Starling Thomas V NFL Draft Overview
Position: Cornerback
Height: 6′-0″
Weight: 194 pounds
School: UAB
2023 NFL Draft: Starling Thomas V Scouting Report
The home-grown product of Birmingham, Starling Thomas V began his career in 2018, for the Blazers of the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB). In that season, Thomas played in 12 games totaling 10 tackles (all solo) while also defending against three passes. In his season second season for the Blazers, Thomas made 26 total tackles (16 solo, 10 assisted), while also defending against two passes, and having a fumble recovery and an interception.
During the Covid-19 shortened season of 2020, UAB played a total of nine games, however, Thomas was out for the season due to injury. Thomas bounced back for the Blazers during the 2021 season. The cornerback started all 14 of the Blazers games, where he made a total of 41 tackles (29 solo, 12 assisted), had one forced fumble and one fumble recovery, and an interception to go along with eight passes defended against. In what would be his final college season in 2022, Thomas once again started all of the Blazers games (13). While his numbers did fall off from his previous season (29 tackles with a career-high 14 passes defended), he was still able to earn First-Team All-Conference USA honors.
Strengths
- High football IQ and leadership qualities/capabilities;
- Is very effective against come-back routes;
- Continues to pester receivers; fights for the ball till the whistle blows;
- Incredible “break on the ball” speed to jump routes;
- Reads the biomechanics of the receiver to anticipate what the receiver is going to do; highly successful.
Weaknesses
- Struggles to maintain proper footwork, especially at the top of routes;
- Lacks physicality against the run;
- Does not read the quarterback when in off-coverage;
- Needs to work on turning around to see the ball; penalties could be a huge issue;
- Does not maintain his balance, once a receiver has passed by him, leading to an inability to catch up with the receiver.
NFL Comparison: DaRon Bland
Teams With Need At Position: Philadelphia Eagles, Arizona Cardinals, Minnesota Vikings, Jacksonville Jaguars, Baltimore Ravens, Chicago Bears, Cincinnati Bengals, Indianapolis Colts, Las Vegas Raiders, Los Angeles Rams, New England Patriots, New York Giants, Pittsburgh Steelers, San Francisco 49ers, Seattle Seahawks, Washington Commanders
Projection: Rounds 5-6
Bottom Line on Starling Thomas V
Thomas can be an effective NFL cornerback but does have some work to do. Thomas left to work on his footwork mechanics, especially at the top of routes. He will need to get used to turning around to see the ball when contesting a catch because he will be flagged every time he does not at least make an effort to look for the ball. He also has to work on his reading the quarterback while in off-coverage and maintaining his center of gravity if a wide receiver passes him, in order to be able to try to catch up to the receiver.
Thomas has a relatively small sample size (37 games over three seasons at UAB) and likely would have had at least two more years to work on the aforementioned skills to refine his game and become a higher-round draft choice in a future NFL Draft. What he will bring to the table that will entice NFL scouts, likely in rounds five or six, is his potential attributes.
He is a very fast runner and can break on a ball and jump a route with ease. Thomas is able to successfully read the receiver’s biomechanics and anticipate what the receiver is going to do with a high rate of success. He also will contest for a ball until he hears the whistle blow. He also has a high football IQ and is a leader who could help a young team especially, who may not have a lot of leadership or individuals willing to take on that responsibility.
Main Photo: Jake Crandall – USA Today Sports
