Ja'Quan Sheppard, CB Maryland: 2024 NFL Draft Profile

Sheppard was a three-star recruit from Zephyrhills High School in Zephyrhills, Fla. in the class of 2019

Ja'Quan Sheppard transferred from Cincinnati to Maryland to finish his college football career. The standout cornerback projects as a mid-day three pick in the 2024 NFL Draft.

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Ja'Quan Sheppard, CB Maryland: 2024 NFL Draft Profile

Classification: Fifth-year senior outside cornerback from Zephyrhills, Fla.

Background: Sheppard was a three-star recruit from Zephyrhills High School in Zephyrhills, Fla. in the class of 2019. He was the No. 1,581 recruit according to 247Sports and No. 1,555 for On3.com. Sheppard was an unranked three-star recruit for Rivals and an unranked three-star recruit for ESPN with a 73 grade out of 100. He originally committed to Temple before flipping to Cincinnati. Sheppard transferred from Cincinnati to Maryland for the 2023 season. He played wide receiver and defensive back for Zephyrhills. As a high school senior, Sheppard caught 30 passes for 404 yards and six touchdowns, and he carried the ball 11 times for 102 yards and two scores. Sheppard added 39 tackles, four interceptions, and nine passes defensed on the other side of the ball. He was invited to and played in the Pasco County Football All-Star Game in December 2018. As a junior, Sheppard produced 35 receptions for 797 yards and 13 touchdowns and 12 carries for 181 yards and three touchdowns. He also totaled two interceptions and 12 passes defensed. Sheppard made 25 receptions for 443 yards and six touchdowns as a sophomore and carried the ball 30 times for 315 yards and five scores.

Injuries & Off-Field: Injured during 2023 spring practice

Awards: 2022 First Team All-AAC

Pros: Special teams experience on the kick coverage, punt return, and field goal block units, former special teams star at Cincinnati, significant experience in man and zone concepts, rarely penalized, tall frame with a lean build, arm length will surpass NFL thresholds, punches in press are timed and placed well, comfortable working in press-man, heavy hitter at times in press, jams and stunts routes at the LOS, gives nothing on outside releases, compresses outside releases along the sideline, comfortable playing with his back to the football, length shows up at the catch point, plays the receiver’s hands at the catch point, knocks receivers out of bounds when they go airborne for catches near the sideline, fights to get off blocks, willing to come downhill against a larger player and make a TFL, knows when to be physical as a tackler, long arms to wrap up ball carriers

Cons: Limited experience in the slot, high-hipped, very lean, two-handed punch occasionally slips off targets, sometimes opens hips too early from press, footwork needs polish to help his transitions out of press, too many instances of being stacked from press, lacks recovery speed to get back in play after biting on double-move, hip transitions are high and segmented, lacks the twitch and suddenness to mirror at the top of the stem consistently, not a naturally sticky corner, no interceptions, missed out on bringing down potential interceptions, struggles to stack and shed stalk blocks, taken for a ride and pancaked on a Rashee Rice stalk block (2022), sideswipes more than he drives through tackles, overruns some tackles

Overview: Sheppard has special teams experience on the kick coverage, punt return, and field goal block units and is a former special teams star at Cincinnati. While with the Bearcats in 2022, he spent a lot of time operating as a boundary corner in press-man. He plays a mix of boundary and field corner for Maryland and operates in a larger variety of coverage roles. Sheppard has a tall frame with high hips and a lean build. His arm length will surpass NFL thresholds. His punches in press are timed and placed well, and he’s very comfortable operating in press-man. Sheppard is a physical cornerback near the line who enjoys jamming receivers before they get into their routes. His two-handed punch is powerful but occasionally slips off his intended target. The fifth-year senior occasionally opens his hips too early while operating in press. Polishing his footwork near the line of scrimmage will help with his early transitions, which can be high and segmented. There are too many instances of him being stacked from press because of his lack of recovery speed and limited top speed. Sheppard lacks the twitch and suddenness to mirror receivers at the top of the stem consistently and isn’t a naturally sticky corner. These flaws make him a better long-term projection for a zone scheme in the NFL. Sheppard posts dominant reps on outside releases where he drives receivers into the sideline and completely closes the throwing window. He is comfortable playing with his back to the football because of how well he plays the receiver’s hands at the catch point. The Florida native smartly knocks receivers out of bounds when they go airborne for catches near the sideline. His length shows up at the catch point, but he has missed out on opportunities to finish plays with interceptions. Sheppard fights to get off blocks but struggles to stack and shed. Rashee Rice (2022) really took him for a ride on a stalk block. Sheppard is willing to come downhill and make difficult tackles in space against larger players. He knows when to be physical as a tackler and use his long arms to wrap up the ball carrier, but there are times when he sideswipes the ball carrier instead of driving through the tackle attempt.

Overall, Sheppard is a veteran cover corner with excellent size who loves to crowd receivers throughout the route, but his top speed and twitch limit his coverage projection to the NFL. It could be difficult for him to continue playing press-man at a high level, especially against speedy receivers. Sheppard should contribute early in his career on special teams.

Role & Scheme Fit: Outside corner in a zone-heavy scheme with some press-man

Round Projection: Late Fourth to Early Fifth

Size: 6'2", 202 lbs. (Unofficial)

Submitted: 12-02-23