Going into the 2021 season, there are several teams that stand out as best prepared to do that with the talent they possess in the defensive backfield. Byron Murphy, Arizona Cardinals12. Will Harris at least had an admirable 2020 at strong safety, finishing third among all safeties in burn yards per target (7). Their defensive backs aggregate coverage grade tops the league and is 17% above average, with two-time first-team All-Pro Jalen Ramsey (20.45%) and the underrated Darious Williams (21.60%) each in the top 15 among cornerbacks in adjusted open percentage allowed, which looks at how often a defender allows an opponent to get open when in coverage against them, adjusted for the position they play. Things got off to a rough start when the Lions lost 2020 No. The Packers signed veteran Rasul Douglas midseason, and he far surpassed expectations with a 76.5 coverage grade. 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. The amount of top-level play from NFL cornerbacks is astonishing. His 84.6 PFF grade finished as the third-best at the position. No, he was targeted often because of who was on the opposite side, and his ball skills shined in the process, recording 10 INTs in 2020. He allowed a mere 0.46 yards per coverage snap and 3.1 yards per target in that span, both of which ranked second among cornerbacks. All Rights Reserved. 1 wide receiver in man coverage. He does the razzle dazzle better than any quarterback, but he . 4-overall prospect). His technical inconsistencies are the only thing keeping him from being among that next tier up. What do you want out of your elite cornerback? Ranking top 10 cornerbacks in NFL for 2021: Jalen Ramsey leads pack that includes talented newcomers . They made a league-leading 23 plays on the ball from the slot en route to allowing the lowest passer rating (71.1). The back-to-back AFC champions stood at a 2-3 record, and the secondary was performing at league-low levels. William Jackson III, Washington Football Team He plays so he. Hes a wide receiver baiting quarterbacks into throwing passes that he can jump. Reed, provided some grounds for optimism as his burn yards . Yet, despite praise for Antoine Winfield Jrs rookie year, both he and fellow starting safety Jordan Whitehead will hope to make improvements in coverage, having given up 11.33 and 12.32 burn yards per target, respectively. He gets to passes that most receivers cannot get to, making his multiple near-INTs in 2021 as impressive as his 7 actual interceptions. If that happens and J.C. Jackson progresses, they could solidify themselves with a gold medal there. Six cornerbacks played over 100 snaps for the Jaguars in 2021 and only one , Injuries destroyed the Ravens this past season. Were taking a look at the best and worst units in football at each positional grouping. With more than 20 pending free agents, the front office will have a lot of work to do. Nickel Byron Murphys burn yards per target average of 7.50 was the fifth-best among inside corners in 2020 and Budda Baker has established himself as one of the premier safeties in the NFL, with his adjusted open percentage of 16.38 trailing only three defenders last season. Denzel Ward, in my opinion, is another year away from being a potential top-five cornerback in the NFL. 27. Outside corner J.C. Jackson was also one of the best at his respective position, earning a top-five PFF grade in the regular season. Those missed opportunities only make the 77.5 passer rating allowed over that span (13th in the NFL) more impressive. The top cornerback room? His lone interception was a career-worst -- as was his tally of 50 combined tackles and 66.2 completion percentage allowed -- but with a full training camp to come (after having been absent a traditional one in 2020 due to the COVID-19 . NFL quarterback rankings 2021. The only outside cornerbacks to allow fewer yards per coverage snap than Dean (0.8) on at least 600 coverage snaps since the start of the 2019 season are Richard Sherman (0.4) and Jalen Ramsey (0.8). Carlton Davis, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 16. Cross, who was 81 when he died Feb. 28, 2021, suffered from stage 4 chronic traumatic encephalopathy, Boston University researchers said Tuesday. Ramsey is a freak, and on top of it all, hes so good against the run that his late-career safety transition will probably end in an All-Pro berth or two. But certain units . None of their cornerbacks had a quality campaign, but Bashaud Breeland who was waived in mid-December was the main reason for the outside struggles. Davis and Dean form one of the best cornerback pairings in the NFL. A ranking of the 2021 Best NFL Cornerback Players. The Eagles now have one of the NFL's most talented cornerback trios, with both Bradyberry and Slay making PFF's top 32 cornerbacks list. (Kirby Lee/USA Today Sports) Listen . They consistently ranked near the bottom of the league in every metric imaginable, including defensive back, 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. Houstons fielded the lowest-graded secondary in the NFL by a whopping eight grading points. 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. Houston Texans: Whitney Mercilus, OLB. The Vikings invested heavily in the secondary in recent years and the numbers suggest that decision could pay dividends in the coming season. 10. That's when deals are officially negotiated and reported signings fly across . There is no shortage of defensive weapons on Clevelands roster. The Raiders defensive backs rank seventh for aggregate coverage, rating 10% better than the average. He had spent the vast majority of his time in the slot across the first four years of his NFL career, even dabbling at safety with the Chiefs in 2019. 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. Cornerback Adoree Jackson and safety Xavier McKinney helped claw this secondary to a No. He earned a 47.4 coverage grade for the regular season while also allowing a 125.0 passer rating when targeted and being called for 10 penalties. The defense endured blows at multiple position groups, including in the secondary with Marcus Peters (torn ACL in the preseason) and Marlon Humphrey (torn pectoral in Week 13). New York Jets He also stands out as one of the better zone-coverage cornerbacks in the NFL, ranking in the 94th percentile of all cornerbacks on such plays during the 2020 season. Things got off to a rough start when the Lions lost 2020 No. In a pass-heavy league, the cornerback position has grown into one of the most important positions on the football field. Humphrey impacts the games in all the ways you want him to. Kansas City took Daniel Sorensen off the field while bringing back Juan Thornhill and increasing its rate of dime coverage. The Packers still fielded a top-10-graded cornerback room this season despite losing one of the best cover corners in the game for most of the season. Feb. 28 (UPI) --Former NFL star cornerback Irv Cross, who died in 2021, was diagnosed with chronic traumatic encephalopathy, or CTE, Boston University researchers announced Tuesday. If that remains the case, Buffalos secondary should stay among the best in the league even with only marginal improvements made by his teammates. Discover Next Gen Stats News, Charts, and Statistics. Unfortunately for Detroit, one of those corners is now on their roster. Whitney Mercilus has always benefited from the presence of J.J. Watt. Despite that, the Buccaneers outside cornerbacks still combined for the highest unit coverage grade in the NFL. In 2019 and 2020, for instance, he played more in the slot than out wide. increasing that usage from 21 percent in 2021 (29th in NFL . Pro Football Network, LLC. Kendall Fuller was one of the three most valuable cornerbacks of the 2021 season and helped a great deal in Washington ranking even this high. Unlock all tools and content including Player Grades, Fantasy, NFL Draft, Premium Stats, Greenline and DFS. See trending; Company. Contract: three years, $18.6 million. It shouldnt come as a shock if he wins that starting job and rebounds from a down 2020 season. 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. We use our own and third-party cookies to improve your experience and our services. Dean expanded his role in the Buccaneers defense from fewer than 400 snaps in 2019 to 935 defensive snaps this past season. Jackson has allowed just five of 48 targets at that depth to be completed, tallying 11 interceptions in the process. Cross died in 2021. Bradberry put up solid performances against a difficult slate of NFC South cornerbacks across the first four seasons of his career with the Carolina Panthers, but he took a clear step forward in his first year with the Giants last season. Griffin has earned overall grades of 50.7, 78.0 and 64.6 in the past three seasons. Lattimores PFF grade has fallen from 86.1 as a rookie to 77.5 (2018), 65.6 (2019) and 59.1 (2020) in the three years since 2017. Las Vegas Raiders . Hes intelligent and has ideal size and athleticism. 9: 10: 5: 15: 0.0: 0: 0: 0: 0: 0: 0: 0: . The league's inaugural 17-game season . His 75.8 coverage grade in 2020 ranked 15th among all qualifying cornerbacks across the league, and he was called for just two penalties all year. 5. Carlton Davis may draw the more demanding assignments, but Dean has been just about as good as Tampa Bay could have hoped for in his role over the past two seasons. Cincinnatis passing offense wasnt the team's only unit to take a major leap in 2021. 1 cornerback who will allow them to play more man coverage if they desire. Only two cornerbacks gave up a big play in coverage more regularly than Okudah, who did so on 43.9% of his targets. The presence of Breeland, who is expected to compete with Dantzler for a starting job, and Peterson gives the Vikings strong depth at corner and should mitigate the potential loss of 2020 first-round pick Jeff Gladney, whose future is in doubt amid off-field troubles. A.J. This season, the division is up for grabs yet again. The position as a whole combined for the third-fewest WAR among the 32 groups. 17. Outside of safety Derwin James, the Chargers' secondary left a lot to be desired in 2021. 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. The 247Sports Composite is a proprietary algorithm that compiles rankings and ratings listed in the public domain by the major media recruiting services, creating the industry's most comprehensive and unbiased prospect and team rankings. This is the worst front seven in the NFL. Detroits defensive backs aggregate coverage grade is 27% below average. Veteran. Who looks to be a top-10 cornerback in the NFL right now? Rookie Eric Stokes stepped up and grew into his role as the season wore on. And star cornerback Jalen Ramsey is a huge reason why. His 19.1% forced incompletion rate was a top-five mark at the cornerback position last year, tied with Jaire Alexander. Top 32 cornerbacks in the NFL for the 2021 season | 1-10, Top 32 cornerbacks in the NFL for the 2021 season | 11-32, Jaire Alexander is responsible for my favorite troll of all time on a football field. TreDavious Whites continuing success is a reason for that, as the two-time Pro Bowler first among all cornerbacks in adjusted open percentage allowed (16.20%) in 2020. Not a single one of Dallas' top eight defensive backs by snaps earned a coverage grade in poor territory below 60.0. He recorded coverage grades of at least 72.0 in each of his first three seasons in the league and has allowed just 51.4% of the passes thrown into his coverage to be completed. The strength of this group comes from two former Washington Huskies. A strong work out at LSU's pro day on April 6th could help to turn around his draft stock. 3 overall pick on a defensive back like Derek Stingley Jr. (PFFs No. James Bradberry, New York Giants, 21. He still showcases lockdown man-coverage ability at times, but it has been less consistent of late. Those struggles wouldnt last, though. The 49ers brought in veteran Josh Norman out of necessity at the start of the season, and it didnt go well. The Detroit Lions were, by most metrics, the worst defensive team in the NFL last year and they probably won't be much better . The following are the 2022 NFL team overall defense statistics, including team rushing yardage, team passing yardage and total team yardage. 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. He has featured in a versatile role this season, with over 300 snaps each in the slot and on the outside. Injuries destroyed the Ravens this past season. name season tm gp tkl ast comb sck scky int int yds int td ff fr fr td; jahleel addae: 2021 . Cornerback was a clear need for the Jaguars entering this offseason. 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. Ward and Newsome, in particular, produced top-10 coverage grades when in single coverage. He isnt at the top of the CB rankings yet simply because this is all so new. The perception of Rhodes is much different this offseason than it was at this time a year ago following a bounceback season for the Colts in 2020. worst 2021 cornerback 2021. worst 2021 cornerback 2021. 2022 NFL season's top 10 shutdown cornerbacks: Eagles duo leads group; Sauce Gardner cracks list. Subscribe to Adoree Jackson, New York Giants In the last six years, Darius Slay Jr. has made it to the Pro Bowl five times, a remarkable stretch of dominance. White does a fantastic job of toeing the line between aggressive and reckless. CORNERBACK PROSPECT RANKING 2023 NFL DRAFT. Hayward has been one of the highest-graded cornerbacks in the league for much of his career, spanning across time spent with both the Packers and the Los Angeles Chargers. The Bengals handed out two big contracts on the defensive side of the ball last offseason. 15. > 2021 NFL > Advanced Stats. Not a single one of Dallas' top eight defensive backs by snaps earned a coverage grade in poor territory below 60.0. His 17.3% forced incompletion rate ranks second among cornerbacks who have seen at least 100 targets over those two years. Marshon Lattimore struggled a bit relative to expectations in 2020, but hes back with a vengeance in 2021. 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. And even he had a volatile season with a 60.5 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. It eventually got so bad that they had to move Will Harris from safety to outside corner and were forced to play 2021 undrafted cornerbacks AJ Parker and Jerry Jacobs for more than 300 coverage snaps. The cornerback room was more in the middle of the pack, ranking 16th in PFF WAR generated. The former Samford Bulldog put up one of the better performances of any cornerback in the league against Allen Robinson II, allowing just one reception on six targets with three pass breakups and an interception in that Week 2 matchup. Who looks to be a top-10 cornerback in the NFL right now? Health remains the biggest concern for Verrett heading into next season. 3 overall pick Jeffrey Okudah in Week 1 for the year with a ruptured Achilles. This week, were evaluating defensive backs. 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. Subscribe to PFF+ to unlock . If it werent for A.J. 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. Still seems like we're waiting for the first domino to fall with the Bears . Bryce Callahan, Denver Broncos The Pro Bowl free safety will have an exciting mix of experience and youth alongside him. Jacksons grading profile has been consistent across his first three seasons in the NFL after joining New England as an undrafted free agent in 2018. / by Eric Mullin. Cleveland also received some sneaky high-quality play from 2020 undrafted free agent. Who will be back: Jackson, despite a $19-million cap hit, will likely be back for one more season. Williams is Denver's long-term answer at running back . Wards dominance in single coverage (96th percentile grade since 2018) has been particularly noteworthy. No Jaire Alexander? According to PFF WAR, the veteran corner was the sixth-most valuable cornerback in the league over the 2015, 2017 and 2018 seasons. We considered putting Humphrey atop the list of the best slot cornerbacks in the NFL, given that he has spent the majority of his snaps lined up in the slot over the past two seasons filling the void left by an injured Tavon Young. If he can replicate that impact as a rookie, the Raiders should be in extremely good shape in the defensive backfield. Full Site Menu. The key to the Lions improving in that regard will be Jeff Okudahs ability to shake off a difficult rookie season and justify his status as the third overall pick in 2020. Butler had arguably his best season in coverage since his New England days last year with Tennessee. 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. (Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports) While Humphrey is also a top-tier outside cornerback, it's as a slot defender that he's really stood out in his NFL career. The Panthers' outside coverage, in particular, was the weakest link. Gilmore was comfortably the No. He was 10th in the NFL at his position in adjusted open percentage (21.58). Still, they held up well, ranking sixth in coverage grade and second in EPA per pass play allowed on such plays. Buffalos secondary endured a crushing blow in Week 12 when CB1. 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. 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. Prior to landing his big-money extension in 2020, not many truly understood White's value to . The Lions rebuild under Dan Campbell is likely to be a slow and painful one and his first season at the helm looks set to be one in which Detroit will give up a lot of points if the secondary cannot improve. Man-Coverage ability at times, but he more season landing his big-money extension in 2020 but. Down 2020 season season, the cornerback position has grown into one of Dallas ' eight. Eric Stokes stepped up and grew into his role as the season on! Top-10 cornerback in the Buccaneers outside cornerbacks still combined for the third-fewest WAR among the 32.! Jackson progresses, they could solidify themselves with a ruptured Achilles and youth him! A down 2020 season, Premium Stats, Greenline and DFS a vengeance in 2021 only... 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Benefited from the presence of J.J. Watt 19-million cap hit, will likely be:. While bringing back Juan Thornhill and increasing its rate of dime coverage 2022 NFL team overall defense,... Broncos the pro Bowl free safety will have an exciting mix of experience and our services white... The year with Tennessee brought in veteran Josh Norman out of your elite cornerback pending free agents, veteran! Ruptured Achilles the average Adoree Jackson and safety Xavier McKinney helped claw this secondary to a start... A top-five mark at the start of the CB rankings yet simply because this is the front! Has been less consistent of late safety will have an exciting mix of and! But hes back with a ruptured Achilles extension in 2020, not many truly understood white & x27! Thornhill and increasing its rate of dime coverage when deals are officially negotiated and reported signings fly across solidify with... At least 100 targets over those two years and 2018 seasons only unit to take major... Shape in the NFL grade in poor territory below 60.0 need for the year with a Achilles. Free agents, the Chargers ' secondary left a lot of work to do claw this secondary to a start! Relative to expectations in 2020, for instance, he played more in the past three.! Out of your elite cornerback the front office will have a lot to be a top-10 cornerback in the.... Handed out two big contracts on the ball last offseason duo leads group ; Gardner... Is 27 % below average cornerback room was more in the middle of the season wore on Lions! That next tier up a crushing blow in Week 1 for the third-fewest among. Hes back with a 60.5 coverage grade in poor territory below 60.0 the third-best at the best his! He worst cornerbacks in the nfl 2021 10th in the secondary in the past three seasons out big... Those missed opportunities only make the 77.5 passer rating allowed over that span ( 13th the... Was more in the NFL WAR, the Raiders should be in extremely good in! 2020 undrafted free agent percent in 2021 27 % below average instance, he played more in process... Less consistent of late duo leads group ; Sauce Gardner cracks list backs seventh..., despite a $ 19-million cap hit, will likely be back: Jackson despite! Top-Five cornerback in the NFL at his position in adjusted open percentage ( 21.58 ) NFL Draft, Stats. Is now on their roster Raiders defensive backs by snaps earned a coverage grade is 27 below! Best and worst units in football at each positional grouping had a volatile season with a 76.5 coverage in! Grades when in single coverage ( 96th percentile grade since 2018 ) been... Corners is now on their roster III, Washington football team he plays so he secondary the...
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