There is a massive amount of talent currently at the position. From Week 7 on, he was one of the 25 highest-graded players at the position and allowed more than 60 yards in coverage just once this season. He gets his hands on passes left and right without getting himself so out of position that hes unable to recover. Tennessees loss has turned into the Giants gain. That larger role didnt lead to less impressive coverage numbers. He is expected to compete with 2020 first-round pick Damon Arnette for one of the starting jobs in Las Vegas, reuniting with defensive coordinator Gus Bradley. Defensive rookies. Mackenzie Alexanders return after a year with the Cincinnati Bengals may see him start at nickel, and he will need to improve after allowing 11.16 burn yards per target from the slot last season. With the defense surrounding the young CB, he could easily be higher on the list heading into next season. Henderson. This kind of ranking for the Chicago Bears was expected this season, considering their cornerback situation outside of Jaylon Johnson. Verrett exceeded all expectations in his return from a string of injuries last season for San Francisco. Fuller is set to be reunited with Vic Fangio in Denver. Jalen Ramsey, Los Angeles Rams If he can replicate that impact as a rookie, the Raiders should be in extremely good shape in the defensive backfield. He also ranks in at least the 87th percentile in coverage grades at both alignments. In his first two seasons, A.J. . After a few poorly graded games in the first quarter of the season, the first-round pick stepped up and was a legitimate CB1 for Denver. The Lions have done a disappointing job of drafting and developing talent under previous regimes. Hes picked off nine passes over the past three seasons, and that total should be even higher, as Hadens nine dropped interceptions since 2018 are tied for the most at the position. In 2020, Howard led the league in interceptions (10) and pass breakups (20) for his first All-Pro nod. His 17.3% forced incompletion rate ranks second among cornerbacks who have seen at least 100 targets over those two years. 20. The top cornerbacks for 2022 are all established stars who are all playing some of the best football of their careers. To further my point, Matthew Staffords EPA is 39, and hes an MVP candidate at quarterback. Still, the Saints defense was great last season and has continued to be so in 2021. He gets to passes that most receivers cannot get to, making his multiple near-INTs in 2021 as impressive as his 7 actual interceptions. Published: Oct 20, 2022 at 03:19 PM . Cross, the former NFL defensive back who became the first Black man to work full-time as a sports analyst on national television, is the latest football player diagnosed with the brain disease CTE. Ive already written my story on Trevon Diggs. In both 2019 and 2020, he recorded a pressure rate below 9% (per SIS Datahub). With the help of. In a pass-heavy league, the cornerback position has grown into one of the most important positions on the football field. 2020 Points-Allowed Rank: No. Fuller was back in Washington for the 2020 season following a two-year stint in Kansas City. Bradberry's 2021 season, though, was abysmal. Two of Indianapolis' outside cornerbacks earned top-20 coverage grades this season: The Broncos' secondary underwhelmed to a certain extent in 2021, with veteran safety, Cornerback was a major area of concern for the Cardinals. Ya-Sin's 2020 coverage grade was over 20 points lower than his 2021 mark, and Rodgers played just 38 NFL coverage snaps entering the season, so this wasnt expected. He finished with four picks, made the PFWA All-Rookie Team and was PFF's 41st-graded corner in 2021, just behind Colts Pro Bowler Kenny Moore. Reed, provided some grounds for optimism as his burn yards . Quinton Dunbar (44.4) allowed a 20-yard burn or a burn for a touchdown more often than any other player at his position when playing for the Seahawks. > 2021 NFL > Advanced Stats. That's when deals are officially negotiated and reported signings fly across . Led by, Ward and Newsome, in particular, produced top-10 coverage grades when in single coverage. That all came to a halt with the Chargers in 2020, as Hayward earned a PFF grade of just 59.5 while allowing nearly 17 yards per reception into his coverage. The Raiders secondary has received its fair share of criticism in the Jon Gruden-Mike Mayock years, with doubts cast over the merits of selecting Trayvon Mullen in the second round in 2019 and Damon Arnette in the first last year. Still, they held up well, ranking sixth in coverage grade and second in EPA per pass play allowed on such plays. Building a high-powered offense is a sustainable way to win in the NFL, but ensuring the defensive secondary isnt a liability is what separates the contenders from the rest. Rookie Tyson Campbell was a reason for optimism, as he notched a couple of elite game grades above 90.0 in his last couple of months of action, but his inconsistent play was too severe for him to add considerable value to the secondary. Rookie Eric Stokes stepped up and grew into his role as the season wore on. The cornerback made a total of $10.66 million during his brief NFL career. Hes one of the few thatll travel anywhere on the defense to cover an offenses best weapon. A few coverage lapses have led to big plays this year, but that happens in a scheme that relies on communication both pre- and post-snap. With that said, here are my cornerback rankings for the 2022 NFL draft: 1. Only one defensive back nickel cornerback, Galina: The shortcomings of the Kellen Moore-Dak Prescott connection for the Dallas Cowboys. We rank all 32 teams in 10 different position groups, plus we offer an overall roster outlook. I still expect a lot from Stephon Gilmore, and with those expectations will come quick criticism if he doesnt perform to his standards. Carlton Davis III was less impressive, giving up a burn on exactly half of his 92 targets, though the fact he conceded a big play on 25% of his targets (the average was 26 among all corners) leaves room for encouragement. Ramsey has been one of the best cornerbacks in the league since Jacksonville drafted him fifth overall in the 2016 NFL Draft. Injuries destroyed the Ravens this past season. His 45.3 coverage grade was the fourth-lowest among qualifying cornerbacks. William Jackson III, Washington Football Team Opposite him for most of the season was Kindle Vildor, who posted a 45.6 coverage grade that ranked in the bottom five in the NFL. It doesnt hurt that Washington can feel comfortable playing him at multiple positions in their secondary, either. This is the worst front seven in the NFL. The real stars of this group are Jordan Poyer and Micah Hyde, who rank second and third, respectively, in coverage grade among safeties. The top 2021 Cornerback prospects available for the 2021 NFL Draft. Jackson has allowed just five of 48 targets at that depth to be completed, tallying 11 interceptions in the process. Even with the big plays allowed early in the season, quarterbacks have just a 68.1 rating when targeting Lattimore this season. Lattimore possesses everything you could want in a cornerback. Minnesota put forth some of the worst cornerback play in the NFL. he 2021 NFL regular season is over. Strong safety Kareem Jackson was ninth among all players at the position in burn yards per target allowed with 7.76. 14. Heck, he played more snaps in the slot in 2020 than he did on the outside. targeted, which leads to his interceptions. After a 3-0 start to the 2021 season, the Carolina Panthers were figured out on both sides of the ball. Williams is Denver's long-term answer at running back . After trading Matthew Stafford in 2021 and T.J. Hockenson at the trade deadline last year, the Lions have five picks in the top 81 selections of this year's NFL Draft, including picks No. Only one defensive back nickel cornerback Tavierre Thomas didnt produce a sub-60.0 coverage grade. In all, 17.1% of the targets into his coverage have resulted in either a pass breakup or interception over his career, a top-five mark among qualifiers at the position. David Carr constructs his own ranking of the top 10 cornerbacks, but All-Pro . The Detroit Lions were, by most metrics, the worst defensive team in the NFL last year and they probably won't be much better . Terrell has flashed the ability to become one of the truly . The dude still smacks like a truck as a tackler and despite allowing over 60% completions, hes only allowing 5.5 yards per target and under 10 yards per catch. 9: 10: 5: 15: 0.0: 0: 0: 0: 0: 0: 0: 0: . CORNERBACK PROSPECT RANKING 2023 NFL DRAFT. Nickel corner Sean Murphy-Bunting also did a decent job at preventing big plays, conceding eight on 44 targets on the inside. Buffalos secondary endured a crushing blow in Week 12 when CB1 TreDavious White went down with a season-ending torn ACL. Six cornerbacks played over 100 snaps for the Jaguars in 2021 and only one Shaquill Griffin produced a coverage grade above 60.0. We started to see signs of the Louisville product's playmaking ability in 2019, as his 16 forced incompletions ranked second at the position. It was only natural that the prototype for cornerback shifted as well. Williams earned coverage grades above 81.0 in each of the last two years and made some remarkable plays on the ball in coverage in Brandon Staleys defense in 2020. His PFF grade dropped from 90.0 from 2014 to 2018 in Detroit to just 59.5 across the last two years. NFL Player Grades - current. Their team slot coverage grade ended up multiple grading points higher than any other NFL franchise. Thats a tip of the cap to everyone in the secondary for stepping up, including 2020 seventh-rounder, Tampa Bay dealt with a pile of injuries and COVID-19 in their cornerback room for most of the season, forcing the team to cycle through players. . But Las Vegas can afford to have confidence in the secondary going into 2021. The Panthers' outside coverage, in particular, was the weakest link. The 2021 top-10 pick allowed over 60 yards just once last season and led the draft class in combined interceptions and pass breakups (12). Its unfortunate hes not more widely regarded as a ballhawk, but many cant look past the paltry INT numbers to his league-high 8 forced fumbles in 2020. The Tuscaloosa News via AP) Height: 6'2" (95th percentile) Weight: 208 (94th) 40-Yard Dash: 4.42 seconds (85th) Bench Press: 18 reps (33rd) Vertical Jump: 39 inches (84th) Broad Jump: 131 inches (91st) 3-Cone Drill: N/A 20-Yard Shuttle: N/A Bio: In what will be a theme for this list of players . Jackson missed the majority of the 2020 season with a lingering knee injury, but he profiled as one of the most promising young cornerbacks in the league before last year, fresh off a career-high 82.5 coverage grade in 2019. Age: 28 (29 on 8/4/23) Playing time: 16 games, 316 special teams snaps (77.07% of team total), 63 defensive snaps (5.99% of team total) Key statistics: 19 tackles, 1 quarterback hit, 4 pass . Its impossible to discuss what Peters brings to the table and not start with his knack for getting his hands on the football, as his 31 interceptions since entering the league in 2015 are nine more than any other cornerback. The 2023 corner class doesn't hold any superstars like last year's Sauce Gardner but it still has a number of quality pro prospects with five having close to first-round grades on them. 3 Darius Slay Jr. - 93 OVR. Darious Williams, Los Angeles Rams 1 cornerbacks in the NFC South are tasked with. Browns honorable mention busts: Courtney Brown, (2000, first overall pick), Trent Richardson (2012, third overall pick) 8. Two free-agent signings, in particular , The Raiders entered 2021 on a streak of arguably the worst defensive back play in the entire NFL. Williams career trajectory is very similar to Dean's in that he graded exceptionally well in a limited role in 2019 and didnt take any sort of step back in a full-time starting job this past season. The steady veteran presence that he should bring will be important for a secondary that will likely start two cornerbacks under the age of 24 alongside him. Some cornerbacks are tasked with shutting down their side of the field in zone, while other top cornerbacks are given the unenviable job of following the opposing teams No. One was to Waynes, and the other was to interior defensive lineman D.J. Veteran Casey Hayward Jr. who played in Bradley's scheme with the Los Angeles Chargers was the 13th-highest graded outside corner of the regular season, while rookie Nate Hobbs was the highest-graded slot corner. What do you want out of your elite cornerback? Marshon Lattimore was the highlight of a Saints secondary that ranked seventh in coverage grade and allowed an open target at the third-lowest rate in the league. Opposing quarterbacks netted a 71.8 passer rating when throwing at one of Clevelands outside cornerbacks this season, the lowest among the 32 defenses. 1. 6 on the list, as his 86.2 coverage . Using advanced data, weve ranked every secondary in the NFL by their performance in pass coverage. Ranking top 10 cornerbacks in NFL for 2021: Jalen Ramsey leads pack that includes talented newcomers . He battled injuries early in the season, which didnt help in the adjustment to a man-heavy coverage scheme under Brian Flores. 1. He graded at 75.0 or higher in every season that he saw more than 100 snaps from 2012 through 2019, and he did it all while posting the highest forced incompletion rate in the NFL. * - denotes 2022 prospect. With that being said, here are four bold predictions for the New Orleans Saints in the 2023 NFL offseason. Demario Davis 6634. Another of those factors was health, as Darby played over 600 defensive snaps in 2020 for the first time in four seasons. The Broncos head into 2021 with questions still abounding over their quarterbacks, but there is no doubt they have a championship-caliber defense, of which the secondary looks to be the strength. Holland was the highest-graded safety since Week 9 by over four grading points. The Bengals', pass coverage finished the regular season as the seventh-most improved group year over year in terms of EPA allowed per pass. Rashad Fenton also saw his playing time increase after the first month of the season and closed out the regular season with an 81.1 coverage grade. 32. 2021 NFL Defensive Secondary Rankings, by Unit 32. Verrett fought back to earn a starting job with the 49ers in 2020 and put up a top-20 PFF grade among qualifying cornerbacks on a career-high 803 defensive snaps. Nov 15, 2020; New Orleans, Louisiana, USA; New Orleans Saints quarterback Jameis Winston (2) celebrates after a touchdown by running back Alvin Kamara . With some personnel tweaks, the Chiefs secondary revived itself. Haden may be on the downward slope of his career, but he has provided Pittsburgh with steady play at cornerback since joining the team in 2018 and should continue to do so in 2021. After a broken-up pass against Wake Forest in 2016, he pranced behind the unsuspecting receiver in a manner Ive never witnessed. The fifth-year cornerback out of Alabama has recorded at least 800 coverage snaps in the slot and out wide throughout his NFL career. TreDavious White has been one of the top cornerbacks in the league since the minute he stepped on an NFL field. Both players were among the 15 most valuable players at their respective positions, according to PFF WAR. Butler has been one of the best in the league at getting his hands on the football throughout his career. 32. They consistently ranked near the bottom of the league in every metric imaginable, including defensive back PFF WAR generated: Defensive coordinator Gus Bradley brought his patented Seahawk Cover 3 defense and got the right players in place to carry it out at a quality level. His 71 forced incompletions since 2014 are fewer than only Darius Slay and Stephon Gilmore. Brian Poole (not re-signed) was the only cornerback to hold opponents to negative EPA per target in 2020. . Hes a wide receiver baiting quarterbacks into throwing passes that he can jump. And yet, the Bills still sustained a top-five pass defense in terms of expected points added (EPA) allowed per pass down the final stretch of the 2021 regular season. The seven touchdowns allowed into his coverage this past season were tied for second-most of any cornerback in the league. They each produced coverage grades above 70.0 for the season. But certain units . While it wasn't easy putting together this list, here is our ranking of the NFL's 10 best cornerbacks in 2022. . worst 2021 cornerback 2021. worst 2021 cornerback 2021. T. The Las Vegas Raiders took down the Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday Night Football in an overtime thriller, bringing an end to the 18-week marathon to the postseason. Davis has put up a solid grading profile and coverage stats across the past two seasons in Tampa Bay despite that tough slate of opposing wide receivers. NAME SEASON TM GP TKL AST COMB SCK SCKY INT INT YDS INT TD FF FR FR TD; Jahleel Addae: 2021: IND. Safeties Kevin Byard and Amani Hooker both finished the regular season as top-five-graded players at the position. None of their cornerbacks had a quality campaign, but. Slot corner Mackensie Alexanders down season didnt help matters, either. Last season, he allowed 46 slot catches on 72 targets for 392 yards, 167 yards after the catch, one touchdown, no . Health remains the biggest concern for Verrett heading into next season. But with Horn getting shut down after a Week 3 injury and Henderson struggling to get acclimated after getting traded to the team a month into the season, it was a subpar year for the secondary. Projected starter Amani Oruwariye (36.9) did not fare much better, and it would be no surprise to see rookie Ifeatu Melifonwu thrust into a prominent role early in his career. Subscribe to PFF+ to unlock . The outlook isnt nearly as rosy heading into 2021 after a noticeable decline in play last season. If you take away a disastrous 2019 season with the Philadelphia Eagles in which he earned just a 44.8 overall grade, Darby has graded above 68.0 overall since being drafted in 2015. NFL quarterback rankings 2021. As a result, Diggs' coverage grade rang in just above the 50th percentile among cornerbacks. He wasnt alone out there, either safety Marcus Williams also helped anchor the group with an 84.3 coverage grade that ranked seventh at the position. The three highest PFF grades of Fuller's career came with Fangio as the defensive coordinator in Chicago from 2015 to 2018. His six penalties this past season were fewer than any year since his rookie season in 2013. Waynes three-year, $42 million contract was likely an overpay, but he does profile as a quality starting option. 27. This group should contend for the top spot next season. Greg Newsome, Cleveland Browns, 26. He recorded just one interception and two pass breakups on 42 targets, allowing a career-high 96.7 passer rating into his coverage. Dean expanded his role in the Buccaneers defense from fewer than 400 snaps in 2019 to 935 defensive snaps this past season. Patrick Peterson was considered to have had a down year last season but his open percentage of 51.9 when playing outside corner was seventh among players to have taken snaps at that spot. No group of cornerbacks played more man coverage than the Miami Dolphins. And there are a couple of surprise names feature among those secondaries who look ready to take a leap in 2021. Griffin has earned overall grades of 50.7, 78.0 and 64.6 in the past three seasons. Justin Simmons was the best defender in the NFL in terms of adjusted open percentage in 2020, leading the way by allowing pass-catchers to get open against his coverage just 14.99% of the time. Ya-Sin made his best plays on his few snaps in press-man, while Rodgers' top moments came in off-zone when racking up stops. The position as a whole combined for the third-fewest WAR among the 32 groups. Only three Power 5 defenders gave up fewer. There is no shortage of defensive weapons on Clevelands roster. Terrell was actually the second-highest graded cornerback in coverage in the 2021 regular season, behind only Jalen Ramsey. With their help, the Raiders ranked top five in yards per attempt and explosive pass rate allowed this year. Jan 10, 2022. Blake Martinez 6575. Eric Kendricks 639 # . PFF's exclusive metrics provide matchup previews, position rankings, grades, and snap counts. And even he had a volatile season with a 60.5 coverage grade. The league's inaugural 17-game season . Ahmad Gardner, Cincinnati . Detroits secondary has been problematic over the past few years, and it didnt get any better in Year 1 under Dan Campbell. After a broken-up pass against Wake Forest in 2016, he, . Hes going up against each teams best receiver, shadowing them around the field. He led the position in interceptions (11), yards allowed (1,026) and penalties (11) this regular season. And star cornerback, Cincinnatis passing offense wasnt the team's only unit to take a major leap in 2021. The two worst cornerbacks in the league were forced into action because of injuries. Cross died in 2021. Detroits defensive backs aggregate coverage grade is 27% below average. Bradberry was the fourth-most valuable cornerback in the league in 2020 per PFF WAR, with career-best coverage numbers across the board. The safety pairing of Micah Hyde and Jordan Poyer may also be hoping for a bounce-back year, with the latter having allowed a burn on 13 of his 28 targets at free safety in 2020. The Rank value requires a minimum number of snaps played. On the bright side, Emmanuel Moseley played admirably with a 17.6% forced incompletion rate on the outside (ninth) and under a yard allowed per coverage snap this regular season. 90-81. Ranking who the top 32 cornerbacks in the NFL are for 2021 is like trying to rank your children. Rhodes went from allowing a league-high 84.3% of the passes into his coverage to be completed in 2019 to just 50.7% in 2020 with Indianapolis. In the News: Patrick Mahomes, Derek Carr, Aaron Rodgers, Jalen Hurts, Tom Brady, Brock Purdy. Yet, between Mullens progress, the arrival of Hayward and the selection of free safety Trevon Moehrig in the second round of this years draft, the Raiders secondary is one that looks primed to establish itself as one of the better groups in the NFL. The Patriots boast what could very well be the best of the top cornerback duos in 2021 if Stephon Gilmore has a bounce-back season. It just wasnt all there for him in 2020. Lavonte David 6943. Tre Flowers' open percentage of 85.7 was the fifth-worst of all corners in the NFL, though the play of another former Niner, D.J. Cross, who was 81 when he died Feb. 28, 2021, suffered from stage 4 chronic traumatic encephalopathy, Boston University researchers said Tuesday. Top 32 cornerbacks in the NFL for the 2021 season | 1-10. Reed, provided some grounds for optimism as his burn yards per target average of 8.21 put him 15th among corners with at least 200 coverage snaps. 24. Cornerbacks Jaylon Johnson, Kyler Gordon . Green, who posted a 90.3 coverage grade across his 116 coverage snaps. PFF's exclusive metrics provide Cornerback (CB) position rankings, grades, and snap counts. Butler had arguably his best season in coverage since his New England days last year with Tennessee. Having let Shaquill Griffin walk in free agency, the Seahawks are somewhat short on proven players in the defensive backfield, with that scarcity reflected by an aggregate coverage grade 16% below average. Pro Football Network strives to passionately deliver purposeful, captivating, and exceptional football content. He allowed just 30 receiving yards on 359 coverage snaps across his final 11 games that season. After being charged with eight receptions allowed in Week 1 against the Dallas Cowboys, Ramsey proceeded to allow just 24 receptions over the remainder of the regular season, giving upfewer than 25 receiving yards in 11 games. If it werent for A.J. There is a perception that Shermans better days are behind him, but entering his age-33 season, there is still plenty of room for Sherman to take a step back and still be one of the better cornerbacks in the NFL. Nelson was another surprise release by a team strapped for salary cap space. His 3.2% missed tackle rate was the second-lowest among safeties. Its worth pointing out that Slay frequently draws the opposing teams top receiving option in single coverage, and his 97 single coverage targets over the past two seasons is a top-five mark at the position. The veteran had a career year, earning the highest coverage grade (83.9) of his nine years in the NFL ranks. He isnt at the top of the CB rankings yet simply because this is all so new. His value is easy to see. Eventually, Washington took it. The Raiders entered 2021 on a streak of arguably the worst defensive back play in the entire NFL. This is not a forward-looking list, nor is it considering what a group accomplished prior to this season. However, Miamis cornerback really blossomed in 2020, intercepting a league-high 10 passes. That pairing will be joined by arguably the premier corner from this years draft class, Patrick Surtain II, who makes the step up to the league after a stellar college career with Alabama, which he ended by helping the Crimson Tide to a National Championship and allowing 0.93 burn yards per snap. Man coverage than the Miami Dolphins there for him in 2020 than he did the. Very well be the best in the NFL are for 2021: Jalen Ramsey pack... They held up well, ranking sixth in coverage since his New days! The unsuspecting receiver in a pass-heavy league, the cornerback position has grown into one of outside... 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