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Kamari Lassiter 'operates at different speed' compared to Combine counterparts

Palmber-Thombsby:Palmer Thombs•03/10/24•

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Kamari Lassiter (1)
Tony Walsh / UGA Sports Communications

Former Georgia cornerback Kamari Lassiter is among the top prospects at his position in the 2024 NFL Draft, and ESPN’s Field Yates had high praise for him coming out of the Combine. According to Yates, Lassiter was “operating at a different speed” than his competition, backing up what he put on tape over the course of his collegiate career.

“Lassiter’s a guy that I thought had an absolutely terrific combine,” Yates said. “You kind of always balance the timeline in terms of how much it matters relative to the tape. But when the tape is awesome, which it was in the case of Kamari Lassiter, that matches what you saw at the combine, which was the on-field workout where it kind of felt like he was operating at a different speed than almost any other cornerback that was playing there – the acceleration specifically for Kamari Lassiter – that made me feel even better about his prospects going forward.”

“One thing that I think is worth nothing for Lassiter, and it kind of applies to a lot of the cornerbacks at the top of this class, is limited on-ball production,” the ESPN draft analyst added. “He only had a single interception during his Georgia career. And that’s because no one threw his way. It was very uncommon for teams to try to pick on Kamari Lassiter, and really that entire Georgia secondary.”

In three seasons at Georgia, Lassiter started 29 games for the Bulldogs – every outing the last two years. He stepped into a starter’s role in 2022 coming off of the first National Championship and never looked back.

Lassiter watched and learned as a freshman before moving into a major role as a sophomore and one of a leader as a junior. He played in 15 games as a freshman, primarily on special teams, and earned himself a starting spot the next season. Lassiter’s lone interception during his collegiate career did come as a freshman however, picking off a pass versus Vanderbilt. Then, in 2022, he came up with 38 tackles including five for loss with his best performance coming on one of the Bulldogs’ biggest stages that season: recording a career-high five tackles in a win over then-No. 1 Tennessee. Lassiter also had a pass breakup in the win, starting a streak of three straight games (Tennessee, Mississippi State, Kentucky) with one on his way to four on the season.

Lassiter’s presence was even bigger for the Bulldogs in 2023. While he wasn’t targeted as often as the team’s top cornerback, he helped Georgia to the SEC’s best pass defense. His solo stops number went down, but Lassiter seemed to find himself near the ball more often, averaging more in each outing as he totaled 37 tackles, including 3.5 for loss, in just 14 games.

Lassiter is one of three Georgia defensive backs off to the NFL after this past season and he’ll have an opportunity to showcase his skills alongside the other two – Javon Bullard and Tykee Smith – this coming week at UGA Pro Day. Scouts from across the league will head to Athens to check out the Bulldogs on their own campus as they go through workouts. After not running a 40-yard dash in Indianapolis, all eyes will be on whether or not Lassiter does so at Pro Day, and if he does, what time he posts.

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