-happy league – teams want cornerbacks who can not only cover big wide receivers, but go up and make plays on the ball for interceptions.
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Hillary’s lone career interception doesn’t look great for NFL teams, and he’s never had more than six pass breakups in a season.
Some of that can be attributed to a run-first Big Ten for the most part, but Hillary hasn’t done anything spectacular to stand out from the other late-round or potential free agent cornerback prospects.
Hillary also won’t be looked at as a strong cornerback at the line of scrimmage. He managed just eight reps on the bench press at Wisconsin’s pro day.
He’ll thrive better in space than in bump-and-run situations.
Last impression:
Hillary finished his Wisconsin career with four tackles – three solo – as the Badgers took down USC 23-21.
The corner was a part of a Wisconsin defense that held USC quarterback Cody Kessler to just 221 passing yards on 18-of-32 attempts, and held top wideout JuJu Smith-Schuster to just four catches for 65 yards.
Final Thought:
Hillary has a good chance to make it to an NFL roster in free agency. He’s got experience and while he isn’t the physical freak of many of the top cornerbacks in the draft, he’s no slouch when it comes to athleticism.
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The former Badgers cornerback should get the chance to compete for a spot on a roster in an NFL training camp this summer.
His Pro Day performance may even earn him a spot as a late round draft pick, but it seems more likely he’ll be an undrafted free agent.