Landon Collins has been a member of the New York Giants for less than a week but he's already being talked about as a starter, partially because of the skillset that made him the surprise first pick in the second-round - not a surprise because he went higher than expected, but because the widely presumed first-round pick was still available in the draft's second stanza - and partially because the Giants roster currently offers little in the way of an impediment to a starting safety job.
With little in the way of direct competition now that Antrel Role and Stevie Brown are off to greener pastures and considering the assets invested in landing him in Big Blue, will Collins, the former Alabama Crimson Tide star, be able to not only push for a starting spot, but also the Defensive Rookie of the Year award?
"The Giants traded up for Collins because they had a glaring vacancy at the position following the departure of their top three veterans," writes Chris Wesseling of NFL.com, who views the Giants safety as the best bet to win DROY. "Collins is an aggressive downhill safety rather than a single-high centerfielder, which means he will be filling the box and racking up high tackle numbers on a weekly basis. It will be a major upset if he's not a Week 1 starter for an improved G-Men squad."
Collins, 6-foot, 228-pounds, likely fell out of the first due to concerns over his coverage limitations - as Wesseling notes he seems much better suited to a quasi-safety/linebacker role for the Giants.
With Steve Spagnuolo returned to the Giants fold, the scheme in New York isn't likely to change much, meaning Collins will probably have a chance to leave his mark on the game in both regular alignments and the three safety sub-packages New York has employed to great effect in recent seasons.
"Most rookie defenders drafted ahead of Collins have impediments to playing time sitting in front of them in the form of veterans or scheme adjustments," NFL.com's Kevin Patra, who also views Collins as the likely DROY, writes. "Collins has none of those. Big Blue has a gaping hole at safety that the rookie will fill immediately. He will aid the run defense as a box-help safety who can hit and tackle. His coverage skills are underrated, and he'll display better-than-average range in the deep third, opening the eyes of some detractors who viewed him merely as a thumper. His opportunity to pile up stats from Day 1 gives him the inside track on this train."
In the end, it is, of course, far too early to project which players yet to even touch an NFL practice field will do well during their inaugural professional seasons, but it certainly seems like Collins, based on his talents and the dearth of skilled safeties on the Giants roster, has as good a chance as any to create a great first impression for the coaches and fans in New York.
