Pats Pulpit
Previewing the Patriots cornerback heading into his first season in the NFL.
The New England Patriots made their cornerback group a point of emphasis this offseason. Besides signing Carlton Davis in free agency and retaining Alex Austin, the team also brought in three rookies at the position — among them the final pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, Kobee Minor.
Name: Kobee Minor
Position: Cornerback
Jersey number: 19
Opening day age: 23 (7/8/2002)
Measurements: 5’11 3/8”, 188 lbs, 76 1/2” wingspan, 31 5/8” arm length, 10” hand size, 4.58s 40-yard dash, 7.23s 3-cone drill, 4.54s short shuttle, 36” vertical jump, 10’0” broad jump, 9 bench press reps, 2.93 Relative Athletic Score
NFL: England Patriots (2025-) | College: Texas Tech (2020-22), Indiana (2023), Memphis (2024)
A three-star safety recruit out of Lake Dallas High School in Corinth, TX, Minor received plenty of interest coming out. Among the 15 total teams offering him a scholarship were the Texas Red Raiders, who brought him aboard in 2020 and moved him to cornerback. His position change did not help him see much action in Lubbock, though: appearing in 23 games with no starts over three years, he played just 161 defensive snaps.
As a result, Minor decided to enter the transfer portal in December of his 2022 redshirt sophomore campaign. He officially moved to the University of Indiana a month later, and saw a significant uptick in action in 2023. Starting nine out of his 11 games and playing 615 snaps, he was named honorable mention All-Big Ten.
Despite his success, he entered the portal again in hopes of putting himself in a better overall position with the NFL Draft on the horizon. He did: after the most active season of his college career at Memphis, Minor was selected 257th overall by the Patriots as the “Mr. Irrelevant” of the 2025 draft.
Strengths: Minor offers solid length at the cornerback position, and has shown good anticipation at the catch point and attack the ball in the air. He is a feisty player who is physical in man-to-man coverage and willing to do the dirty work as a run defender who is trying to make his presence felt as a tackler. In general, he is a positionally flexible player who can line up on the perimeter but also move into the slot or go deep as a safety. He also moves more fluidly on the field than his testing numbers would suggest.
Weaknesses: Even though he runs better than his underwhelming 40-yard dash, three-cone drill and short shuttle, he still lacks high-end athletic traits or standout size, which in turn might impact his effectiveness at the next level. In addition, he had a hard time turning pass breakups (12) into interceptions (0) over the course of his college career. He also was up and down in the tackling department, oftentimes seemingly opting for physicality rather than sound technique.
Stats: 11 games (11 starts) |...
