From now until the 2025 NFL Draft, we will scout and create profiles for as many prospects as possible, examining their strengths, weaknesses, and what they can bring to an NFL franchise. These players could be potential top 10 picks, down to Day 3 selections, and priority undrafted free agents. Today, a scouting report on Kansas State CB Jacob Parrish.
#10 JACOB PARRISH/CB KANSAS STATE – 5097, 196 POUNDS. (JUNIOR)
MEASUREMENTS
| Player | Ht/Wt | Hand Size | Arm Length | Wingspan |
| Jacob Parrish | 5097/196 | 8 7/8 | 31 1/4 | 75 |
| 40-Yard Dash | 10-Yard Dash | Short Shuttle | 3-Cone | |
| N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | |
| Broad Jump | Vertical | Bench Press | ||
| N/A | N/A | N/A |
THE GOOD
– Explosive athlete who closes gaps quickly in the passing game
– Quick acceleration to jump underneath routes
– Has enough vertical speed to contend in the deep third and stick to hip pockets
– Can turn on a dime and has the hip fluidity to ride side-saddle with receivers
– Snappy foot speed and redirection in space
– Comes out of his backpedal in a low stance to react with decisiveness
– Physical competitor who gives receivers fits at the catch point
– Does well in covering east-west part of the football field when playing zone
– Instinctive, aggressive support defender who knows tackling angles
– Triggers quickly on screens and barrels into ball carriers as a tackler, wrapping well
– Has the versatility to play the slot or the boundary at a high level
– Still really young (turns 21 not long before the draft)
– No injury history that caused him to miss games
– Started playing right away in his freshman season
THE BAD
– Doesn’t have great size or long speed to live on the outside
– Struggles with bigger receivers when he can’t out-physical them in their routes
– Not able to fully recover if beaten over the top vertically
– Lack of height shows up trying to high-point the ball for disruption
– Needs to not be over-aggressive at the beginning of the route as often
– Will grab at the receivers instead of the ball during the catch phase
– Can be baited into opening his hips too early
– Smaller frame can make for him having a hard time slipping blocks on the edge
– Looks more like a long strider than a fast player
BIO
– Birth date: 2/29/04
– Born in Olathe, KN, and attended Olathe North HS
– 1,608 total snaps (1,144 outside CB, 202 slot CB, 86 in the box, 167 near the line of scrimmage)
– 215 special teams snaps (95 FG block, 52 kick coverage, 52 punt return, 15 punt coverage)
– Appeared in 38 games with 24 starts in 3 years at Kansas State
– Career: 102 total tackles (83 solo, 19 assisted), 5 TFLs, 34 run stops, 14 missed tackles, 51.5% comp. allowed, 4 TDs allowed, 5 INTs, 23 PDs, 66.2 passer rating against, 10 penalties
– 2024-25 season: 50 total tackles (40 solo, 10 assisted), 18 run stops, 5 missed tackles, 55.6% comp. allowed, 2 TDs allowed, 1 INT, 8 PDs, 73.3 passer rating against, 7 penalties
– 2025 Senior Bowl participant
– Models his game after Jaire Alexander
– Three-star DB recruit by 247Sports out of high school
– Played defensive back, running back, and wide receiver
– 137 tackles total, 6 INTs, and 21 PDs
– Ran for 1,951 yards and 22 TDs
– Caught 69 balls for 1,313 yards and 15 TDs (receiving yards school record)
– Ran a 10.47 100-meter dash in HS track and field
– Played varsity basketball
– His older brother, Jevon, was a wrestler at Nebraska University
TAPE BREAKDOWN
Jacob Parrish is a feisty cornerback for Kansas State who was a starter for two years while playing in all 14 games as a freshman and contributing on special teams. What he lacks in height and straight-line speed, he makes up for with an aggressive mentality, awareness, and combativeness on the football field. He comes to play with a fiery edge to his game and likes to be in on the action. Whether that’s in a press-man coverage against an outside wide receiver, as a slot cornerback who goes against shifty or big pass catchers, or as a heat-seeking missile run defender. You never have to wonder what kind of player you’re getting in Parrish. He’s a two-chin-strap kind of guy who shows no fear on the field.
His coverage skills have allowed him to be more scheme-diverse than other cornerbacks because of what he was asked to do for the Wildcats. Parrish is very affluent with press-man (he played more reps in Cover 1 man than any other coverage in 2024) and takes his physical nature to his technique.
He will use his strong hands to punch and swipe guys at the snap to throw their timing off frequently. If you’re not ready for a fight at the start, he will get the best of you. Parrish relies on his technique and strength to stay in phase with guys because he doesn’t have elite makeup speed if he’s beaten vertically. This works for him on most occasions, and he’s especially good at applying pressure to throw receivers off their stem. He’s a nuisance to play against. Watch him use his strengths to box out this taller receiver on a throw to the end zone, where he uses good body positioning to negate the height difference.
His biggest concern is when bigger wide receivers with speed can get on top of him. He can also be prone to having his eager, aggressive nature used against him on hitches, stutters, and double moves to reset himself.
I love his ability as a zone defender to use his great football awareness to understand route concepts and know when to get to depth and break on a football. He may not have gaudy stats for pass breakups or interceptions, but he times his breaks so well that he doesn’t always have to be attached to guys.
Parrish has very fluid transitions when he flips his hips and shows good synchronization, transferring his eyes with his feet. It feels like he could have even more ball production opportunities if he just got his head turned around a half second more quickly, but he has nice positioning in phase with receivers on curls, slants, and flats. He knows exactly when to plant and trigger to jump underneath routes, too. I love how good of an open-field tackler he is and his urgency to get to the ball just as the receiver gets it.
To be a slot cornerback, you have to have an appetite for destruction as a run defender, and Parrish has that in spades. The guy is great at coming off of his guy to come up and make the tackle, shedding tight ends at the line of scrimmage, or flowing with the play to get in on the fray. Often, when he goes in for the tackle, there is little to no yardage accumulated after him. He also has a knack for knowing when to wrap up, drive through, or go low to tackle guys and does so with nice variability. He tends to have the occasional missed tackle, but most of the time, he’s excellent at finishing plays.
His special teams ability is nothing to write home about. He’s neither a darling in that area of the game on coverage units nor a liability to overpursue or take the wrong angles to tackle. There is definitely potential for improvement and opportunities to get a start there in the NFL if he’s not seeing a ton of snaps right away on defense.
CONCLUSION
Jacob Parrish brings a host of skills as a defensive back that can make him a valuable chess piece to use. He can give you outside cornerback reps in press man and zone coverage to use his instincts and twitch to make plays on the ball and as a slot corner option. He struggles the most in off-man coverage with his lack of long speed and inability to use his physicality at the line. I think he can play outside cornerback, but his best position at the NFL level would most certainly be at the slot position because of his size, style of play, and play recognition.
One player that I really liked in last year’s draft that I thought maybe Pittsburgh would get was Andru Phillips out of Kentucky, and Parrish reminds me of him, besides having fewer snaps in the slot coming out. They are both tailor-made to play the slot, and I was happy to see the Giants use Phillips predominantly there this past season. Parrish could have a similar impact on the team he plays for right away. I think he gives you even more coverage versatility because of his technical prowess in press. If the slot corner position isn’t addressed in free agency, I could certainly see the Steelers having an interest in Parrish, and he’s still really young with lots of room to get better.
Projection: Day 2
Depot Draft Grade: 8.1 2nd Round (Future Quality Starter)
Games Watched: vs Oklahoma State (2024), vs Cincinnati (2024), at Texas (2023), vs N.C. State (2023)
