The future was uncertain 53 weeks ago when cornerback Starling (call him Star) Thomas V was assigned to the Arizona Cardinals on waivers from the Detroit Lions after the cutdown to 53 players.
Thomas did prove himself to be a fast study, playing in 12 games and starting seven after being inactive for the first four, but that didn’t stop the Cardinals from selecting cornerbacks Max Melton and Elijah Jones in the second and third rounds, respectively, and then picking Jaden Davis in the seventh round of this year’s draft.
How did Thomas react? He told Cards Wire this week, “I just took the underdog mentality. There’s competition every day. I’m trusting God. He put me in this position, the position that I’m in now, just to be able to show everybody that I’m a consistent player and I’m a starting cornerback in the NFL at the end of the day.”
That’s what he’s expected to be when the Cardinals defense takes the field Sunday against the Buffalo Bills. Thomas was with the first unit a lot at the start of training camp and then Melton missed about a week of practice. That allowed Thomas to build even more confidence from the coaches.
Safety Budda Baker is enthused by what Thomas brings to the field.
“Star’s just a guy that came in and worked hard each and every day,” Baker said. “Star is like my little bro. I put him under my wing, offseason training with the guys that I train with, running, competing with me, sprinting. We have our conversations and our smack talk throughout the offseason on who’s faster.”
But mostly Baker worked with Thomas on the understanding of the game, “just teaching him a little more about the safety position as well, to let him understand in this call, this is what we’re reading, so it helps him understand how he should read things as a corner. I’m definitely excited for Star; he’s done a great job in the offseason, training camp. He’s made a lot of plays and then in the preseason I told the coaches that I didn’t want him to play, but of course the young boys, they’ve got to play so he did a great job in the preseason.
“I’m very excited to see what he can do in the real season now that it’s starting.”
Veteran corner Sean Murphy-Bunting has also been impressed, saying, “Star works hard, harder than a lot of people that I’ve been around. And he shows up every single day with just a mindset to get better. I think that’s what’s continuing for him to make him each and every week trying to get better and develop more into the player that he is.
“Because he shows up, puts in the work. He’s accountable for the things that he does and relies and leans on the vets. He asks questions and that’s really beneficial for him.”
Thomas said of where he is now, “It’s a blessing. I thank God for it every day. Just appreciate and cherish it, knowing how far I came from last season to this season and now the jump that I’ve made.”
How did he accomplish it?
“Trusting myself,” he said. “Leaving it at work, the abilities God gave me, my teammates believing in me and just going out there and showing it and just choosing to be consistent with everything. Consistent routine, consistent day-to-day process and being able to reset every play. Being a level-headed player.”
Consistency was the first word head coach Jonathan Gannon said when asked about Thomas this week, after which he launched into a primer on cornerback play that shows how little those who watch the game actually understand the intricacies. As former NFL head coach Jim Mora Sr. once famously said, “You may think you know, but you don’t know. And you never will.”
Along those lines, Gannon often talks about players know-knowing what they’re doing, which is what he said about Thomas:
“Really know-knowing technique and the why behind each call. For a DB, it’s really important; it happened Thursday for him. (Defensive coordinator) Nick (Rallis) and I talk about the three S’s of each call; you gotta know them: situation, strength, stress and when you put that into a DB, especially a corner, (it means) am I the strength of the call or does the stress fall upon me? (You’ve) got to bleed your technique into that and then you’ve got to know who you’re playing and what I can’t give up or I can be a little more aggressive within each call, each down and distance.
“There’s a game within a game going on that’s awesome. I think that he’s a done a really good job of that since he’s been here to where he’s at now is really understanding how he can change his technique to be more aggressive or less aggressive by the call. Or know what route he cannot give up or what route he can give up. Where is his help on what routes on the splits of guys? He’s really taken his game mentally to another level. That’s why I like where he’s at.”
Meanwhile, when told that Baker called him his “little bro,” Thomas smiled and said, “I love that guy. He took me under his wing from the first time we ever met. We didn’t have a connection (then), but it’s unmatched right now. It’s leaning onto everyday life. He invites me over to his house to meet his daughter and invited me and my wife over for Thanksgiving. We’re building a relationship that goes way beyond football.”
And he just might be building a skillset and mentality to be an excellent, yes consistent, player while living up to that V (the fifth) after his name. That’s where he had some laughter when asked if he knows how far back in his lineage it goes.
“I don’t even know,” he said, adding, “it’s pretty far back, probably the 1900s. The third is my grandfather. That’s as far as I know.”
Finally, was everyone Star or just you?
Thomas said, “There’s a lot of strength in that name and I’m the only Star, the one and only Star. I go by Star because I’m a star in the making. Everyone in the city calls me Star and I love it.”
He didn’t say it with bravado or sound over the top. He just said it with confidence and a genuine belief in himself. Which, after all, is what stars do.
Get more Cardinals and NFL coverage from Cards Wire’s Jess Root and others by listening to the latest on the Rise Up, See Red podcast. Subscribe on Spotify, YouTube or Apple podcasts.