Hard-hitting Hurricanes safety Jakobe Thomas picked in third round of 2026 NFL Draft
Jakobe Thomas established himself as a hard-hitting safety during his one season with the Miami Hurricanes.
He’ll now take those talents to the NFL.
The Minnesota Vikings drafted Thomas in the third round with the No. 98 overall pick on Day 2 of the 2026 NFL Draft on Friday.
Thomas, who spent his first four seasons of college football at Middle Tennessee State from 2021-23 and then Tennessee at 2024, started every game at safety for Miami last season on its way to the College Football Playoff National Championship Game. He finished second on the team with 76 tackles while also recording five interceptions, six pass breakups, two forced fumbles and two fumble recoveries.
And Thomas had his breakout while paying homage to one of the Hurricanes’ top players.
Thomas has been writing the name of the late Sean Taylor — who was a star with the Hurricanes, an eventual first-round pick and two-time Pro Bowler before being shot and killed on Nov. 27, 2007, during a home invasion and botched burglary at 24 years old — on his backplate throughout his entire college career.
“When I got the chance to come to Miami,” Thomas said, “it kind of just became a part of the culture of who I am as a person when I get on the field. I try to imitate as much as him as I can while being my own person.”
He helped the Hurricanes get back to the national stage for the first time in decades, a goal Thomas hoped to accomplish in his short amount of time with Miami.
He got inspiration every time he walked into Miami’s practice facility and saw all the legends honored throughout the building. All-Americans. Eventual Hall of Famers.
“You just see all the names, and you realize this is a great place to be,” Thomas said. “I just try to carry on what they started.”
He’ll now have the chance to do that in the NFL
What they’re saying
-NFL.com analyst Lance Zierlein describes Thomas as a “productive, fifth-year safety prospect” who is “wired to play forward and race into the action wherever it is present.”
“He overflows pursuit and has too many missed or broken tackles on his stat sheet, but his impact against the run is a net positive. He has good ball production but is fairly average in coverage. He can be way too quick to overlap or bite on bait, which allows receivers to get behind him from single-high and split-safety alignments. Thomas has the potential to develop into a starter.”
-ESPN’s Field Yates has his No. 146 prospect and No. 9 safety
-The Athletic’s Dane Brugler has Thomas as the No. 139 overall prospect in the draft and No. 11 safety, describing him as “a coachable, passionate competitor who will at least be a special-teamer, if not more.”
“Against the run and in coverage, Thomas is champing at the bit to make plays. He reads it, triggers and looks to tune up ball carriers. He plays a lot more physically than he looks, although his aggressiveness can be a double-edged sword and lead to over-pursuit or missed tackles. He tracks the quarterback well from depth with ball skills but will overthink route concepts and isn’t as effective once he turns his back to the ball.”
-CBS Sports had Thomas as its No. 230 overall draft prospect and No. 15 safety.
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