49ers NFL Draft 2022: 5 cornerbacks San Francisco must target
By Peter Panacy
5. player. 854. . Cornerback. Sun Devils . Jalen Jones
49ers NFL Draft Target No. 5: Jalen Jones, Arizona State
Although it’s much lesser of a worry than with Jason Verrett, the 49ers are already dealing with injury concerns with their prime nickel cornerback, K’Waun Williams, who is expected to miss some weeks with a calf injury.
Williams, 30 years old, is signed only through 2021 anyway, and the thought of either Deommodore Lenoir or Ambry Thomas sliding in at nickel next year is awfully premature and likely not a plausible option. At least not at this point.
Fortunately, there are plenty of mid- and late-round nickel-caliber corners to consider, and Arizona State‘s Jalen Jones is one name to watch starting in Round 4.
| Tackles | Def Int | Fumbles | |||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | School | Conf | Class | Pos | G | Solo | Ast | Tot | Loss | Sk | Int | Yds | Avg | TD | PD | FR | Yds | TD | FF |
| *2017 | USC | Pac-12 | SO | CB | 13 | 31 | 9 | 40 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 4 | 17 | 4.3 | 0 | 7 | 1 | 1 | ||
| *2019 | Arizona State | Pac-12 | JR | DB | 13 | 41 | 5 | 46 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 3 | 22 | 7.3 | 0 | 12 | 0 | 1 | ||
| 2020 | Arizona State | Pac-12 | SR | DB | 1 | 4 | 1 | 5 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |||
| 2021 | Arizona State | Pac-12 | SR | DB | 4 | 9 | 2 | 11 | 1.0 | 0.0 | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | ||
| Career | Overall | 85 | 17 | 102 | 1.0 | 0.0 | 8 | 39 | 4.9 | 0 | 22 | 1 | 3 | ||||||
| USC | 31 | 9 | 40 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 4 | 17 | 4.3 | 0 | 7 | 1 | 1 | |||||||
| Arizona State | 54 | 8 | 62 | 1.0 | 0.0 | 4 | 22 | 5.5 | 0 | 15 | 0 | 2 |
Provided by CFB at Sports Reference
Generated 9/28/2021.
At 5-foot-10, Jones has seen his ballhawking decrease a bit since recording seven interceptions his first two collegiate years, first at USC and then with the Sun Devils.
The pandemic-shortened 2020 campaign likely hindered Jones’ development a bit, though, so his early efforts this year could have a lot to say about his draft positioning.
So far, he has nine tackles, an interception and a couple of pass breakups through four games, suggesting his quick-twitch reactions skills are still there.