Michigan football's Mike Sainristil out to remind scouts he's 'complete package' at pro day

Mike Sainristil is confident he has the best hands of any defensive back in this year's NFL draft.

"100%," Sainristil told the Free Press in a phone interview Wednesday.

And when dozens of NFL scouts and likely some general managers show up at Michigan football pro day Friday, he plans to show them exactly why.

Sainristil said he likely will run pass routes for Michigan quarterback J.J. McCarthy as part of his pro day workout. A converted receiver, Sainristil switched full-time to defensive back in 2022 and led the Wolverines with six interceptions last year, when he earned first-team All-America honors from the Sporting News.

"Just to remind them I’m a guy that does it all," Sainristil said. "Just (giving scouts) that reassurance like, 'Yeah, Mikey Sainristil is the complete package and what we’re looking for in a player.'"

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An occasional starter at receiver and key special teams player his first three seasons at Michigan, Sainristil caught 36 passes for 562 yards before converting to defense. He won the slot cornerback job in 2022 and started all 15 games while helping Michigan to a national title last year.

Sainristil said he has no desire to play offense again full-time — "I found myself in a great spot defensively," he said — but wants NFL teams to take note of his versatility.

Along with running routes, Sainristil said he'll catch punts at his pro day workout to remind everyone "a ball in the air is most likely his." He also played gunner and jammer at Michigan.

"The more I can do, the better," he said. "I’m definitely going into this draft looking to cement myself as a DB. I want to go into the NFL and be a top nickel. Hopefully one day, I’m working to be the best nickel in the league. But as far as that goes, I don’t know what offensive scheme I’m going to be playing with, so wildcat package, just let coach know don’t be scared to throw Mikey out there."

Sainristil and McCarthy, a projected top-12 pick, have not thrown together in the pre-draft process but Sainristil said their lack of chemistry won't be an issue.

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"All I got to see is just the timing," he said. "Catch a few from him in warmups just to really get a feel for it. And really, too, I’d play it smart. I would just do the easy stuff anyway. A fade, a post. I don’t need to really be in there doing comebacks and curls, but let them see I can still catch."

With his tape, combine performance — he ran a 4.47-second 40-yard dash and broad jumped 10 feet, 11 inches — and interviews, Sainristil already has impressed enough that he is solidly in the Day 2 mix as a draft prospect.

He said he won't run the 40 again Friday, but will do the 20- and 60-yard shuttles and position drills.

He has a top-30 visit scheduled with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, will make local day visits to the Detroit Lions and New England Patriots, and said he's happy with the feedback he's received so far in the draft process.

"The thing I enjoyed hearing was just how good of a person I was," he said. "At the end of the day to me I think that’s the most important thing. Like you can be a great football player, but are you just as good of a man off the field as you are a player on the field? So I think I’m definitely somebody who cares more about my character and what people have to say when I’m not around then about me, so that was definitely a great compliment to hear from scouts."

Contact Dave Birkett at dbirkett@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @davebirkett.

Feeling a draft?

What: 2024 NFL draft.

Where: Detroit.

The schedule: Round 1 — 8 p.m. April 25; Rounds 2-3 — 7 p.m. April 26; Rounds 4-7 — Noon.

TV: ABC, ESPN, NFL Network.

Lions’ picks (with overall pick in parentheses): Round 1 — No. 29 (29); Round 2 — No. 29 (61); Round 3 — No. 9 (73); Round 5 — No. 29 (164); Round 6 — No. 25 (201); Round 7 — No. 29 (249).

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan football's Mike Sainristil has surprise for scouts at pro day