Prospect Profile: Malaki Starks, S, Georgia

Evaluation

Range

He is able to get to the ball from a deep zone without laboring and when he is on the move he can use his good speed for the safety spot to get to balls thrown inside the numbers. He gets off his spot well, albeit not at an elite level, but can struggle to unlock his hips quickly. His backpedal is high and his turns are a little jerk-y with some wasted movement when opening his hips to cover deep routes from the post. It adds up to him being able to make plays at the numbers from single high on go routes but he won’t make it to corner routes unless playing in a MOFO coverage. He can and will key on swing passes and bubble screens quickly, with excellent click and close on anything thrown underneath from the safety position, making plays behind or at the line of scrimmage.

Taking Away Targets

He is good in man coverage, particularly in short areas as a nickel defender in the slot. He has good route recognition, both understanding of concepts but also reading the Wide Receiver’s intention when locked up in man coverage. It means he can mirror well in confined areas. When he’s jamming at the line of scrimmage he can chase a bit and while his hands can latch on, they don’t effectively re-route the receiver. He does match angles well in soft-shoe press, he can use his processing to read what the receiver is doing as well as his acceleration and long speed to stay in phase on any underneath routes, taking away a target. He can also cover intermediate routes from the safety spot with enough processing and explosion to take away targets on dig routes over the middle. He can also cover downfield on wheel routes for opponents coming out of the backfield or receivers from the slot. He will stay in phase downfield. When he’s in off though and a Wide Receiver effectively attacks his leverage and has good speed, he will give up separation on deep routes with a vertical cut like posts and corners. He can use his speed to recover but his hip mobility will give up separation at the break.

Making a Play on the Ball

He has excellent ball skills in all situations. When covering short and intermediate routes either to the sideline or the middle of the field, when he’s in phase, he has excellent timing and accuracy with his hands to disrupt the pass when targeted. When he’s covering downfield, he can turn, find the football and then shows an ability to high point the football with some circus catches on film for the interception, contorting his body like a WR with elite body control.

Defending the Run and Tackling

He has a lot of toughness to him as a run defender. When he’s asked to defend in the box he will take on bigger WRs and TEs and beat those blocks with technique and physicality. His hand usage is particularly good to slip blocks, with good placement and strength as well as working with leverage to maximise his play strength. As well as working with good technique, he’ll also go after blockers to blow them up when he needs to, as well as playing with patience when the situation calls for it. He’s also not afraid to take on O-linemen as well but it doesn’t always go as well for him given the size differential, but you love the toughness. He uses his processing against the run to great effect, diagnosing runs quickly and using his explosion and lateral movement skills to get into the Running Back’s path. He inserts himself in the run and sticks his nose in where he isn’t wanted. He is an outstanding tackler and can bring down all types of runner in the open field. He’s particularly good for his size in taking down bigger runners and is a heat-seeking missile in traffic to find his target. He hits with physicality and sound technique.

Ravens Draft Pick Comp
Less explosive Kyle Hamilton with shorter arms. It doesn’t quite fit athletically, but stylistically their strengths, areas for improvement and where they would be deployed best are similar.

PRODUCTION 
Final year on campus: 79 To. Tackles, 1 INT, 2 PBUs, 1 QB Hit
Injury: SO: Played through a shoulder injury all year and had surgery in the offseason.

RAVENS FIT
Expl. Athleticism 4
Ftbl Intelligence 4
Versatility 5
Grit 5
Scheme 4