Who is Arizona Cardinals UDFA Matthias Farley?

Next on our undrafted rookie profiles is another Notre Dame rookie. The Arizona Cardinals signed two undrafted rookies out of Notre Dame. One is receiver Amir Carlisle, whom we featured recently. The other is safety Matthias Farley.

Farley is a 5-11, 210-pound safety who played in 52 games (26 starts) for the Fighting Irish and recorded 192 tackles, 9.5 tackles for loss, 3.5 sacks, eight interceptions, 13 passes defensed and a forced fumble. He topped 40 tackles in all four seasons at Notre Dame, setting career highs in 2014 with 53 tackles, 6.5 tackles for loss, 3.5 sacks and four interceptions. Farley began his college career as a wide receiver but moved to safety after redshirting as a true freshman, and in his first year on defense he started 11 games and helped the Irish finish the 2012 regular season 12-0 to earn a spot in the BCS National Championship Game.

In 2015, he was a backup.

This is what SB Nation's Notre Dame team page said about Farley before the draft.

Farley played a backup role at safety in his last year, but still got plenty of opportunities for playing time. With Shaun Crawford going down with a season-ending injury, BVG would use Farley as the nickel DB in sub-packages. He also played on special teams coverage, which I believe he possess enough skill to make that his home in the NFL.

We see again something that is a trend for defensive backs for the Cardinals -- versatility. Tyrann Mathieu plays safety and in the slot. Tyvon Branch can play anywhere in the defensive backfield. Farley apparently can play safety and in the slot as well.

He has speed, running a 4.5-second 40. At his Pro Day, he had a 33-in vertical and a 10-foot broad jump. His three-come was 7.13 seconds. He put up 21 bench press reps of 225 pounds.

Here are some highlights:

As an undrafted rookie, he is a longshot for the roster. The team already has Tony Jefferson, Tyvon Branch, Tyrann Mathieu, D.J. Swearinger, Chris Clemons and also fifth round pick Marqui Christian. That is a crowded room.

Farley was not even a starter at Notre Dame last year. If he is going to have a chance, at the roster, he will have to be special on special teams.