Strengths: Is tall and has good overall size. Can match up against bigger receivers and has the leaping ability to challenge for the jump ball. He's a fluid athlete for a taller DC. He possesses adequate-to-good speed and shows the ability to turn and run vertically if recognizes on time. He has long arms and bats a lot of underneath passes down at the last second. He also has excellent hands and ball skills. He fills hard versus the run and continues to improve his angles and tackling skills. Has a lot of upside if he puts it all together. Also has great special teams experience and should contribute in that area in the NFL.

Weaknesses: He lacks ideal experience and is still a bit unpolished. Doesn't always make the correct recognition read and will get turned around from time to time. He will get caught peeking in the backfield occasionally and needs to become more confident in his reads. He can look hesitant in space and is noticeably more comfortable in man-to-man situations. He lacks explosive closing burst. Still needs to improve his angles and ability to get through traffic in run support. He plays out of control and will leave his feet in pursuit as a tackler too often. Misses too many open-field tackles; must improve his pursuit angles and learn to wrap up in space more consistently. Also has character concerns  he accepted a two-semester expulsion from the university after a female student accused him of assaulting her on campus in November 2002.

Overall: Phillips began his collegiate career at wide receiver before moving to cornerback in 2002. He started two of the nine games he played as a sophomore in 2003 and played extensively on special teams. As a junior in 2004, Phillips took over as a fulltime starter and finished with 41 tackles, four interceptions and 10 broken up passes. Phillips started all 12 games as a senior in 2005 and finished with 30 tackles, two TFL, one interception and 10 PBU. As a first-year starter opposite proven starter Alan Zemaitis in 2004, Phillips was tested often and was up to the challenge. Phillips continued to make noticeable strides as a second-year starter in 2005. He has good height, long arms and above average speed. The former receiver continues to improve with more experience at the position and he shows a lot of upside if he keeps refining his technique. However, Phillips needs to get bigger and stronger so to match up better in run support, as well as in man-to-man coverage versus more physical receivers in the NFL. He also must become more consistent with his recognition skills and tackling. Overall, Phillips has late Day 1 talent but likely will slip due to character issues.