2024 NFL Draft Scouting Report: Mike Sainristil

Prospect Summary:

For three seasons, Sainristil played receiver for Michigan and was buried on the depth chart. However in 2022, Saintristil switched to cornerback and became a key contributor with 58 tackles, two sacks, an interception and seven passes broken up. He then provided a big presence for the Wolverines in 2023, recording 44 tackles, two sacks, two forced fumbles, six interceptions and six passes batted away. He came up with some huge plays in helping Michigan to the National Championship.

On the positive side, there is no doubt that Sainristil has quality instincts. His play recognition is advanced, and he stays around the ball to make plays for his defense. Sainristil is a physical defender who comes downhill hard and is a willing tackler in the ground game. The lack of size doesn’t prevent Sainristil from being a willing tackler, as he will fly to the ball and not hesitate to get into contact. In college, Sainristil was an overachiever and figured out a way to make a lot of impactful plays.

While Sainristil is an instinctive defender, he faces real skill set limitations for the NFL. He is short, lacking strength, and does not have elite speed to make up for his size. As a pro, Sainristil could struggle with the physicality of being an inside slot corner. He gets bounced around by big defenders, while a slot corner needs to have developed strength to be an effective defender. With his short stature, Sainristil is always going to have issues with defenders making catches over him. He also can have issues biting on fakes in routes because he is such an aggressive defender and has only played corner for the past two seasons.

Sainristil looks like a mid-round pick for the 2024 NFL Draft. He could go as high as the third round and should not go lower than the fifth round.