2016 NFL Draft: Despite injury, Hokies CB Kendall Fuller going pro

Virginia Tech announced on Tuesday that junior cornerback Kendall Fuller will skip his senior season to enter the 2016 NFL Draft. Fuller has missed almost all of the 2015 season after surgery in September to repair a torn meniscus that he suffered in the preseason.

Fuller is currently rated as the No. 6 draft-eligible cornerback in the 2016 class according to NFLDraftScout.com and a likely top-60 prospect. He was considered a likely first-round pick prior to his injury. Fuller is currently on track medically to return to the field prior to the draft, but exactly when is unknown. Time will tell if he's able to be a full participant at the NFL Combine in late February.

"Virginia Tech is better because the Fuller brothers were Hokies," Hokies head coach Frank Beamer said. "Vinny, Corey, Kyle and Kendall were all different, but they were all the same in that they were smart, competitive, very athletic and great teammates, who possessed great character."

Listed at 6-foot and 197 pounds, Kendall was often mentioned as the most talented of the Fuller family that produced three NFL players, including cornerback Kyle Fuller, who was a 2014 first-round pick of the Chicago Bears. Whether or not Kendall joins his older brother as a first-round pick will likely depend on the health of his knee.

Fuller has the agile, coordinated footwork to mirror with receivers off the line and stay in their hip pocket down the field, using his body position and length to make plays on the ball. He has terrific ballskills with the read/react skills to quickly diagnose and attack. Fuller is still learning what he can and can't get away with and his game requires refinement, but the potential is there to be a starting corner in the NFL.