Before the 2025 NFL season began, if you were told that a cornerback of the Houston Texans would be making a significant leap from where he was at the end of the 2024 season, you probably would've jumped to Derek Stingley Jr. Now Stingley was an All-Pro in 2024, so any leap he could make would've vaulted him into the top spot on the Best Cornerback Alive totem pole.
Thus far in 2025, that hasn't happened for Stingley. But what has happened is that despite staying under the radar, Kamari Lassiter is emerging as one of the best young defensive backs in the entire National Football League. And by the way, his nickname -- "The Locksmith" -- is top-tier and deserves way more love than it's getting.
On a defense that boasts as much talent as the Texans, it would be easy to remain an afterthought. After all, Lassiter needs to compete with more established stars like Stingley, Will Anderson Jr., Danielle Hunter and Jalen Pitre for recognition. But Lassiter is only 22 years old, and it's clear after nine weeks, his time in the spotlight isn't just coming... it's arrived.
Kamari Lassiter's 2025 Season to Date
What the stats are saying: 54 tackles, 7 passes defended, 4 tackles for loss, 2 interceptions, 1 game-clinching interception, 74.1 PFF Grade (14th among107 qualified cornerbacks)
What DeMeco Ryans is saying: I want our entire team thinking that way, how Kamari is thinking. It’s not about getting overly excited about the big play or the win. It’s focusing on, ‘What about those plays you missed?’ That’s where you should harp on the most to me, because how can you get better and play a complete game as a player? That’s what you’re always seeking," Ryans said of Lassiter back in October.
He added, “Kamari has been consistent. He’s a tough, hard-nosed player, old school. He’s a corner who loves to play physical, which is rare these days. Kamari likes to tackle, and he brings a different intensity out on the perimeter than most corners, because of his physicality, but also just his smarts intelligence and his playmaking ability.”
What Kamari Lassiter himself is saying: "I’m hungry for more, I’m not really satisfied. I don’t really think that, outside of us winning, me personally, when you tap in, I need to dig deeper."
What PFF was saying about the Kamari Lassiter/Derek Stingley Jr. pairing before the season began: "Stingley established himself among the best cornerbacks in the league in 2023, but not many expected him to form arguably the best cornerback duo in the NFL with second-round pick Kamari Lassiter in 2024," PFF's Zoltan Buray wrote in June. "The two put together one of the best statistical seasons by a cornerback duo in recent memory. Stingley allowed a 39.6 passer rating into his coverage, which led all cornerbacks and is the equivalent of a quarterback just throwing the ball into the dirt on every play. Lassiter was not far behind, placing second (59.7) in that category. They were also the top two cornerbacks in the league in completion rate allowed, with Lassiter (45.2%) beating out Stingley (45.3%)."
What the tape is saying: The tape says that everything that made Lassiter a standout as a rookie -- his sitcky coverage, his ability to play man or zone, his willingness to play a physical brand of football -- is allowing Lassiter to continue to stand out in his second pro season.
Even though Lassiter is somewhat undersized -- 6-foot, 180 lbs. -- he's fearless and eager as a tackler, and through eight weeks, he leads the entire Houston Texans defense with 54 tackles. In fact, Lassiter is third among all cornerbacks in the league in tackles this season. His missed tackle rate has improved from 10.8% to 6.9% so far this season.
Though Lassiter hasn't been quite as good in coverage based on the numbers, he's still proving worthy of The Locksmith nickname. Opposing quarterbacks are completing 57% of passes when targeting the second-year corner, and their passer rating is 77.2, both well below the NFL averages of 65% completion and 94.0 passer rating.
Past Defensive Spotlights
10/8/2025 - Jalen Pitre
10/15/2025 - Danielle Hunter
10/22/2025 - Will Anderson Jr.
10/29/2025 - Azeez Al-Shaair