The 2024 NFL Draft is getting close, making it an excellent time to highlight some of the class' best players with scouting reports. Each report will include strengths, weaknesses and background information.
Here's our report on T.J. Tampa.
T.J. Tampa'S 2024 NFL COMBINE RESULTS
- Height: 6-foot-3 7/8
- Weight: 189
- Arm length: 32 1/2"
- 40-yard dash: 4.59 (pro day)
- 10-yard split: 1.64
- Vertical jump: DNP
- Broad jump: DNP
- 20-yard shuttle: 4.07
T.J. Tampa 2024 NFL DRAFT SCOUTING REPORT
STRENGTHS
- Good-sized corner with desired overall length and excellent athleticism. Smooth and fluid with easy movement.
- Played mirror match and physical press man with poise and patience. At times forceful route disruption.
- Showed the play speed from mirror match press man to carry vertical routes staying in phase attached to WR.
- Pedal looked too upright at times, but his feet were quick, and he opened his hips easily with no segmentation.
- Strong run support corner willing to play with physicality and competitive toughness especially to the boundary.
WEAKNESSES
- Tendency to take false steps in mirror match press man, and that put him in reaction mode right off the snap.
- Snaps in press man in which receiver short area quickness off the ball resulted in reactionary loss of phase.
- At times, in press man lost contact with WR at the top of the route stem. Re-direct and change of direction a beat slow.
- Will top-end speed to run with vertical routes from press man alignment be an issue? Not at the high end level.
- Some man coverage snaps, he was slow to stop down and re-direct/change of direction versus quality routes.
Iowa State Cyclones' defensive back T.J. Tampa (2) warms up during the university's Spring Football game at Jack Trice Stadium in Ames, Iowa.
NFL TRANSITION
Tampa is one of the better corner prospects in the 2024 draft class with his desirable combination of size, length and movement traits. Tampa played significant snaps of press man coverage and off coverage man and zone.
He was strong in all concepts with an easy fluidity to his movement, loose hips, and smooth transition and change of direction. While Tampa was not purely sudden and explosive, he had excellent overall movement skills with the scheme flexibility to play in all coverages.
He was especially intriguing as a press man corner, where he showed mirror match traits and physical traits with forceful hams to disrupt receivers' releases. Tampa’s size and length at times resulted in his pedal being too upright, which occasionally caused him to lose contact with the receiver at the top of the route stem and slowed his transition and reaction to quick-breaking routes.
Tampa, while lacking ideal top-end speed, was able to carry vertical routes with his strength length and ability to stay in phase through the route, not losing his technique. Overall, Tampa is a higher-level corner prospect with the size, length and athleticism to play on the outside at the next level and match up to the bigger receivers in the NFL. There is no question Tampa can line up as the boundary corner and play man coverage.
OTHER NOTES
Tampa started all 24 games in his final two seasons at Iowa State and was a Third-Team All-American in 2023. He came out of St. Petersburg, Florida, as a three-star recruit who played defensive back and wide receiver in high school and also played basketball.
Tampa was predominantly the right corner in the Iowa State defense, but there were snaps at the left corner throughout the 2023 season. Tampa played both to the boundary and the field, but he played more snaps at the boundary corner as the season progressed.
Tampa made two interceptions in 2023, with the one versus Oklahoma State coming in man coverage on a shallow crosser and the one versus Cincinnati coming in zone coverage reading the quarterback.
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