NFL Draft 2010 Player Profile: Darian Stewart, South Carolina Safety

Summary: Darian Stewart has been a starter for the Gamecocks at safety and spur since the second half of the 2007 campaign. In his early days as a starter, he was part of the forgettable late-season defensive collapse that we suffered through. Since then, though, Stewart has been a rock solid player for the Gamecocks. The hard-hitting safety has been very consistent and has made many memorable plays for us. Although he tended to fly under the radar on the league and national levels, he will be remembered fondly by Gamecocks fans.

What the Pros Have Right: Darian has an extremely versatile skill set, as demonstrated by the fact that he’s played both safety and spur throughout his USC career. He believes he can play corner, safety, and linebacker at the professional level. Because of his frame and tackling ability, he projects primarily as a strong safety, but his versatility could be attractive to teams that want him both to provide depth at SS and to be a utility player for various speciality defensive packages. I could see Darian finding a place in the league in this context.