2022 Chiefs Draft Prospect: Jalen Pitre

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NAME: Jalen Pitre

POSITION: Safety

SCHOOL: Baylor

HEIGHT: 5’11”

WEIGHT: 198 pounds

CAREER BACKGROUND

A native of Stafford, Texas, Jalen Pitre attended Stafford High School. In his junior year of high school football, Pitre recorded 41 tackles and two pass breakups. His season was cut short due to a knee injury. Pitre would then bounce back with a highly productive senior high school football season. For instance, he recorded 83 tackles (59 solo), seven tackles for loss, six interceptions, four forced fumbles, four fumble recoveries, two hurries and one sack.

Pitre was named to the 2016 All-Greater Houston second team for that 2016 season by the Houston Chronicle. He was also selected as 2016 District 12-4A Defensive MVP as well. He was rated as a three-star recruit. ESPN ranked him as the 73rd best defensive back prospect in his class, and as the 147th best prospect to come out of the state of Texas.

Up And Down

The early career for Jalen Pitre was up and down at Baylor. The Bears used him in different portions throughout the first few seasons of his college career. As a true freshman in 2017, Pitre played in 12 total games and made eight starts. He tallied 37 total tackles, three tackles for loss, one sack and one pass breakup.

In 2018, the sophomore season was a lot more limited, in terms of playing time. Pitre did appear in 13 games. However, his starts (one) were down from the previous year. He had 10 tackles and one tackle for loss.

Pitre appeared in just four games and took a redshirt during his junior season in 2019. He had 12 tackles, one sack and 0.5 tackles for loss during those games.

Conference And Team Leader

A new head coaching hire of Dave Aranda certainly boosted Pitre’s role in 2020. As a redshirt junior, he started in all nine games for Baylor. The defender was allowed to assume an expanded role, to boot. Pitre led the team in both tackles (60) and tackles for loss (13). He was also third on the team in both sacks (2.5) and interceptions (two). Both of those interceptions were returned for touchdown. As a result, Pitre was named first-team All-Big 12 for 2020.

Despite completing his undergraduate degree in 2020, the safety decided to use his extra year of eligibility and return in 2021. He started in all 14 games and set new single season career highs in tackles (75), tackles for loss (18.5), pass breakups (seven), sacks (3.5) forced fumbles (three) and fumble recoveries (three). Pitre also added two interceptions.

After a dominant season, the Baylor product was named first-team All-Big 12 for the second straight season. He was a finalist for the Jim Thorpe Award, which recognizes the best defensive back in the nation for each season. Pitre was named 2021 Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year and was a consensus first-team All-American.

SCOUTING REPORT

Instead of listing positives and negatives for traits, this year we will be listing the best trait of each prospect and work our way down to the biggest area of improvement/absent trait(s), from top to bottom.

Football IQ

Pitre’s ability to recognize what the opposing offense is trying to accomplish during the entirety of the play is rare. For example, he picks up on disguises or tendencies quickly in pre-snap. At the same time, Pitre helps realign defensive teammates on the backend, if need be. He does not get faked out much at all. During the play, Pitre keeps his eyes locked on the football and maintains solid body positioning. He stays patient when it comes to landmarks and will not leave them too early. Throughout those moments, he sustains tremendous foot and eye discipline. His ability to adjust on the fly and think on his feet allows him to make plays in different alignments or defensive positions.

Athleticism

Pitre has extremely springy feet. We talked about his ability to readjust on the fly above. However, his change of direction skills are smooth and it allows him to make crisp transitions in space. Pitre also takes rapid-fire strides and uses quicker, softer steps. Moreover, his long speed and short area burst are both near the elite levels, compared to others at his position in this draft class. Pitre is gifted with loose hips. As a result, his lateral mobility and flexibility is not an issue, especially when you consider how often he is working in space.

Competitiveness

Pitre brings a wily, tenacious attitude on the field. He is not afraid to take charge and become the tone setter. This shows up against bigger bodied receivers. For instance, Pitre has extreme confidence that he can overpower those types of pass catchers in coverage. His never say die attitude is also evident when he is rushing the passer or battling against opposing offensive linemen as a blitzer. The effort and motor of this defender shines on tape multiple times throughout the course of a game. While it may seem meaningless, Pitre works hard to catch opposing skill players from behind. Others seem to give up earlier on during situations that appear to be long touchdowns for the offense.

Tackling

Most defensive backs do not have great tackling form or a low strike zone. However, that is not the case with Pitre. He can sometimes get too overzealous and try to hit with only the shoulder a bit too often. That is something that can be fixed with further coaching, though. Yet, when he does lead with the shoulder, Pitre packs quite a punch. That can often stun opposing skill players or lead to fumbles. When he does wrap up, he is always going after the feet and lower legs of opponents. Pitre also maintains tremendous body control and patience in those moments. His timing is simply precise when pouncing after players.

Versatility

In his last two years at Baylor, Pitre was afforded the opportunity to lineup in a multitude of spots on defense. He lined up at free safety and covered over the middle of the field. Pitre was also frequently lining up in the slot as a nickel cornerback. From both of those spots, he was able to receive more chances as a split-zone defender. We also saw an uptick of him playing snaps in the box or near the line of scrimmage. More importantly, Pitre has immense comfort in each and every spot. He is not necessarily undersized. But, Pitre shows a rare capability of being able to fight through contact of offensive linemen or tight ends when rushing the passer or when crashing inward to stop the run.

Ball Skills

Pitre has a stout nose for the football. Sometimes, he can get caught watching the ball a bit too much. His situational awareness and lack of panic makes up for that, however. Pitre noticeably gets his arms extended at the catch point if an opportunity comes his way. On top of that, he does well to square his frame to the ball. The timing of his jumps and ability to high point the football in contested catch situations should not be understated. Overall, Pitre has soft, natural hands, which should result in his ball production increasing moving forward.

Range

His range pops the most when defending the run. Pitre has explosive closing speed when crashing downhill. Additionally, the Baylor product can act as a suffocating presence by setting a firm, rough edge and corralling the run to the inside. He is more average when it comes to his range in coverage. In the intermediate to deep passing game, there are inconsistent reactions to turn and run down the field. Possibly, this may be due to the fact that Pitre watches the ball more often than he does getting depth or finding his man.

Coverage Skills

Pitre does his best in coverage, when he is allowed to hang over the top. This can be true in both the middle of the field or in the slot. In the middle of the field, Pitre does his most damage as a robber when he is relying on his instincts. There are a couple of improvements that could be infused into his technique. For example, Pitre loses leverage by not getting low enough in his backpedal. He can recover urgently with his speed. Nevertheless, you would like to see that change within his dropback, especially when you see his range fluctuate while in coverage. Finally, Pitre could stand to enforce more contact and jabs against receivers during their routes. Too many free releases or extra cushion makes throwing lanes more widened for opposing quarterbacks.

CHIEFS FIT

Similar to our recent 2022 Chiefs draft prospect, Daxton Hill, Jalen Pitre could be a possible replacement if Tyrann Mathieu leaves in free agency. There may not be as much experience or well-roundedness when it comes to his versatility or range, compared to Hill. Nonetheless, Pitre is still quite cunning when it comes to instincts. His fundamental tackling prowess and all-around athleticism also allows him to make many stops in space.

Outside of Mathieu, the Chiefs are also set to lose Daniel Sorensen and Armani Watts to free agency in the next couple of weeks. Pitre would be an exact prototype for Steve Spagnuolo within this defense. His ability to adjust and play stoically against any size of receiver or in any area of the field could allow Spags to dive deeper into his vast bag of tricks.

Be on the lookout for more FPC Chiefs draft prospect profiles throughout the rest of the spring. For more great sports and NFL content, stay tuned to Full Press Coverage.

– Braden Holecek is the Kansas City Chiefs managing editor for Full Press Coverage. He covers the NFL. Like and follow on Follow @ebearcat9//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js Follow @FPC_Chiefs//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js and Facebook.