Kamari Lassiter NFL Draft Profile
- College: Georgia
- College Position: Boundary CB
- Ideal NFL Position: Physical slot CB
- Height/Weight: 6'0", 180 pounds
- Year / Age: Junior / 21
- Draft Projection: Late first round
- Where I'd Take Him: Mid-second round
Background
Kamari Lassiter was born in Savannah, Georgia, and attended the American Christian Academy in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. He racked up 210 tackles, 10 interceptions, and four forced fumbles as a cornerback. As a wide receiver, he accumulated 2,488 yards and 35 touchdowns.
Lassiter was a four-star recruit, per 247Sports and Rivals, and committed to playing college football at Georgia over Auburn, Clemson, and Georgia Tech.
During his three years at Georgia, Lassiter played in 38 games and allowed only two touchdowns across 108 total targets. In his final season, he allowed a passer rating of 48.7 and surrendered just 15 total receptions for 136 yards.
Strengths
- Disruptive player who attacks the line of scrimmage in both the run game and short passing game
- Off-man coverage ability is excellent
- High football IQ allows him to diagnose routes and close quickly in off-man
- Outstanding recovery speed and long speed make him a good fit as a Cover-3 CB
Weaknesses
- Eyes can linger in the backfield too long
- Adequate in zone coverage but needs improvement with leveraging against safety help
- Ball skills must improve, only one interception in three seasons
- Hand technique in press-man is poor
Final Thoughts and Chicago Bears Fit for Kamari Lassiter
Kamari Lassiter has a similar profile to Kyler Gordon, so he'd be a redundancy in the Chicago Bears defense. I've seen mock drafts that have him going as early as the late first round, and I fear that a player like Lassiter will get over-drafted and wind up busting for a team because he's still learning how to play cornerback and would benefit from a year of development at the NFL level.
With the Sean McVay-style offense taking over the NFL and defenses countering by moving away from small slot cornerbacks, I think a player with Lassiter's aggressiveness and athletic profile could develop into a very good slot cornerback in the league.
Lassiter is a player who refuses to back away from a challenge, and he's more than willing to match up with larger receivers. However, any larger receiver who has even adequate hand technique will be able to beat him easily in press-man. Lassiter will need to work on this extensively for it to be NFL-ready.
Overall, Lassiter is the most raw of the cornerbacks I've watched thus far. In culinary terms, he has the ingredients to be a delicious souffle, but I worry some team will take him out of the oven too quickly, and he'll collapse in on himself. Give him time, even if it's half a season, to develop his coverage techniques outside of off-man, and he'll be a very good corner in the NFL.
Pro Comp: Less Fluid Kyler Gordon
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