Kamari Lassiter scouting report: Exploring the Georgia CB's strengths and weaknesses

A four-star recruit in 2021, Kamari Lassiter appeared in all 15 games as a true freshman (158 total snaps), recording 11 tackles, one interception and three pass break-ups.

The following season, Kamari Lassiter started all 15 contests, recording five TFLs and four PBUs. 2023 was when he started to receive recognition nationally, putting up nearly identical numbers outside of doubling his PBUs, which earned him second-team All-SEC accolades.

Details: 6-foot, 185 pounds; JR.

Breaking down Kamari Lassiter's scouting report

Kamari Lassiter: NFL Combine

Man-coverage:

• This guy has been a true lockdown boundary corner over the past two years, only allowing 12 catches for 128 yards and one touchdown on 34 targets (35.3% completion rate) and 310 snaps in man-coverage
• Has well-coordinated, quiet feet at the line and easy gas to run with guys vertically, not look like he’s straining
• Keeps his eyes locked on the hips of his man and anticipates routes from trail-position in impressive fashion for a young corner
• Has some highly appealing reps on tape vs. fade routes, where he stays on top and then battles for the ball with the target in high-point situations
• Generally rolls off his ankle and at his hips in impressive fashion for a lankier build, in order to not get lost on speed-cuts
• Uses his length very well to sustain contact with receivers and stay in phase even against double-releases
• Even as receivers release inside of him and put Lassiter to their back-hip, the corner often still has a hand on the pad to slow those guys down and stick to them once they break towards the middle
• Packs the closing burst to re-enter the picture after separation is created by scheme, as receivers cross-release against man-coverage and he has to work around his teammate

Zone-coverage:

• Surprisingly quick to redirect in off-coverage and drive forward in quarters, which was backed up by a 93rd-percentile three-cone drill at the combine (6.62)
• You see him in that three-quarter turn in cover-three peak back at the quarterback and slow his feet momentarily in case the receiver stops or the ball driven to the back-shoulder, without making himself vulnerable of getting run by
• Really works back down the stem in order to wrap around for PBUs on curl/hitch routes
• Doesn’t panic or prematurely commit his hips or shoulder when he has to wait for receivers to release out of stacks
• Displays the sudden acceleration to not allow receivers to detach on secondary routes
• While he could have been penalized a couple more times, because Lassiter consistently turns and looks for the ball late, refs typically left the yellow cloth at their belt even as he ran into and got tangled up with the receiver
• Times his jumps and plays the ball at its apex very well when playing with his eyes on it
• Finished in the top-10 among corners in this class for PFF coverage last season (87.2), holding opposing QBs to 15-of-39 throwing his way for 136 yards and no TDs (no INTs either)

Run defense & tackling:

• Shows a willingness to get his hands dirty and get involved in the run game, even as he back cuts it up between the tackles
• You see some big-time collisions between him and running backs near the sideline
• Even as receivers are already wrapped up, Lassiter joins the party and makes sure that guy goes backwards a lot of times
• Quickly IDs screens and tosses aside blocking receivers – Has plays on tape, where he barrels down on tunnel screens and puts South Carolina’s 220-pound receiver Xavier Legette on his backside
• You see him chase down running backs at full sprint from behind who have five yards on him a few times
• Actually wraps and drives his feet as he races up against completions in front of him – only missed four tackles each of the past two seasons (8.2% career miss rate)

Weaknesses:

• With his lanky build, Kamari Lassiter will be vulnerable to push-offs going up against bigger-bodied outside receivers
• Only has average recovery burst when he gets into trail position and guys gain half a step on him, to still affect the catch-point
• There are some conflicting reports around what Lassiter ran in the 40 at Georgia’s pro day, but the consensus seems to be in the high 4.5s, after skipping that portion of the combine
• Hasn’t intercepted a pass since his freshman season (nearly 1000 coverage snaps since then), being more focused on ripping passes to the ground rather than into his body
• Could be more pro-active with attacking blockers out on the perimeter and establish first meaningful contact with his arms

Kamari Lassiter's 2024 NFL Draft projection

Kamari Lassiter: NFL Combine

Nobody has shut down wide receivers in man-coverage over the last couple of years quite like Kamari Lassiter – and he did so in the SEC. I couldn’t believe how little attention he got coming in this past season and I’ve held him in this regard ever since.

I have to imagine that the lack of ball-production is what created the separation between him and that tier of the top five names generally considered to be ahead of him. However, those are the only guys who have been able to gain separation on him recently, at least based on consensus rankings.

Because he’s fairly light, I could see Kamari Lassiter have some issues dealing with big alpha receivers, especially as he transitions to a league that allows the offensive player to be a lot more physical with their counterpart than the other way around.

But I don’t have any problem with Kamari Lassiter going at the end of the first round since he can be a quality starting boundary corner in a press-man heavy system from Day 1.

Grade: Late first/Early second round