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2022 NFL draft scouting report: UTSA CB Tariq Woolen

UTSA CB Tariq Woolen

6-foot-4
205 pounds

Yahoo Sports' 2022 NFL draft grade

5.69 — possible third- or fourth-rounder; contributor potential

TL;DR scouting report

Rare height-weight-speed prospect whose CB technique remains raw after switching from receiver, but long-term payoff could be immense

The skinny

A 3-star Rivals recruit in the Class of 2017, Woolen committed to the Roadrunners as a wide receiver despite Baylor's Matt Rhule making a late charge to flip him, taking a redshirt in 2017. Woolen saw action in 12 games (three starts) in 2018, making 15 catches for 158 yards and one touchdown. In 2019, he started the season as a receiver (catching nine passes for 105 yards in six games) but was compelled to shift to cornerback midseason, making two tackles in five games on defense.

Woolen stayed at corner, starting seven of 11 games in 2020 and totaling 35 tackles (2.5 TFLs), 1.5 sacks, one interception and four pass breakups. In 2021, he started nine games and posted 25 tackles (2.5 TFLs), one interception and five pass breakups. Woolen participated at the Senior Bowl.

SAN ANTONIO, TX - SEPTEMBER 19: UT-San Antonio Roadrunners DB Tariq Woolen watches from the sideline during game between the Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks and the UT-San Antonio Roadrunners on September 19, 2020 at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas. (Photo by John Rivera/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) (Photo by John Rivera/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

Upside

  • Elite athletic traits with which to work — absolute height-weight-speed paragon

  • Rare length — legit 6-4 with 34-inch arms

  • Not just track fast (4.26-second 40-yard dash) — field fast, too

  • Tracked at 22.45 mph during Senior Bowl practices, highest recorded in Mobile

  • Able to recover downfield with late burst and closing speed

  • 42-inch vertical jump, 10-foot-11 broad puts him in elite company

  • Possesses the kind of raw traits teams drool over

  • Has made big strides at corner after midseason position switch two-plus years ago

  • Former receiver with some ball skills and downfield tracking ability

  • Might have some blitz CB potential (more evident in 2020 tape)

  • Played both sides of field, exposed to diverse man/zone calls

  • Is said to have matured over past two seasons

  • Plays with confidence and has embraced his new role

  • Thrilling upside — a true home-run swing on Day 2

Downside

  • Leaner build and below-average play strength

  • Below-average short-area quickness and some hip stiffness

  • Beset by arm injuries past two seasons

  • Hands are rough — easy to see why he switched to corner

  • Playmaking undeveloped — dropped (at least) a pair of would-be INTs in 2021

  • Field awareness sub-par in man coverage — trouble locating the ball at times

  • Struggles sticking with comeback routes — momentum carries him downfield

  • Tackling technique needs a makeover — can arrive at ball with poor control

  • Work in run support ripe for critique

  • Gets crossed up on pick-route assignments

  • Roasted a few times vs. Western Kentucky's Mitchell Tinsley in C-USA title game

  • Inconsistent physicality for his size — lays the wood one play, hesitant on the next

  • Never lined up in slot — strictly a perimeter corner thus far

  • Resisted move to CB initially — slow to buy in on coaches' vision

  • Might require limited/situational use as rookie while digesting defensive system

  • Turns 23 in May

Best-suited destination

Woolen is a fascinating study as an outside corner who could be a star — or could struggle to handle advanced technicians and quicker receivers who can shake him underneath. He might be best in press coverage in time, but right now he relies on his length in that department and lacks sound technique. Woolen absolutely is a check-back-in-two-years prospect, but his elite athletic traits could allow him to flash as a rookie. Still, patience is required.

Did you know

At the beginning of the pandemic, Woolen received a message from someone he'd never spoken to before — Thailand Pierce, who was an indoor football player (and part-time FedEx delivery driver) who was located in San Antonio in 2020. Pierce offered to help Woolen with his DB technique after he'd just switched over to the new position.

Woolen accepted, and the two worked together extensively that spring after he'd told new head coach Jeff Traylor he'd stick at cornerback but was unable to to work with the new coaching staff when the school was shut down that year.

Player comp

Ahkello Witherspoon

Expected draft range

Top 75