Field Yates: Georgia CB Kamari Lassiter ‘was operating at a different speed’ at NFL Combine

Georgia cornerback Kamari Lassiter had a strong showing at the NFL combine and his stock appears to be on the rise.

Lassiter did not run the 40-yard dash at the combine, but he did take part in on-field drills. ESPN NFL draft analyst Field Yates came away very impressed with what he saw.

“Lassiter’s a guy that I thought had an absolutely terrific combine,” Yates said during a conference call with the media on Thursday.

Yates was already high on Kamari Lassiter going into the combine. He feels even better about his future now.

“You kind of always balance the timeline in terms of how much it matters relative to the tape,” Yates said. “But when the tape is awesome, as 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.”

Kamari Lassiter finished second-team All-SEC this past season after starting every game. He finished the year with 37 tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss and 8 pass breakups.

Lassiter had only one interception during his college career, but Yates doesn’t see that as a negative.

“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,” Yates said. “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.”

Mel Kiper breaks down perfect landing spot for Kamari Lassiter

ESPN’s Mel Kiper Jr. previously spoke about Kamari Lassiter and shared that he feels like the Pittsburgh Steelers would be a good landing spot.

“If you think about last year, first pick in the second round they took Joey Porter Jr., cornerback,” Kiper explained. “I think they go back to that spot again. Think about this division. (Deshaun) Watson‘s coming back from the injury. Joe Burrow‘s coming back. The AFC’s loaded with great quarterbacks.”

A 6-foot, 180-pound junior out of Georgia, Lassiter showed his ability to be a lockdown cornerback over multiple seasons. He played against elite competition in the SEC, so whoever selects him in the 2024 NFL Draft will know exactly what they’re getting.

Kiper broke down the basics.

“Kamari Lassiter, he was in the hip pocket of receivers all year,” the veteran ESPN analyst said. “Not penalized, though. Only had one career interception, but he had 10 in high school. He was a wide receiver as well in high school.”