New Lions CB Teez Tabor: Press play, watch the tape, don't sweat 40

When Teez Tabor saw his draft stock slip after a couple slow 40-yard dash times, his mother, Merri, took it upon herself to remind everyone what kind of player her son is.

Merri Tabor made shirts that read, "Press play, watch the tape," that were prominently on display Friday at Tabor's draft party.

"It’s just something my mom came up with," Tabor said by conference call. "She didn’t really like everybody talking about the 40 time so she just had some shirts made and just wanted to make a statement by saying just put on my tape and that’s really all it was."

The Detroit Lions trusted Tabor's tape enough to take him with their second-round pick, No. 53 overall.

At Florida, where he was teammates with the Lions' first-round pick, linebacker Jarrad Davis, Tabor was one of the most accomplished cornerbacks in college football.

He had nine interceptions in three seasons and was part of star-studded Gators secondaries last year with Vernon Hargreaves and Keanu Neal and this year with Quincy Wilson.

Once regarded as a borderline first-round pick, Tabor ran a 4.62-second 40 at the combine. He followed that up with a sprint in the 4.7-second range at his combine, when he said he was focused more on doing football drills.

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At the combine, Tabor said he didn't think his 40 time should impact his draft status.

"I think it’s a part of the process," he said. "I wouldn’t say it’s going to make or break me. Scouts know what I can do, the teams know what I can do. They got the film, they just want a number, that’s all."

But he said Friday that "I knew (the slow times were) going to affect me a little bit."

Ultra confident, Tabor declared himself "the best overall player in the draft, not just the best corner."

He said Friday that's the sort of mindset he takes with him to the field.

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"That statement just shows a lot about my confidence and myself and the type of confidence you have to play cornerback and football, not just in college but every level you play football you have to have a certain level of confidence at corner," Tabor said. "So that’s just my confidence and that’s just saying that I’m not going to back down from any challenge when I step on the field."

Tabor joins a Lions secondary that returns starting cornerbacks Darius Slay and Nevin Lawson and added D.J. Hayden in free agency. Top backup Johnson Bademosi also returns, though Bademosi, Lawson and Hayden are all entering the final year of their contracts.

Tabor said he's looking forward to joining forces with Slay, who like Tabor played under Temple coach Geoff Collins when Collins was an assistant.

"It’s going to be really good," Tabor said. "One of the things I said I wanted going into whoever picks me was somebody I can come in and learn from and pick his brain. I watch Slay’s game, I love his game. He’s one of the top corners in the league so when I go in I’m going to be connected to him like his phone clip. I’m just going to be on his hip everywhere he goes. ... I want to study what he does and what makes him so good because I have a lot to learn."

Contact Dave Birkett: dbirkett@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @davebirkett. Download our Lions Xtra app for free on Apple and Android!