Lions' Bob Quinn still hopeful with Teez Tabor, who will remain at cornerback

Indianapolis — Detroit Lions general manager Bob Quinn has said he drafts with a prospect's second season in mind. That being the case, he had to have been extremely disappointed with cornerback Teez Tabor's 2018 campaign. 

The former second-round pick struggled to deliver on expectations, committing penalties at a troubling rate and allowing a perfect passer rating on throws his direction while shuffling in an out of the lineup. 

But Quinn isn't giving up on the prospect he said he watched more tape of than any other in his scouting career. 

"Teez actually came on the last couple weeks of the season, we kind of saw a little bit of an uptick with Teez," Quinn said Wednesday at the scouting combine. "Kind of played with a little bit more confidence, played in the slot, played at nickel against Green Bay and did a good job against some of those guys.

"Listen, I still have faith in him," Quinn continued. "He obviously hasn’t played as much as I would’ve hoped. But I think we’re not giving up on him. I actually had a conversation with him a couple days ago. He’s a guy that we’re counting on to get better. Teez was pretty young when we drafted him. Some guys take a huge step between year one and year two, I’m hoping Teez takes a big step from year two to year three."

Some outsiders and fans have questioned whether Tabor is cut out for cornerback and if a permanent shift to safety could be in the cards. Quinn quickly squashed that speculation. 

"Yeah, Teez is a corner," Quinn said. 

jdrogers@detroitnews.com

Twitter: @Justin_Rogers