LSU Pro Day: Giants on hand to watch Derek Stingley Jr.

Defensive backs coach Jerome Henderson reportedly on hand

The LSU Pro Day, where cornerback Derek Stingley Jr. is the main attraction, is being held on Wednesday. New York Giants defensive backs coach Jerome Henderson is among those in attendance.

This is an important workout for Stingley. A Lisfranc injury sidelined him for much of the 2021 season and kept him from working out at the NFL Scouting Combine. Stingley was cleared for full activity about a month ago, and is expected to do all the drills on Wednesday.

Stingley had a tremendous 2019 season for LSU, his freshman year. He has not backed that up the past two seasons, with injuries being part of the reason.

Ahmad ‘Sauce’ Gardner of Cincinnati is considered the top cornerback in the 2022 draft class. Many believe Stingley has top 10 ability, the issue being that he hasn’t shown it consistently since that 2019 season. Can Stingley separate himself from the group of cornerbacks behind Gardner, a group that includes Trent McDuffie of Washington and Andrew Booth of Clemson?

NFL.com says:

Uniquely gifted cornerback with rare blend of size, speed and explosiveness that will have teams willing to judge his upside off of tape from two seasons ago. Stingley played in just 10 games over the last two years, offering flashes of his upside rather than sustained play. Regardless of season, he’s long, loose and extremely athletic. Elite speed and ball skills give him a chance to thrive as a bump-and-run corner capable of shadowing top talent around the field. He allows some separation from off-man but bursts to close distance instantly. He’s well-suited for a variety of zone coverages but needs to play with much better zeal and toughness in run support. Stingley will likely measure and test like Marshon Lattimore, Patrick Peterson and Antonio Cromartie (depending on his weight), but he needs to find that breakthrough 2019 form in order to reach his potential as a lockdown cover talent.

LSU also has several other draft-worthy prospects. Among them are inside linebacker Damone Clark, guard Ed Ingram, cornerback Cordale Flott and defensive tackle Neil Farrell Jr.