2026 NFL Draft Scouting Report: Brandon Cisse (CB – South Carolina)

FantasyPros will be taking a look at early NFL Draft scouting reports before the Combine in February. Here’s a look at South Carolina cornerback Brandon Cisse.

2026 NFL Draft Scouting Report: Brandon Cisse

Brandon Cisse (CB – South Carolina)

6’0″ – 190 lbs.

Background

Three- or four-star recruit (source-dependent) and South Carolina native who originally committed to North Carolina State. Rotated into the defense with ten tackles and an interception as a freshman, then started all nine games he appeared in the following year, finishing with 28 tackles and five passes defensed. Transferred to the Gamecocks this past season and totaled 27 tackles, five breakups, and one interception.

Positives

Effective two-year starter who proved that he could make the step up into SEC competition this past year. Tall, long-limbed cornerback who plays a lot of zones out of shuffle technique from off-coverage, and will occasionally bail into zone from more of a press look, with some bump-and-run mixed in. Uses his hands well at the line when jamming, with a physical temperament and good pop. Excellent athlete whose top-end speed and burst are more than enough to carry most receivers down or across the field. Shows quick feet at the line and in his backpedal to get depth and stay over the top of routes. Maintains good sight lines from zone. Does a nice job of processing route combinations and making adjustments as needed. Twitchy at the top of the stem to provide tight coverage when pattern-matching, showing impressive reflexes and avoiding drift. Seamlessly transitions from shuffling to driving, with impressive burst. Didn’t play a ton of press during the games reviewed, but shows an understanding of how to use his length to pin opponents to the sidelines. Flashes the ability to use his length/hands to his advantage to stay connected while maintaining awareness of the ball from zone, with impressive contact balance for a player with his build. Gets his head around early to locate when his back is to the ball. Length and awareness allow him to make plays on the ball, breaking up a decent amount of his targets.

Negatives

Frame is still on the thin side and could be asked to gain some additional bulk at the next level. Would have liked to see him play more man coverage, and more techniques other than shuffle/bump-and-run. Can occasionally get dependent on his hips/feet to stay connected from off-coverage. Plays a bit aggressively against some route combinations from zone, which puts stress on his recovery speed when he sits on shorter routes. Has just two career interceptions to his name. Was a highly reliable tackler in 2024, but misses ticked up this past season. Rotated off the field a bit more than you’d think from someone projected to go this high.

Summary

A tall, lanky cornerback with excellent athleticism and twitch, he was rarely tested this past year for the Gamecocks, playing a lot of zone coverage from shuffle techniques and bump-and-run. His physicality and ability to use his length stand out, and there’s pretty solid route processing/anticipation on tape as well. There’s a little bit of projection required here because the team’s scheme doesn’t provide a ton of tape in some of the techniques/coverages you’d like to see, but what’s there looks very good. These are starting-caliber tools, potentially those of a number-one corner, so look for him to come off the board early.

Projection: Round 1