Miles
Scott.
Miles
Scott.
Illinois· 6'0"· 203 lb· 4.62s 40
R7 · #246 · Denver Broncos"A box-and-big-nickel converted receiver in the P.J. Locke mold: the hands, trigger and four-phase teams résumé are ready-made for a bottom-of-the-roster defender, and the 4.62 speed with 31-inch arms is what keeps him out of the deep third."Pre-draft read
Plays primarily as a downhill, high-processing box and split safety. Diagnoses run action from depth, triggering efficiently, and arriving with reliable tackling form. Takes on lead blockers directly, maintaining clean angles. His receiver background is evident in ball tracking, consistently securing interceptions with soft hands.
His role centers on the middle third against 12 personnel, operating in the box against gap runs, and covering tight ends and backs. He lacks elite length to consistently contest passes against larger targets at the highest point. While capable of covering half a field, his range limits him in single-high, and he can be separated on late-developing vertical routes. Pattern-match details and discipline against double moves are still developing.
The Denver Broncos run a Cover-3 match scheme prioritizing zone awareness, reliable tackling and blitz support from the safety position.
A Year 1 special teams player and strong safety backup, Scott has the upside to develop into a reliable starter who can play either box or split-field roles.
Scott's value is significantly diminished in a single-high Cover-1 man scheme, where his capped range and developing pattern-match discipline would be exploited.
Scott's high processing and ball skills make him a valuable asset in zone-heavy schemes, compensating for his athletic limitations.
2026 Senior Highlights: DB Miles Scott | Illinois Football
The conference-produced senior reel: the downhill triggers, the box run fits and the three 2025 interceptions in one cut.
Miles Scott | College Highlights | Denver Broncos Safety
Full career compilation assembled after the draft, including the two 2023 pick-sixes that started his defensive career.
Miles Scott 2026 Highlights | Illinois Football
Senior-season cut-up with more coverage snaps than the official reel - useful for judging the pattern-match detail and the hip transition.
Illinois Football | Mic'd Up with Defensive Back Miles Scott
Mic'd up practice feature; the communication and pre-snap direction that made him a two-time captain are the point of watching it.
Miles to the Mile High City | Broncos Draft
The team's draft-night piece on the pick, with the walk-on-to-captain background and the projected special teams role.
Scott projects as a high-floor, special teams-first safety with the potential for a role in dime, big-nickel packages against 12 personnel, and early-down box assignments. His value stems from his football intelligence, processing speed, and reliable tackling, honed over an unusual path to the NFL.
He transitioned from wide receiver to safety after his sophomore year, starting 37 games over three seasons. His initial impact was immediate, earning a top PFF grade in his first career start and returning two interceptions for touchdowns. Despite playing in schemes that emphasized conservative play and a low-havoc secondary, he remained a consistent starter and two-time captain. His career culminated in an All-Big Ten honorable mention and increased production in his senior year, including his first tackles for loss and sack.
Evaluators noted his below-average athletic measurables, particularly a 4.62 forty-yard dash and shorter 31-inch arms, which limited his range and ability to contest at the catch point. The market reflected these physical concerns, leading to his selection by the Denver Broncos as the 246th overall pick, affirming his late-round projection as a processor and special teams contributor.
- 01
Ball-tracking skills
honed as a receiver, he collected seven interceptions and two pick-sixes, consistently securing the ball with his hands.
- 02
Decisive downhill trigger
reads run action quickly from depth, takes no false steps, and consistently arrives with reliable tackling form.
- 03
Leadership pedigree
a two-time team captain and Burlsworth Trophy nominee who transitioned to a full-time starter within two years of a position switch.
- 04
Explosive lower half
demonstrated by a 37½-inch vertical and a 10-3 broad jump, both above the safety median.
- 05
Proven special teams contributor
covered kicks throughout his college career, maintaining his role on those units even after becoming a defensive starter.
- 01
Capped range
a 4.62 forty-yard dash limits his ability to cover the entire field in single-high schemes, and he struggles with vertical routes down the seam.
- 02
Below-average arm length
31-inch arms hinder his ability to effectively contest the catch point against larger receiving targets.
- 03
Developing pattern-match detail
still acquiring the nuances of the position, including late leverage adjustments and a tendency to open hips early on double moves.
- 04
Functional, not fluid movement
change-of-direction numbers, including a 4.12 shuttle and 7.09 three-cone, are adequate but not exceptional.
— — — positional median (p50)
- 40 yd
- 4.62sp50
- Vertical
- 37.5inp50
- Broad jump
- 123inp50
- Three-cone
- 7.09sp50
- Shuttle
- 4.12sp50
- Bench
- 18repp50
| Yr | Team | G | Tkl | Sk | Int | PD | FF |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | Illinois | 13 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2023 | Illinois | 12 | 63 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 0 |
| 2024 | Illinois | 13 | 54 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 0 |
| 2025 | Illinois | 13 | 64 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 0 |
| Career | — | 51 | 181 | 1 | 7 | 11 | 0 |
A dash means the figure is not published by a source we trust — never a zero we invented.
Honors
- 2025 All-Big Ten honorable mention (coaches and media)
- Two-time Illinois team captain (2024, 2025)
- 2024 Burlsworth Trophy nominee (nation's top former walk-on)
- 2024 Athlon preseason All-Big Ten fourth team
- Three-time Academic All-Big Ten; two-time CSC Academic All-District
- 2023 PFF Big Ten Week 1 top-graded defensive back in his first career start at safety
- Two career pick-sixes, both in 2023
The realistic path: a late-round or priority-free-agent safety who makes the 53 on four special teams units, plays dime and heavy packages against 12 personnel, and bounces between rosters as an experienced depth body.
The ceiling, and an in-house one in Denver: an undersized, undrafted-tier safety who lived on special teams for three seasons, learned the defense cold, and turned into a starting box safety when the room needed one. Same processing-over-testing profile, same path.
The floor: a captain-quality college safety whose testing profile never lets him win a coverage rep in an NFL camp, who survives one preseason on special teams and ends up on the practice squad.
Everything above is the pre-draft evaluation. This section is what actually happened — updated year over year.
This is a resume evaluation more than a traits evaluation, and both readings are honest. Scott is the kind of player every program says it wants and almost no program drafts: a walk-on who changed positions at 20, started 37 games in the Big Ten within two years of the switch, captained the team twice, graduated early and never lost a job. The production has a real shape to it too - the ball skills are not incidental to the receiver background, and the 2023 season, two pick-sixes and a conference-best Week 1 grade in his first month as a defensive back, is genuinely unusual.
What kept him out of the Combine and out of the first six rounds is arithmetic. A 4.62 forty at 203 pounds with 31-inch arms is a below-average athletic package for a safety, and the change-of-direction numbers, a 4.12 shuttle and 7.09 three-cone, are functional rather than good. The compensating athleticism is in the jumps - 37 1/2 inches vertical and 10-3 broad, both solidly above the position median - which fits the tape: he explodes downhill and out of a plant, but he does not run with vertical routes.
The Illinois context also complicates the numbers. His two best statistical seasons came on defenses generating a 13.4 and a 15.3 percent havoc rate per CFBD, with the secondary contributing under six percent both years; the scheme asked him to be the eraser behind a soft shell rather than the disruptor, which inflates tackles and suppresses passes defensed. That is a fair defense of a stat line that peaked at three interceptions. It is not a defense of the coverage ceiling.
Denver took him at 246 overall as a special teams-first safety with a defensive floor - dime, big-nickel against 12 personnel, and box work on early downs - and the practical question of his career is whether a fifth-year processor with a two-year head start on football IQ can outlast better athletes in a camp. The captaincies and the walk-on track record are the argument that he can.