Overview

Position: Cornerback

Height: 6’2″

Weight: 190 pounds

School: Temple Owls

Combine Performance Data

40-yard dash: 4.51 seconds

Bench press: 18 reps (tied for second-best among cornerbacks)

Vertical jump: 39.5 inches

Broad jump: 10 feet

Three-cone drill: 7.31 seconds

20-yard shuttle: 4.31 seconds

Rock Ya-Sin 2019 NFL Draft Profile

Every year, there are those players who emerge as draft prospects despite having received little interest from FBS programs a few years earlier. Abdurrahman “Rock” Ya-Sin falls into that category. The Decatur, GA native garnered just a single Power Five scholarship offer from Georgia Tech and ended up committing to Presbyterian who also offered him. He subsequently eased into a contributory role, making just two starts as a true freshman.

But he began to see the field much more often during his sophomore season. Ya-Sin started every game that year, leading the team with nine pass breakups and scoring the Blue Hose’s only defensive touchdown of the year when he recovered a fumble and took it the distance against South Alabama. A year later, he took it a step further by tallying a school-record five interceptions as an every-game starter en route to first-team all-Big South accolades.

For a short time, Ya-Sin’s senior season appeared in limbo as Presbyterian announced they were moving down to Division II starting in 2018. It led to him transferring to Temple where he became an immediate impact playmaker during his lone season with the Owls. He intercepted two passes and made 12 pass breakups, the latter of which was third-best among American Athletic Conference players.

Strengths

boasts ideal size and overall frame;

solid read and react instincts in coverage;

stays square to the receiver, providing a good mirror when he plays man;

a quick-hipped prospect who can seamlessly move laterally;

able to adjust to the ball and come up with it in traffic;

gets his hands in the right spots to bat down balls;

confident and competitive on the field.

Weaknesses

needs to give receivers more of a jab at the line of scrimmage;

open-field tackling skills could use a bit of work;

could be more assertive when forcing and containing in run support;

gives receivers too much space to exploit when he shows outside leverage;

didn’t show much in terms of coming from the edge on corner blitzes;

obvious questions over experience with just a year of FBS play under his belt.

NFL Comparison: Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie

Teams With Need at Position: Arizona Cardinals, Buffalo Bills, Chicago Bears, Cleveland Browns, Dallas Cowboys, Kansas City Chiefs, Los Angeles Rams, New Orleans Saints, New York Jets, Pittsburgh Steelers, Washington Redskins

Projection: Late first round

Bottom Line

Ya-Sin made scouts and other NFL talent evaluators take notice during his lone season at Temple. He has the size teams at the next level look for in their cornerbacks while also bringing a skill set that suggests he can make an impact. It includes impressive ball skills and the ability to make big plays whether it’s an interception or just keeping the ball out of the receiver’s hands. He also boasts fluid hips which enable him to change direction rather effortlessly.

Among the things he needs to improve on is becoming a more physical press corner. Too often he relied on his athleticism to cover opposing receivers rather than trying to jam them immediately after the snap. There’s also the issue of his lack of experience. He played just one year of FBS football and even then, he didn’t see very many top-level receivers. Still, he impressed at the Senior Bowl and should be able to compete for starter-level reps once training camp rolls around.

Embed from Getty Images