Grading the Arizona Cardinals 2019 NFL Draft class

Fifth Round (Pick No. 139)

Deionte Thompson – S (Alabama)

A fifth-round pick, Deionte Thompson has been a stellar role player for the Cardinals. And really, once you get into the fifth round, the pick is nothing more than a crapshoot at that point. Hopefully, they contribute, but if they don’t, they don’t.

And no one’s expecting much out of a fifth-round pick. Despite this, Thompson has appeared in 41 of a possible 49 games. In 2021, the Cardinals mainly used him on special teams, where he saw action in 54 percent of his snaps. However, he filled in on an as-needed basis in 2019 and 2020.

Thompson also proved himself as a decent coverage guy in 2020, allowing just a 42.1 completion percentage on 19 pass attempts. And while he allowed two touchdowns and a 90.7 quarterback rating, his yards per target and yards per completion were 4.4 and 10.5, respectively.

Grade: A –

Thompson produces well for a fifth-round pick. And it’s likely he’ll be one of those players that hangs around the league for at least a decade playing in obscure roles. Ideal for a fifth-round pick.