Beau Brade, S Maryland: 2024 NFL Draft Profile

Brade was a three-star recruit from River Hill High School in Clarksville, Md. in the class of 2020

Maryland safety Beau Brade is excellent at operating close to the line of scrimmage and working downhill. The senior will be one of the Big Ten’s best defensive backs this coming season. His stock is poised to rise in the 2024 NFL Draft.

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Beau Brade, S Maryland: 2024 NFL Draft Profile

Classification: Senior safety from Clarksville, Md.

Background: Brade was a three-star recruit from River Hill High School in Clarksville, Md. in the class of 2020. He was the No. 854 recruit according to 247Sports and No. 914 for On3.com. Brade was an unranked three-star recruit for Rivals and an unranked three-star recruit for ESPN with a 78 grade out of 100. As a high school senior, he was the 2019 Howard County Defensive Player of the Year and earned Second Team All-MET honors. Brade amassed the second-most career tackles in Howard County history (450) and broke River Hill’s record for tackle assists (184). As a high school junior, he totaled 126 tackles, including five for loss, and two interceptions to accompany 500 yards and three touchdowns on offense. Brade finished his high school career as a two-time All-Metro selection and two-time county champion. His father, Ron, played football at Virginia Tech in the 1980s.

Injuries & Off-Field: Missed 2021 Penn State game, suffered an injury in the 2022 Wisconsin game but returned to play

Awards: 2022 Honorable Mention All-Big Ten

Pros: Special teams experience on the kick return, kick coverage, punt return, punt coverage, and field goal block units, appears to have plus arm length, room to add mass in his lower body, dense build with good upper body definition, range to cover to the sideline in two-high looks, rarely threatened over the top when in a high zone, reads the quarterback’s eyes to anticipate the throw, quick to trigger on underneath crossing routes, physical at the catch point, times arrival at the catch point well, re-routes tight ends with physicality, awareness in zone to drop and accept deep crossers entering his space, quick reaction time to attack deflections, nice wrap up tackler in the passing game, punishing hitter when he aims for the chest, willing contributor in run defense, good motor in run defense, fits run well despite taking some steep angles

Cons: Limited experience operating in the slot, enters 2023 with one season of more than 150 defensive snaps, likely not as tall as Maryland claims, lacks the range for single-high duties, lacks the speed to carry all receivers vertically, lacks explosive closing burst, late to recognize tight end seam routes, drawn upfield and out of position by short eye-candy routes, bites heavily on eye manipulation, pulled upfield by play action which opens holes over the top, footwork is hoppy and uneven, some hip stiffness when decelerating and trying to redirect, allows significant separation at the top of the stem, pass catchers separate on crossers, missed tackles are a constant concern, needs to drive through tackles more frequently, must come to balance before attempting to tackle, over-pursues and misses tackles, throws the shoulder but doesn’t wrap up against the run, sometimes ducks head and dives low on tackle tries, lowers head and misses shifty ball carriers

Overview: Brade enters 2023 as a one-year starter on defense with significant special teams experience. He played more than 320 special teams snaps split across the kick return, kick coverage, punt return, punt coverage, and field goal block units during his first three seasons at Maryland. Brade appears to have plus arm length and room to add mass to his lower body. He looks shorter than his unofficial listed height (6'1") but has a dense build with good upper body definition. Brade lacks the range to play single-high safety but is more than fast enough to operate in two-high looks. The former three-star recruit doesn’t allow action over his head in deep zones. He reads the quarterback’s eyes to anticipate the throw and quickly triggers on underneath crossing routes or stick routes. Brade excels at reading the quarterback’s eyes and the receiver’s body language to know when to trigger and where to attack at the catch point. He’s physical at the catch point and knows how to play around the pass catcher without fouling. Brade’s physicality also carries over to his assignments in man coverage. While he lacks the top speed and agility to handle man assignments at a high volume, his strength allows him to clash with and re-route tight ends. Brade is more suited for zone coverages where his awareness and ability to read the play thrive. The Maryland native is an asset against the run. He plays with a high motor and fits the run well despite taking steep angles to the ball. Brade is a punishing hitter when he tackles at the ball carrier’s chest and is a nice wrap up tackler in the passing game. Unfortunately, he doesn’t wrap up against the run. Instead, Brade ducks his head, dives low, and throws his shoulder at running backs instead of driving through the ball carrier. Dropping his head causes him to miss shifty running backs. He also over-pursues and attempts to make tackles at full speed instead of coming to balance, which leads to him missing the attempt and flying all over the place. Brade’s inexperience showed in 2022. He fell for eye manipulation and was pulled upfield by short crossing routes and play action, opening holes over the top. He also failed to recognize tight end seam routes early in the play several times. Brade lacks significant experience operating in the slot and won’t play that role in the NFL. The senior is a solid athlete but lacks the recovery speed to get back into routes after giving a step to the pass catcher. He suffers from some hip stiffness when decelerating and trying to redirect, especially when attempting to stick with receivers at the top of the stem.

Overall, Brade is at his best working downhill against the run or closing on short routes to compete for pass breakups at the catch point. He can hold his own in deep zones as well, but this limits his impact. Brade should not be trusted with many man coverage assignments against tight ends or slot receivers. He’s a high motor player but is still developing his feel for the position.

Role & Scheme Fit: Strong safety in a cover 2 scheme

Round Projection: Late Fourth to Early Fifth

Size: 6'1", 200 lbs. (Unofficial)

Submitted: 06-26-23