Henderson leaving for NFL, will skip bowl game
GAINESVILLE — UF cornerback CJ Henderson announced he will skip his final season with the Gators, as well as the team’s bowl game, to enter the 2020 NFL draft.
Henderson, a junior from Miami, is projected in many mock drafts to be a firstround selection in April due to his experience, ball skills and abundant physical gifts.
Henderson announced his decision on his Twitter account.
He wrote: “I am truly blessed to be in this position. The best part about being a Gator is that they will be there for me the rest of my life. … I will miss that feeling of running out of The Swamp on Saturday to 90,000 strong, but I know the Gator Nation is behind me.”
“I am excited to be one step closer to turning my lifelong dream into reality. Go Gators!”
Henderson led UF with 11 pass breakups despite missing three games with an ankle injury but did not have the kind of season many expected. He allowed five pass completions of at least 40 yards; UF allowed just seven as a team.
His tackling ability is another question mark.
Even so, during 34 games at UF, including 27 starts, Henderson recorded 83 tackles, six interceptions, including two pick-sixes as a freshman, and 22 pass breakups. He also had seven tackles for loss and forced two fumbles.
The 6-foot-1, 202-pound Henderson is sure to test extremely well at the NFL Scouting Combine. This past summer, UF released some eye-popping numbers from Henderson’s training sessions: a 10-foot, 4-inch broad jump, 40.5-inch vertical leap, 545-pound squat lift and 380-pound bench press. He also is considered by his teammates to be the fastest Gator.
Add it all up and ESPN draft analyst Todd McShay rates Henderson the 10th-best prospect in the 2020 draft.