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#3 2021 NFL Draft Prospect: Andre Cisco (Syracuse)
6' 0", 205 pounds; JR
Barely a top-1000 overall recruit in 2018, Andre Cisco started all but two games his freshman year and has been one of the most productive safeties in college football since then.
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He was named the ACC Defensive Rookie of the Year and a first-team all-conference selection, thanks to being tied for the nation-lead with seven interceptions (first true freshman to do so in almost 70 years) to go along with line for passes broken up and 60 tackles.
While the numbers did go down slightly, he still deflected and picked off five passes each (one returned to the house), to go along with a fumble forced and recovered each, earning second-team All-ACC honors. Last season he unfortunately tore his ACL two games in, when he had one pick.
Especially as a freshman, Cisco played a ton of single-high free safety and consistently stayed deeper than the deepest. However, the Orange started out in two-high looks a large amount of time and rolled one of them into the deep middle, which brought Cisco down into the flats or as a robber, plus of course staying in quarters to some degree.
The speed and fluidity in the hips are excellent for this young man. He shows good sink in his lower half and a very easy pedal to gain depth, but once he reacts, he can cover a lot of ground in little time. You see him drift one way and then flip and run over to the opposite numbers, before high-pointing the ball on multiple picks in his career.
When he has to turn his back to quarterback up the post initially as a receiver is pushing that way, he does a great job re-locating the ball and getting a hand on it. Moreover, he has the anticipation and situational awareness to come up from depth and shut down mesh concepts and stuff like that, to avoid easy third-down conversions. That feel for when to shoot downhill is something really jumped off the screen on a few occasions.
Cisco is just a play-maker, who knows what to do once the ball is in his hands, as he recorded 143 interception return yards in his career.
While I – and probably the NFL as well – like him best at free safety, he has the size and skill-set to take on box duties, plus he was brought down as a robber quite a bit as well, where he cut in front of several receivers, as he saw the quarterback release the ball. When he drives on routes underneath, he hits with the shoulder through the side of where the ball is placed, in order to knock it loose, if he can’t get his own hands on it.
While covering underneath, he is a threat to undercut any routes out to the flats, especially if quarterbacks don’t drive the ball as hard as they can. Cisco wasn’t always put in the best situations, playing 15 yards deep and getting matched up against slot receivers with a two-way go. He also has quality reps in man-coverage against tight-ends and number three’s in trips, where his speed and loose hips allow him to stick with his guy throughout the pattern and leading into scramble drills.
He is a threat for late passes, when QBs try to still force something. While he won’t always just shoot up the alley in run support, the Cuse’ young standout was surprisingly effective with his ankle tackling and thanks to his range could limit some potentially explosive plays. He has the size to bring down big running backs in solo-fashion and deal with tight-ends working up to him in the run game.
Yet Cisco’s angles and breakdowns in run support need plenty of help, being made look foolish on several occasions. As a tackler, he constantly allows extra yardage due to leaving his feet. Cisco doesn’t come downhill against the run very aggressively, but at the same time gets drawn in by play-action way too much I feel like. He doesn’t play up to his size as a box-defender and also in the open field, he is not looking to attack blockers.
As crazy as it may sound for a guy who led the nation in picks, I think Cisco is a little too passive when the route pattern has developed and there’s a chance to drive on routes in front of him. And for as many plays as he made on the ball for the Cuse, he also was responsible for quite a few as well. PFF charged him for six TDs in 2019, including getting beat across his face on a post route by Tutu Atwell for a 90-yard touchdown in the Louisville game. When you watch his career interception reel, five or six of those 13 basically were thrown right into his hands, either off a deflection or just bad ball-placement – not saying the other ones weren’t impressive.
Even though I have already proclaimed my love for UCF’s Richie Grant, I think Cisco is one of the better combo safeties we have seen come out recently, with plenty of ball-production to his name.
Rarely do I think players actually live up to the kind of numbers Cisco has made on the ball, but while there are some less-impressive ones, he also creates some big ones. You can do a lot with him in terms of coverage rotations and being interchangeable with multiple positions. Of course, health will be a factor in the evaluation, but ACL surgeries are nothing major nowadays, and his size makes injuries less of a concern.
