Starling Thomas V

Starling Thomas V (born January 25, 2000) is an American football cornerback for the Arizona Cardinals of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at UAB.

Early years
Thomas was born on January 25, 2000, and grew up in Birmingham, Alabama. He attended Ramsay High School and was a top two-way player, being ranked a three-star prospect. He placed as the 145th-best cornerback recruit nationally and the 53rd-best player in the state, and chose to commit to UAB over Middle Tennessee, Memphis and Southern Miss, among others.

College career
Thomas saw immediate playing time as a true freshman in 2018, appearing in 12 games while recording three pass breakups and 10 tackles. He also saw action as a return specialist. The following year, he started all 14 games and posted 27 tackles, one fumble recovered and his first career interception, made against North Texas. Although projected to be starter again in 2020, Thomas suffered a torn ACL that kept him out the entire season. He started all 13 games when he returned in 2021, posting 41 tackles, nine pass breakups and two interceptions, earning honorable mention all-conference honors. As a senior in 2022, Thomas was named first-team all-conference after allowing receptions on only 37.9% of passes thrown at him with 13 passes defended. He played in the East–West Shrine Bowl after the season ended.

Detroit Lions
Although various sources projected Thomas as a late-round pick in the 2023 NFL draft, he ended up going unselected. He was signed by the Detroit Lions as an undrafted free agent. He was waived on August 29, 2023.

Arizona Cardinals
A day after being waived by the Lions, Thomas was claimed off waivers by the Arizona Cardinals.