Name: Andru Phillips

School: Kentucky

Year: Sr

Position: Cornerback

Measurables: 5106 190, 8 ¾” hands, 31 ¼” arms, 75” wingspan

Combine: 4.48 40, 1.51 10-yard split (pro day: 42” vert, 1103 broad, 4.29 short shuttle, 6.98 3-cone, 16 reps)

Stats:

Courtesy of Sports-Reference.com

General Info:

Phillips was born into sports, his father was a linebacker at Kentucky, his brother CJ also played football at Morehead State, and his mother was also an athlete in high school. Coming out of high school he was a three-star recruit that also participated in track and was ranked #1 nationally as a triple jumper. He picked Kentucky over offers from Tennessee, Virginia Tech, Louisville, North Carolina State, and Georgia. For his freshman season he played in six games mostly only special teams. The following season he played in nine games, but still mostly played special teams (playing defensive snaps in just two games). For his junior season the former Wildcat had a huge bump in snaps and started four games and was essentially the starting nickel. Phillips finished the season with 31 tackles, 1.5 TFLs, and five PBUs. For the former Three-stars final season he started every game except one on the outside, but still saw a lot of snaps in the slot. He finished 2023 with 47 tackles, 1.5 TFLs and five PBUs. Phillips attended both the senior bowl and the NFL combine.

Positional Skills:

Strengths

Phillips being a former triple jumper and having a 11-foot three-inch broad jump shows up on film, he is very explosive, especially moving forward off the snap or when he clicks and closes. For being 5’10 ¾ he has long arms and they also show up on the film. The combination of his solid speed and high level explosiveness makes it hard for receivers to burn him on any deep routes. Phillips has a lot of experience the last two season at both outside and inside corner. Despite not being the biggest he is a physical and aggressive run supporter, he has no problem taking on and taking out lead blockers. The former Wildcat is also very good against wide receiver and running back screens, he consistently blows those plays up, he definitely has some pop in his pads. He has smooth hips and turns and runs with ease. Phillips has experience in press, off, and zone coverage. He has also shown flashes of patience, staying in phase and not panicking or falling for moves. He has a lot of special team’s experience. The former three-star recruit has shown flashes of ball skills. The South Carolina native has solid block deconstructing skills and is usually able to get off wide receiver/running backs or he can even slip them. Due to his aggressive play style and explosiveness he does not give up much in the way of YAC.

Weaknesses

Phillips had some missed tackle issues this past season with 15 misses after missing just four the previous season. The former Wildcat will come down out of control at times which causes some of his missed tackles. He used a side saddle/bail technique a lot which isn’t used a real lot in the NFL and can leave you susceptible to wide receivers beating you on the outside if they get in your blind spot. There are some questions about his ball skills due to him having 0 career interceptions and 10 career pass break ups. Phillips has average size, and some taller receivers might give him some trouble. Phillips can be a tick late to react in off coverage, or even get himself turned the wrong way. Phillips also will have trouble locating the ball with his back to it. He also basically redshirted his first two seasons, mostly playing special teams.

Fit with the Packers:

Phillips would be a great fit with the Packers. He has some Jaire vibes to him in the way he plays the game. He is likely best fit playing in the nickel, but is in no way a nickel only and he showed this past season that he can play on the outside and would give the Packers a lot of interchangeability. He can be a little out of control when coming down to tackle and can be a little over aggressive in coverage sometimes but it hasn’t shown to be anything overly worrisome. The former Wildcat is the type of physical, aggressive, versatile, and athletic slot defender that the Packers have been looking for a while. While he has basically has played just two season at cornerback, so he still has some development to go. Plus, side is that he has a lot of special team’s experience and can contribute there while he works on his game and platoons with Nixon. Andru Phillips is easily a late day two or early day three pick.

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