This year’s corner class is stacked at the top with Travis Hunter and Will Johnson, but Florida State’s Azareye’h Thomas is also worthy of early-round consideration. The Florida State Seminole is a long and fluid corner who is just scratching the surface of his potential.
Azareye’h Thomas’ Draft Profile and Measurements
- Height: 6’1″
- Weight: 197 pounds
- Position: Cornerback
- School: Florida State
- Current Year: Junior
Thomas’ Scouting Report
Thomas is from Niceville, Fla., and played his high school football at Niceville High School. A two-way player while at Niceville, Thomas excelled as a receiver and corner and was one of the highest recruited players out of the state of Florida. He earned high four-star honors, according to 247Sports, and was highly recruited by every major college in the country. He ended up staying close to home and committed to FSU.
As a freshman, Thomas appeared in 11 games but started none. He was a backup corner who played sparingly throughout the season. It was much the same as a sophomore where he appeared in 14 games but didn’t secure his first start until their bowl game. While he wasn’t a starter, Thomas’ talent was evident and there was plenty of excitement for him heading into his junior season.
Ultimately, 2024 was Thomas’ breakout season as he finally was inserted into the starting lineup full time. Thomas was named an honorable mention for CSN’s All-ACC Team and was one of the best corners in the conference.
Strengths
- Excellent size and length to excel as a boundary corner at the next level.
- Prototypical press-man corner who can jam receivers at the line with his length and well-timed punch.
- Competitive at the catch point and can use his long arms to disrupt the pass and bat the ball down.
- A fluid mover who can open his hips and turn vertical in bump and run instances.
- Above-average tackler and is effective getting the ball carrier to the ground.
Weaknesses
- High-cut athlete who struggles to change direction at the top of the route due to his long legs.
- Just average recovery speed and is not twitchy in short areas to work his back to the football.
- Average ball skills and lacks consistent turnover production in college.
- Handsy at the top of the route and his physicality will draw penalties.
Current Draft Projection and Summary
Having multiple quality cornerbacks has never been more important for NFL teams as it is today. Teams are willing to pay top dollar for corners in free agency and high capital on them in the NFL Draft. Thomas is an exciting corner prospect with a unique skillset that will surely make him an attractive option early on in the 2025 NFL Draft.
Just a one-year starter at Florida State, Thomas’ lack of experience can be viewed as both a positive and a negative. He is not a refined player as it stands today, but he has a lot of room for improvement and will only get better with more playing time and NFL coaching.
From a physical standpoint, Thomas has a lot to like. He is tall and has excellent length overall to excel as an outside boundary corner in the NFL. His movement skills are good given his size and length and he certainly has starting NFL potential.
Thomas is a prototypical outside corner who excels in press-man principles. In man coverage, Thomas excels when he can get physical at the line of scrimmage and disrupt the receiver attempting to get to the stem.
Thomas is outstanding utilizing his length to win the receiver’s chest and has excellent timing and placement with his hands in press. After the receiver gets free, Thomas displays good ability to flip his hips and stay in phase with receivers maintaining contact throughout the route. He is able to close space in a hurry and is hyper-competitive at the catch point, utilizing his length to disrupt the catch.
He is less effective in zone coverage as his eyes and instincts still need development. He struggles to read and react to routes and is leggy in transitions when forced to put his foot in the ground to drive to the football. His speed is just average and he struggles to recover when he is beat deep. There is potential for improvement here, but as of now, Thomas’ skill set is best suited in press-man coverage rather than off in zone.
In the run game, Thomas shows good aggressiveness to trigger downhill when diagnosing the run. He is just an above-average tackler, and bigger backs have shown ability to break his tackles. His effort and want-to are there, and he also shows a good ability to slip and evade blockers to make the play.
Overall, Thomas has clear starting ability outside at corner with his overall movement ability and length. There are holes in his game as his technique and instincts still need to be developed, and his lack of footspeed and ball skills give me doubts about his ceiling. With that said, long corners who can play physically are what’s needed in the NFL, and Thomas’ name is expected to be heard toward the middle of Round 2.