Inside Linebacker
Dontarrious Thomas
College: Auburn
Year: Senior
Height: 6’4″
Weight: 238
Birthday: September 2, 1980
Strengths: Dontarrius Thomas moves inside to middle linebacker this season after previously manning the weakside position for Auburn. Tiger coach Tommy Tuberville has called Thomas and Karlos Dansby the best pair of linebackers that he has ever coached. Tuberville coached some big-name linebacker units as an assistant at Miami, including one consisting of Jessie Armstead, Michael Barrow, and Darrin Smith.
Thomas has great lateral speed and is a solid tackler. He is not as flashy as Dansby, but is very steady and consistent. Thomas sprained his knee in Auburn’s season opener but played through the pain all season.
Thomas finished the 2002 season on a high note, with back-to-back strong performances in Auburn’s wins over archrival Alabama and bowl opponent Penn State. Against the Crimson Tide, Thomas made 10 tackles and registered a sack. Facing the Nittany Lions he made another eight tackles and a sack.
Areas of Concern: Thomas struggles when he is forced to take on big linemen at the point of attack. He had a very long day when Auburn lost to Arkansas last year, thanks in large part to Razorback All-American tackle Shawn Andrews. Thomas was limited to three tackles for the game and was flattened by Andrews on one touchdown run.
How Would He Look in Steel Blue? Thomas is not the typical inside linebacker who can stuff the run between the tackles but does not have the wheels to help out on the flanks. He is at his best when he can chase down plays, and his success in a 3-4 defense would be in a large degree dependent upon the ability of the down linemen in front of him to keep blockers off of him.
(profile written by Warren DeLuca
)
Dontarrious Thomas’ 2002 Stats G TCK TFL SACK FF FR INT 12 91 9 3.0 0 2 0
Dontarrious Thomas 
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