NFL Draft Profile: Drake Thomas, Linebacker, North Carolina State Wolfpack
Drake Thomas
North Carolina State Wolfpack
#32
Pos: LB
Ht: 5112
Wt: 228
Hand: 0938
Arm: 2918
Wing: 7228
40: 4.75
DOB: 2/25/2000
Hometown: Wake Forest, NC
High School: Heritage
Eligibility: 2023
One-Liners
A really undersized linebacker, Thomas doesn’t have the traits teams will value in the draft.
Evaluation:
It is easy to see on film that Thomas is undersized. He was the strongside linebacker in the NC State defense. They asked him to drop back into zone coverage a lot. Thomas has a good feel for where to be in zone coverage but his lack of size and length prevents him from making plays in that regard. Thomas is in the right spot a lot of the time but his physical limitations hurt him. As a run defender, Thomas has good enough instincts but didn’t make enough translatable plays. Thomas gets stuck on blocks too often, as he gets overwhelmed by bigger and stronger offensive linemen. His length makes it difficult for him to wrap up ball carriers in open space. Thomas is at his best as a tackler in short spaces but he struggled to make plays when ball carriers had room to work with. For a smaller player, Thomas couldn’t get skinny and sift through traffic. He got washed out of blocks a lot and didn’t make any difficult plays. As a blitzer, Thomas’ lack of size and short choppy steps made it difficult for him to get after the quarterback. Very rarely did he end up near the quarterback. There is a lot of hustle on Thomas’ film, as he never gives up on plays. Thomas has an old-school mentality but his lack of size and length is really concerning. It shows up against the better teams and the other areas of his game aren’t good enough to mask them. With his experience and special teams ability, Thomas deserves a shot in camp. There is production, unfortunately his measurables may prevent him from making a 53-man roster or practice squad.
Grade:
UDFA
Background:
Born February 25th, 2000 in Wake Forest, North Carolina, Drake Thomas was a standout multi-sport athlete at Heritage High School. A baseball player with a career batting average of .267, the now Wolfpack defender stood out on the football field at middle linebacker and running back. As a sophomore, he put up 113 tackles and seven tackles for loss; he ran 57 times for 336 yards and a touchdown. As a junior, he recorded 112 tackles and three interceptions. On offense, he had 30 carries for 287 yards and three touchdowns. In his final high school season, Thomas made 123 tackles, sacked the quarterback three times and intercepted two passes. He also ran the ball 50 times for 280 yards and seven touchdowns. He even blocked two kicks. That year, Heritage lost in the first round of the NC 4A state playoffs. He ended his career as the school’s all-time leading tackler. He was invited to the 2018 Shrine Bowl of the Carolinas All-Star Game. 247Sports Composite Rankings recognized his stellar performance in high school, awarding him a three-star rating. The outlet also named him the 581st-overall recruit nationally, the 29th-best inside linebacker that year and the 25th-ranked player from North Carolina in his class. Thomas chose NC State over programs like Clemson, Alabama, Michigan and more. In his freshman year for the Wolfpack, the talented linebacker played in 12 games and started three. He put up 34 tackles, four tackles for loss, 2.5 sacks, one interception, one quarterback hurry and two pass breakups. In 2020, he built upon his stellar debut campaign. He played in and started 10 games; in the process, Thomas recorded 58 tackles, 9.5 tackles for loss, three sacks, five quarterback hurries and one pass breakup. He was 30th in the ACC in tackles per game and 17th in tackles for loss. Thomas was fifth and third on the team in tackles and tackles for loss, respectively. He missed the Miami game with a pectoral injury but would play through the pain for the remainder of the regular season. That said, he missed the TaxSlayer Gator Bowl after undergoing surgery. Thomas had another strong statistical performance in 2021. His brother, Thayer Thomas, is a wide receiver at NC State. Drake Thomas is majoring in business administration.
