LSU has built a reputation for providing top-level defensive backs in the NFL. Since 2010, the program has produced the likes of Patrick Peterson, Tyrann Mathieu, and Jamal Adams. Can LSU cornerback Kary Vincent Jr. continue that trend in the 2021 NFL Draft?
Kary Vincent Jr. NFL Draft Profile
- Position: Cornerback
- School: Louisiana State
- Current Year: Senior
- Height: 5’9 3/4″
- Weight: 185 pounds
Tony Pauline’s Kary Vincent Jr. Scouting Report
Positives: Consistent defensive back with terrific ball skills. Quickly picks up coverage assignments, stays with receivers downfield, and displays excellent awareness. Tracks the pass in the air, displays a nice move to the throw, and possesses good hands for the interception. Plays fast and has a terrific burst to the ball out of his plant. Displays good route recognition in zone, effectively times his pass defenses, and fights hard to break up passes.
[sv slug=”drizly”]Negatives: Small and gets overmatched. Struggles getting off blocks. Not very aggressive defending the run.
Analysis: Vincent was a terrific cornerback for LSU the past two seasons, and he’s a good athlete with the speed and ball skills to line up in nickel packages at the next level.
Kary Vincent Jr. Player Profile
As he heads to the 2021 NFL Draft, LSU cornerback Kary Vincent Jr. is looking to continue more than just the Tigers’ heritage. He possesses a family connection to the NFL’s annual selection event. His father played college football at Texas A&M and was a sixth-round selection of the New Orleans Saints in 1992.
Vincent Sr. was more than just a family inspiration to his son. At Port Arthur Memorial High School, he was the track coach and helped mold his son into an impressive high school sprinter. Vincent Jr. was a two-time Class 6A Texas State 200m champion and would continue to run track as he progressed through his college career.
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He took the speed onto the football field and used it to a devastating effect. As a junior cornerback, he made 51 tackles while racking up 5 interceptions, 2 of which he returned for touchdowns. The following year, as a senior, he snagged 7 interceptions with 3 more touchdowns. His play on defense garnered first-team All-USA Texas honors. Additionally, he contributed on offense with 3 touchdowns (2 rushing, 1 receiving).
However, it didn’t take his senior season for college scouts to notice him. After attending camps at Baylor and Texas A&M as a junior, offers came flooding in from across the nation. Although there was an assumption he’d follow in his father’s footsteps to Texas A&M, his heart had been with LSU and the cornerback committed in May of 2016.
Kary Vincent Jr.’s college football career at LSU
Kary Vincent Jr. arrived in an LSU defensive back room that had lost cornerback Tre’Davious White and safety Jamal Adams to the 2017 NFL Draft. As a result, he got the opportunity to make an immediate impression and didn’t waste it. He made 11 appearances while earning three starts. In his first start against Chattanooga, he snatched an insane one-handed interception.
Over the next two years, crazy interceptions would become a staple of the LSU cornerback’s game. As a sophomore, he secured a one-handed pick against Arkansas. That season he became a full-time feature of the Tigers secondary, starting seven games, including one as an outside corner against UCF.
He’d record 40 tackles, 1.5 tackles for loss, 1 sack, and 1 interception that season. Meanwhile, he still ran track for the Tigers, recording a wind-assisted 10.07-second time for the 100-meter sprint.
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That speed would be evident on the field during a College Football Playoff win over Oklahoma in his junior season. The LSU cornerback sprinted from the middle of the field to the sideline on a trick play that had left a Sooners receiver wide open.
It was his fourth interception of the year, which included one against his father’s alma mater — Texas A&M. Playing in 14 games while starting eight, Vincent was a pivotal piece of the title-winning LSU team.
Although a large percentage of LSU’s draft-eligible players declared for the NFL, Vincent decided to return for his senior season and was poised to be the leader of a young secondary. Yet, with the disruption of the 2020 college football season, Kary Vincent Jr. decided to opt out in late August and declare for the 2021 NFL Draft.
Kary Vincent Jr.’s best fits in the 2021 NFL Draft
With his incredible speed and ball skills, Kary Vincent Jr. brings fantastic coverage ability to this 2021 NFL Draft cornerback class. He played almost exclusively as a slot cornerback at LSU, and that projects to be his role at the next level. Additionally, he could develop into a safety in the NFL due to his versatile skill set.
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There are some developments to be made — he tends to rely on his speed to make plays rather than reading the offense — but he can be a contributor early in his NFL career.
Some teams with cornerback needs include the Green Bay Packers, Seattle Seahawks, Houston Texans, and Dallas Cowboys.
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Oliver Hodgkinson is a staff writer for Pro Football Network. You can follow him on Twitter at @ojhodgkinson.