By Lance Zierlein
NFL Analyst
Draft Projection
Round 6
Overview
Gamer who does whatever is necessary to help his team win. Vaki carries a thick frame with good upper-body power and heavy hands. He took on carries to help his team when it was stung by injuries, but he’s not an NFL running back. He’s a conscientious tackler who is careful to center up and launch his attack only when he’s in realistic striking position. He is overmatched in coverage and struggles when plays roll downfield. Vaki’s below-average athletic traits and lack of positional fit might create a limited path forward. Strengths
NFL Analyst
Draft Projection
Round 6
Overview
Gamer who does whatever is necessary to help his team win. Vaki carries a thick frame with good upper-body power and heavy hands. He took on carries to help his team when it was stung by injuries, but he’s not an NFL running back. He’s a conscientious tackler who is careful to center up and launch his attack only when he’s in realistic striking position. He is overmatched in coverage and struggles when plays roll downfield. Vaki’s below-average athletic traits and lack of positional fit might create a limited path forward. Strengths
- Productive tackler with a nose for the ball on coverage teams.
- Works eyes from quarterback to the route as split safety.
- Heavy hands send jarring punch into blockers’ attempts.
- Comes to balance and makes himself wide as open-field tackler.
- Patient to launch tackle tries only when he has target locked in.
- Backpedal is sluggish and fails to gain enough ground.
- Struggles to flip hips and run in phase with the route.
- Can be exploited when tasked with man coverage duties.
- Short arms and limited athleticism shrink his range as a tackler.
- Has very little margin for error playing in big spaces.
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