‘Backyard football, ball’s in the air, just go get it,’ Texans corner Kamari Lassiter

HOUSTON – Kamari Lassiter mirrored every step San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Jauan Jennings took, matching him stride for stride downfield while reading the eyes of quarterback Mac Jones.

Retreating in single coverage, the Texans’ cornerback flipped his hips and looked back to react to the football while maintaining his leverage with stickiness that Jennings couldn’t escape.

Jennings couldn’t create separation from Lassiter as he bodied him out of the way with perfect positioning for a leaping interception in the end zone to ice the game.

It was such a thoroughly textbook application of coverage technique that it could be used to teach how to play the cornerback position at its highest level.

“It was cool, it was surreal,” Lassiter said following a 26-15 win over the 49ers at NRG Stadium. “Just to be able to go out there, I’m living my dream, you know what I’m saying? I go out there, I feel like I have nothing to lose, I’m living my dream. So just going out there knowing that the game’s on the line, the ball’s in the air, I feel like that’s just backyard football. Just go get it. That’s what I wanna go do."

Although Jennings has speed to burn as an outside receiver, there was no breathing room for him as Lassiter basically ran his route for him.

It was eerily familiar to how Lassiter, nicknamed ‘The Locksmith,’ shadowed Baltimore Ravens wide receiver Rashod Bateman earlier this season.

Lassiter high-pointed the football on an errant pass from Ravens quarterback Cooper Rush for his first interception of the season in a 44-10 blowout victory at M&T Bank Stadium.

“Kamari’s doing a great job of really working his technique and coverage and being able to not just find the ball but be on the receiver, find a way to look up for the football and come down with it,” Texans coach DeMeco Ryans said. “That’s a really nice play he’s made here in our stadium. Two times this year he’s been tried down the sideline. He went up and made the play. So, I’m really proud of his growth and development. He’s doing a great job for us.”

A second-round draft pick from Georgia, Lassiter excelled as a rookie with three interceptions, 10 passes defensed, 58 tackles, four for losses and one safety.

He allowed just 32 completions on 73 targets for a 43.8 completion percentage, 424 yards and four touchdowns for an opposing quarterback rating of 64.0

This season, he has two interceptions, 45 tackles, four for losses and five passes defensed. He has allowed 19 catches on 31 targets for a 61.3 completion percentage, 259 yards and an opposing passer rating of 82.6.

Lassiter has a nose for the football and great instincts and skills.

“I feel like whenever you go out there and you think about plays, they don’t come to you,” Lassiter said. “Whenever you just go out there and you just play the game the right way, I feel like things just happen the way they’re supposed to. And that was something that I kind of struggle with because I mean obviously we all want to make play and we’re all playmakers, but just going out there and just doing a little differently, like just seeing what you’re supposed to see and just reacting. I feel like that’s what we did as a defense.

“We love to have the game in our hands as a defense. And I mean that’s what you dream of, like just to be able to be on this stage and make those plays. So on that play it was a double move outside of the numbers that’s one-on-one. So, I feel like it’s him or me.”

Known for his ability to lock up receivers with his sticky coverage skills, Lassiter delivered an acrobatic, game-changing interception of Los Angeles Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert during an AFC wild-card round playoff victory. He joined former NFL Defensive Player of the Year J.J. Watt as the only two rookies in franchise history to intercept a pass in a playoff game.

As well as Lassiter has played, especially since the departure of controversial safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson, it’s not quite up to the impeccably high standard he expects individually. Lassiter’s intensity is impossible to overlook. He wears his game face and passion for football all of the time.

“I’ve always had that itch to practice hard, that’s where I come from, but I feel like I’ve definitely kind of just tuned in more on like my weekly process and I feel like it’s not coming to fruition yet,” Lassiter said. “To be brutally honest, I’m not really satisfied. Despite the play at the end of the game, like with the pick, everything. I feel like that’s expected. We have a high standard amongst each other that every ball is ours.

“It’s great to be able to make a play, but I want to make every play. So I’m just blessed to be in a position to be around these guys and a coach like this. To be able to make a play like that. 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.’

Lassiter trained hard all summer alongside his private coach, Jacory Nichols, backpedaling, cutting and covering alongside several teammates, including one of his best friends, safety Calen Bullock.

The blue-collar work ethic. The physical style as a willing and capable tackler. Recovery speed. Advanced knowledge of the game.

Lassiter has a lot working in his favor.

Especially his uncomplacent mentality.

Wide receiver Xavier Hutchinson said that Lassiter will even hit himself in the head with his hands. That’s how serious Lassiter is about the next play, the next pass, the next chance to pick off a pass.

“He’s a little psycho,” Hutchinson said.

Lassiter isn’t big on self-promotion. He’s about action. He’s focused on tape and teamwork. The flashiest thing about him is his nickname and a special silver chain with an engraved lock with ‘K3′ stenciled in the middle.

“I call myself The Locksmith,’” Lassiter said. “I pride myself on having stuff on lock. I really wanted to get a lock with the name ‘Locksmith’ on there.”

A teammate at Georgia gave him the nickname as an underclassmen.

“He started calling me The Locksmith and it just kind of stuck with me,” Lassiter said. “Got it on lock.”

Signed to a four-year, $9.014 million contract that included a $3.376 million signing bonus, Lassiter yielded only 136 passing yards and no touchdowns on 15 receptions off 37 targets in his final collegiate season to rank first in the NCAA among cornerbacks, according to Pro Football Focus analytics.

“Cold,” Texans All-Pro corner Derek Stingley Jr. said. “He is different. I’m proud of him.”

Lassiter has displayed a competitive mettle and ability to do it all as a physical corner.

After a stellar career for a national championship squad with the Georgia Bulldogs, Lassiter has made an immediate impact on the Texans’ defense.

“I feel like I was built for it since I was young,” Lassiter said. “There’s not much I haven’t seen. I play with the passion I’ve always had and play for the people who love me and even the people who hate me.”

The camaraderie and quality of the secondary makes them a potentially special group.

Operating behind a defense headlined by Pro Bowl pass rushers Danielle Hunter and Will Anderson Jr., the secondary is preparing for the football to come of the quarterbacks’ hands fast. There should be opportunities to make plays.

“I definitely know that rush and cover works hand in hand,” Lassiter said. “We have an amazing rush with those guys up front. I mean like you can’t ask for much more and they’re attacking. I mean just playing on that back end, you just kind of know. Sometimes that ball might get out fast and if it doesn’t, just do your job."

When he’s not playing football, Lassiter spends time with family or playing video games. He says nobody on the team can beat him in the UFC fighting game. “I’m the best for sure,” he said.

Lassiter doesn’t waste time looking back. Lassiter was the fifth cornerback selected overall after first-round picks Quinyon Mitchell, Terrion Arnold and Nate Wiggins and second-round pick Kool-Aid McKinstry.

Not being drafted higher isn’t something that consumes Lassiter. He’s grounded in the present: the next play, the next practice, the next game.

"I don’t really care, that’s in the past,“ Lassiter said. ”I’m grateful to be drafted. I’m blessed to be in this position. I’m blessing on this team and playing with the guys that I get to play with every day. I mean, I got drafted. A lot of people didn’t, can’t say that. So I mean I’m not really worried about that."

What Lassiter cares about deeply is winning and being reliable for his teammates and coaches. Ultimately, it’s about trying to win a Super Bowl. Anything less isn’t satisfying.

“That’s what we’re all working for,” Lassiter said. “That’s the only goal to be honest: to win a championship. I feel like every guy in this locker room, player, coach, support staff, anybody, I feel that’s what were all working towards. And that’s why we put our best foot forward every day.”

Aaron Wilson is a Texans and NFL reporter for KPRC 2 and click2houston.com