STRONG POINTS

Hill is a very good athlete with the very quick feet, acceleration and playing speed to stay with receivers all over the field. He has a real feel for the ball when his back is to the quarterback which allows him to turn his head back at the right moment and he can make a play on the ball to break up the pass. He is a tough player who consistently has shown a willingness to tackle in run support. He has good hands to make the tough interception.

WEAKNESSES

Hill is a short cornerback at barely over 5-9, and will have trouble handling big NFL receivers. He does not straight backpedal, but rather side-pedals and it leads to him getting turned around too often. Additionally, in off coverage he allows the receiver to close the cushion too quickly before he flips his hips and ends up losing a step because of it. He does not bend his knees and breakdown and tackle well consistently.

POSITIONAL FACTORS

Grade Category Comments/Description 5.5 Read & React He consistently reads the play fast, but he doesn't consistently react fast. 5.5 M/M Off He allows receivers to close the cushion and gets turned around too often. 6.5 M/M Tight He stays right on the receiver's hip and breaks up passes consistently well. 6.0 Zone Coverage He reads quarterbacks quickly and breaks and closes on passes well. 5.5 Break & Close His break and close is very good in tight man-to-man, but bad in off coverage. 6.0 Hips/Turn Ability He has the hips to turn and run very well, but needs to improve his backpedal technique to do so consistently. 5.5 Tackling He tends to stay upright and reach tackle more than he should. 6.0 Hands - Interception He has good hands to make the interception. 6.0 Hands - Fight Blocker He will fight through blocks to get free and make tackles. 6.5 Deep Speed He has very good playing speed, but needs to improve his backpedal in order to stay with the receiver out of the turn. 6.0 Return Ability His hands, quick feet, acceleration and play speed make him good. 5.5 Errors His bad backpedal technique causes him to get out of position too often.

ATHLETIC ABILITY	Section Grade: 6.5
Hill is a very good athlete which is what has enabled him to be such a productive cornerback at Clemson despite starting his career as a running back and switching to corner as a sophomore. His very quick feet enable him to accelerate to full speed fast and combine with his flexibility and agility to let him flip his hips and run with receivers without losing a step in press coverage. He accelerates to full speed fast, can run with receivers on deep routes and has a very good closing burst to the receiver to make plays on the ball. Despite having very good natural athleticism, he tends to stay up high in his backpedal which hinders his ability to consistently transition/change directions. He has tremendous timed speed as the ACC 100-Meter and 60-Meter champion, but he needs to learn to play up to this timed speed consistently.
Q.A.B. Quick Feet C.O.D. Flexibility Coordination 6.5 6.5 6.0 6.0 6.5

COMPETITIVENESS	Section Grade: 6.5
Hill is a tough cornerback who consistently has shown a willingness to come up in run support and will tackle -- he is not a trained killer, but for a cornerback he is more than good enough. He has definitely shown the ability to step up and make the clutch play in tight man-to-man and zone coverage, but has struggled to do so in off coverage. His overall production has been very good in tight man-to-man, good in zone coverage and run support and barely adequate in off coverage. The thing that limits his overall production is his consistency -- he does not straight backpedal and tends to do a side-pedal which causes him to get turned around too often and he allows receivers with less athleticism than him to get separation in routes. He needs to greatly improve his footwork/backpedal and technique in order to greatly improve his consistency on the field. He has displayed very good pride and team commitment with his consistent effort in run support and play on special teams.
Toughness Clutch Play Production Consistency Team Player Pride/Quit 6.5 6.0 6.0 6.0 6.5 6.5

MENTAL ALERTNESS	Section Grade: 5.5
Hill displays good smarts at times, but it's a concern that his backpedal is raw and that he uses bad tackling technique too often. He has good instincts reading the pass, but his backpedal hinders his ability to transition and react quickly on a consistent basis. However, when he has his back to the quarterback downfield in tight man-to-man coverage, he shows excellent instincts and reacts to the ball very well to break up passes consistently. His concentration tends to waver when he plays off the ball in man-to-man coverage, and he struggles to consistently close on the ball and allows lesser athletes to catch passes against him.
Learn/Retain Instincts/Reactions Concentration 5.5 5.5 5.5

STRENGTH/EXPLOSION	Section Grade: 5.5
Hill is shorter than ideal at barely over 5-9 and 180 pounds, and will have trouble dealing with big NFL receivers because of it. He has been a durable cornerback at Clemson and has the athleticism and toughness to be durable in the NFL, but his size is always going to hinder his ability to hold up physically long term. He is a very naturally explosive athlete, but he needs to improve his footwork/technique in order to display his explosiveness on the field. Even though he is tough and willing to tackle big ball carriers, his lack of size and tendency to tackle up high hinders his ability to play strong.
Body Type Durability Explosion Play Strength 4.0 5.5 6.5 4.5