To further my point, Matthew Staffords EPA is 39, and hes an MVP candidate at quarterback. Mar 1, 2021 at 11:51 am ET 34 min read NFL Draft season is in full swing, so a Top 50 Big Board is in order. 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. They were among the five least valuable secondaries in the league, and the cornerback room, in particular, finished as the second-lowest graded group. In the last six years, Darius Slay Jr. has made it to the Pro Bowl five times, a remarkable stretch of dominance. Here is PFF's take on the top 32 outside cornerbacks entering the 2021 NFL season, featuring stiff competition for the top spot among several players under the age of 27. If that happens and J.C. Jackson progresses, they could solidify themselves with a gold medal there. 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. Carolina ranked 24th in outside coverage grade and allowed the fourth-worst passer rating to the outside (107.8). 1 cornerbacks in the NFC South are tasked with. They were forced to play, Theres reason to believe this secondary can take a big step forward in 2022 with its young core of safety, This kind of ranking for the Chicago Bears was expected this season, considering their cornerback situation outside of, Minnesota put forth some of the worst cornerback play in the NFL. While Gang Green endured a turbulent 2019, Poole was one of the team's top performers week in and week out. The NFL in 2014 settled a class action lawsuit with retired . Jaire Alexander is responsible for my favorite troll of all time on a football field. 24. If he can replicate that impact as a rookie, the Raiders should be in extremely good shape in the defensive backfield. In the worst case scenario, Surtain could be a good safety in the NFL, but he looks like a safe pick . Nickel corner Sean Murphy-Bunting also did a decent job at preventing big plays, conceding eight on 44 targets on the inside. Published: Oct 20, 2022 at 03:19 PM . 17. 25. Now the question is, are they able to maintain that if they undergo another coaching change? Greg Newsome, Cleveland Browns, 26. * - denotes 2022 prospect. Only one defensive back nickel cornerback, Galina: The shortcomings of the Kellen Moore-Dak Prescott connection for the Dallas Cowboys. Waynes three-year, $42 million contract was likely an overpay, but he does profile as a quality starting option. 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). 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. Witherspoon allowed a burn on half of his 28 targets last season. The league's inaugural 17-game season . Projections: Offensive rookies. Bears. 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. Dean allowed a burn on 30 of his 64 targets, his percentage of 46.9 comfortably better than the average of 52.8 for corners with at least 200 coverage snaps. Denzel Ward, in my opinion, is another year away from being a potential top-five cornerback in the NFL. However, his return came at outside cornerback for the Football Team in 2020, where he put up impressive coverage numbers at his new position. It doesnt hurt that Washington can feel comfortable playing him at multiple positions in their secondary, either. 2021 NFL Defensive Secondary Rankings, by Unit 32. Sign Up. Jordan Fuller 22nd among safeties in adjusted open percentage provided cause for optimism as a rookie sixth-round pick in 2020 while Taylor Rapp conceded a big play on only two of his 15 targets. 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. Outside corner D.J. Terrells breakout to elite status, Atlanta would be threatening to place last on this list. Two free-agent signings, in particular , The Raiders entered 2021 on a streak of arguably the worst defensive back play in the entire NFL. They will be looking for a step forward from last years third-round pick Cameron Dantzler, who was above average in burn yards per target (9.4) and open percentage allowed (62.3) as a rookie. Ramsey continued his stellar play for the Rams in 2021, forcing 16 interceptions, breaking up 12 passes, generating four interceptions, and racking up 77 total tackles. > 2021 NFL > Advanced Stats. As I said in last week's Schein Nine, NFL offenses are more creative and dynamic than ever before. Still, they held up well, ranking sixth in coverage grade and second in EPA per pass play allowed on such plays. This is the worst front seven in the NFL. Here is PFFs take on the top 32 outside cornerbacks entering the 2021 NFL season, featuring stiff competition for the top spot among several players under the age of 27. 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. He was 10th in the NFL at his position in adjusted open percentage (21.58). A Week 5 matchup with Amari Cooper and Dallas put that on display. Ahmad Gardner, Cincinnati . The result was a season where Alexander was worth 1.4 wins above a replacement-level player, almost a full half-win more than any other cornerback. Still, hes a gifted tactician at the position and will get back on his feet this season. 16 ranking despite the team's poor state overall. Griffin has earned overall grades of 50.7, 78.0 and 64.6 in the past three seasons. Pair that with three top-25-graded safeties , No team covered the slot better in the 2021 regular season than the Patriots. 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. 23. The Eagles aren't the best NFC East team on paper. Strong safety Kareem Jackson was ninth among all players at the position in burn yards per target allowed with 7.76. Free-agent signing William Jackson III was an up-and-down performer. 15. If it werent for A.J. However, I prefer to look at this exercise as a nod of respect toward the top cornerbacks in the NFL for the 2021 season. via Seth Galina. He ended up allowing 0.37 yards per coverage snap the third-lowest figure in the PFF era behind only Asante Samuel in 2019 and Nnamdi Asomugha in 2008 (0.36 each). Theres reason to believe this secondary can take a big step forward in 2022 with its young core of safety Jeremy Chinn and cornerbacks Jaycee Horn and C.J. No team covered the slot better in the 2021 regular season than the Patriots. There is no shortage of defensive weapons on Clevelands roster. Subscribe to PFF+ to unlock . 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. Much of the Raiders presence in the top 10 is tied to the astute acquisition of veteran corner Casey Hayward, whose adjusted open percentage of 17.3 was the fifth-best in the NFL among players at all defensive positions, though a less impressive burn yards per target average of 11.20 reflects how often he was left on an island for the Los Angeles Chargers last year. Nelson was another surprise release by a team strapped for salary cap space. ** - denotes 2023 prospect. Receivers started getting smaller and more shifty. Im not entirely sure why hes playing such a high volume of his 2021 snaps in the slot, but it certainly isnt hurting his case as the best cornerback in football. 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. Bradberry's 2021 season, though, was abysmal. Safety Jimmie Ward was the teams highest-graded defensive back in coverage (73.7). If Lattimores career was flipped in reverse order, theres a reasonable chance that he would be inside the top five on this list. Greedy Williams, Cleveland Browns J.C. Jackson isnt the most consistent cornerback in the world, but hes not necessarily the gambler that Howard and Marcus Peters tend to be. While Pittsburgh ranked in the top 10 in EPA allowed per pass play for the season, they struggled quite a bit when not producing pressure on the quarterback. Although Ringo grew up dreaming of scoring touchdowns, his path to being a high draft pick could come because of his ability to prevent them. Humphrey impacts the games in all the ways you want him to. 6 on the list, as his 86.2 coverage . No group of cornerbacks played more man coverage than the Miami Dolphins. he NFC East was a historically bad division in 2020, which is why all four teams were in the race deep into the season. Nelson ranks among the top 10 cornerbacks in the league in both completion rate allowed (53.9%) and passer rating allowed (75.1) among 68 players at the position to see at least 100 targets since 2019. Hill had his best seasons in LA . Hes a wide receiver baiting quarterbacks into throwing passes that he can jump. They ranked dead last in slot coverage grade following the regular season. Jaylon Johnson, Chicago Bears 2020 Yards-Allowed Rank: No. Pair that with three top-25-graded safeties Antoine Winfield Jr. (second), Jordan Whitehead (18th) and Mike Edwards (22nd) and you have yourself one of the best secondaries in the NFL ready to help the franchise compete for another Super Bowl. 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. Return to Top; Players. Hes intelligent and has ideal size and athleticism. Even if the young Jaycee Horn hadnt gone down to injury, this would have been an outstanding move for the Panthers. 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. Houston Texans: Whitney Mercilus, OLB. His 71 forced incompletions since 2014 are fewer than only Darius Slay and Stephon Gilmore. They made a league-leading 23 plays on the ball from the slot en route to allowing the lowest passer rating (71.1). 2020 Points-Allowed Rank: No. Mahomes is king again at age 25 and may not be dethroned for a long time. 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. Nov 15, 2020; New Orleans, Louisiana, USA; New Orleans Saints quarterback Jameis Winston (2) celebrates after a touchdown by running back Alvin Kamara . White does a fantastic job of toeing the line between aggressive and reckless. Verrett exceeded all expectations in his return from a string of injuries last season for San Francisco. 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. No team lost more WAR due to injuries this season than Baltimore. While Surtain will go early in the 2021 NFL Draft, he is not as good of a prospect as Jalen Ramsey or C.J. Marlon Humphrey, Baltimore Ravens. 1 wide receiver in man coverage. . T.J. Green has played because of . NFL's Next Gen Stats captures real time location data, speed and acceleration for every player, every play on every inch of the field. Detroits secondary has been problematic over the past few years, and it didnt get any better in Year 1 under Dan Campbell. Detroits defensive backs aggregate coverage grade is 27% below average. The low-level play ultimately led to his benching by the seasons end. Green allowed only six receptions for 70 yards on 22 targets while breaking up five and picking off one. The hope for Miami will be that he gets back toward the player who earned a five-year, $82.5 million contract last offseason. The results are very favorable for one NFC West team, though two franchises from that division are at the wrong end of the rankings. 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. Ramsey produced the highest coverage grade and most PFF WAR among all cornerbacks in the regular season. Veteran Artie Burns and seventh-round rookie Thomas Graham Jr. were small-sample darlings with 85.1 and 90.6 coverage grades, respectively, but they didnt get enough reps to make a sizable dent. He gets to passes that most receivers cannot get to, making his multiple near-INTs in 2021 as impressive as his 7 actual interceptions. He gets his hands on passes left and right without getting himself so out of position that hes unable to recover. The Pro Bowl free safety will have an exciting mix of experience and youth alongside him. After profiling as one of the top cornerbacks in the league from 2014 to 2018, Slay has taken a noticeable step back the past two seasons. Their team slot coverage grade ended up multiple grading points higher than any other NFL franchise. This kind of ranking for the Chicago Bears was expected this season, considering their cornerback situation outside of Jaylon Johnson. 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. Having added Fuller and the most pro-ready corner in the draft, the Broncos secondary could soon mount a challenge to take the crown from the Rams. he 2021 NFL regular season is over. The strength of this group comes from two former Washington Huskies. His goal is not to make it so a quarterback doesnt want to throw the ball his way. The Bengals', pass coverage finished the regular season as the seventh-most improved group year over year in terms of EPA allowed per pass. With the defense surrounding the young CB, he could easily be higher on the list heading into next season. Reed and Tre . There is a massive amount of talent currently at the position. Shaquill Griffin, Jacksonville Jaguars No cornerback in the league has been more productive on passes 20 or more yards downfield over that span. Copyright 2019-2023. 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. Hes going up against each teams best receiver, shadowing them around the field. 32. Their team slot coverage grade ended up multiple grading points higher than any other NFL franchise. 90-81. The amount of top-level play from NFL cornerbacks is astonishing. And star cornerback Jalen Ramsey is a huge reason why. 1. 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. 29. 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. The NFL's top 11 safeties. Find out which wide receivers to upgrade, downgrade and avoid for Week 1 in fantasy football by using a full cheat sheet that breaks down every WR vs. CB matchup. 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. PFF's exclusive metrics provide Cornerback (CB) position rankings, grades, and snap counts. Ive already written my story on Trevon Diggs. Jones was the NFL's highest-paid cornerback when he signed a five-year, $82.5 . He ranks top 10 in both slot and outside coverage grade. Who led the NFL in receiving in 2021? It hasnt taken Alexander very long to establish himself as one of the leagues best coverage cornerbacks. 4-overall prospect). That is how much top-end cornerback play there is in the NFL. What Diggs is doing through six games is absurd. However, he was overly aggressive at times and susceptible to giving up the big play. After recording three straight coverage grades of at least 85.0 in New Englands defense, Gilmore put up just a 58.5 coverage grade in 2020. By continuing and using the site, including by remaining on the landing . His 17.3% forced incompletion rate ranks second among cornerbacks who have seen at least 100 targets over those two years. Nickel Ronald Darby (37.8) and free-agent signing Kyle Fuller (40.3), inexplicably released by the Chicago Bears, each ranked in the top seven in burn percentage allowed for corners with at least 200 coverage snaps. So, which secondaries were a boon and which were a hindrance this season? Above-average press man cornerback with NFL bloodlines and a well-rounded but not spectacular all-around game. This group should contend for the top spot next season. The seven touchdowns allowed into his coverage this past season were tied for second-most of any cornerback in the league. The Bengals spent over $12.7 million on their cornerbacks against the cap in 2022, which was 6.02% of their total . When hes been asked to man up against some of the best receivers in the NFL, hes delivered. In 2017, Slay led the league in interceptions and . The tandem tormented AFC quarterbacks for years. He still showcases lockdown man-coverage ability at times, but it has been less consistent of late. Bradberry was the fourth-most valuable cornerback in the league in 2020 per PFF WAR, with career-best coverage numbers across the board. None of their cornerbacks had a quality campaign, but. The veteran had a career year, earning the highest coverage grade (83.9) of his nine years in the NFL ranks. Ranking top 10 cornerbacks in NFL for 2021: Jalen Ramsey leads pack that includes talented newcomers . In a pass-heavy league, the cornerback position has grown into one of the most important positions on the football field. 1. That mark was also good for fourth-best at the position in the 2021 regular season. 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. Pittsburgh also went from second to 29th in passer rating allowed on deep targets year over year. 25. The Bengals' pass coverage finished the regular season as the seventh-most improved group year over year in terms of EPA allowed per pass. 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. The secondary is the last unit remaining. Who will be back: Jackson, despite a $19-million cap hit, will likely be back for one more season. Kenny Moore II, Indianapolis Colts13. Jackson burst onto the scene with a 90.4 coverage grade in his first season of action back in 2017. Patrick Surtain II has been quite literally living up to his name as an elite cornerback and has helped the Denver Broncos maintain their position as a top-tier defense even after trading away their star edge rusher. 2022 NFL season's top 10 shutdown cornerbacks: Eagles duo leads group; Sauce Gardner cracks list. Pro Football Focus graded rookie Sauce Gardner as the best corner in the NFL. Xavien Howard picked an opportune time to hold out for a new contract.. Were taking a look at the best and worst units in football at each positional grouping. 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 . The most impressive part is that it all comes in a man-heavy Baltimore defense few cornerbacks in the league possess that kind of ability. Six cornerbacks played over 100 snaps for the Jaguars in 2021 and only one , Injuries destroyed the Ravens this past season. LAS VEGAS RAIDERS. 6 and . 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. For the most part, the Buffalo Bills invest wisely in the right people and positions. 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. Injuries held him to just over 300 snaps for San Francisco last season, but Sherman was the highest-graded cornerback in the league (90.3 overall) back in 2019. Kansas City's defense looked dead in the water after the first five weeks of the season. The secondary finished 26th in unit coverage grade and ranked in the bottom 10 in passer rating, yards per attempt and separation allowed when the quarterback threw from a clean pocket. The final four rounds will conclude this year's draft on April 29. 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. Design by Matt Sisneros. What do you want out of your elite cornerback? Marshon Lattimore struggled a bit relative to expectations in 2020, but hes back with a vengeance in 2021. 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 had one of the highest forced incompletion rates in the league this past year with Washington one of several contributing factors to the multi-year deal that Denver offered him. Hes 61, 210 pounds, and his spider chart might as well have been colored in by a nine-year-old. PFF's exclusive metrics provide matchup previews, position rankings, grades, and snap counts. 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. Lavonte David 6943. Despite that, the Buccaneers outside cornerbacks still combined for the highest unit coverage grade in the NFL. As you can probably expect, the quarterbacks are at the top and there are plenty of wide receivers. His PFF grade dropped from 90.0 from 2014 to 2018 in Detroit to just 59.5 across the last two years. Their defensive backs possess an aggregate coverage grade 14% above average. The Bengals handed out two big contracts on the defensive side of the ball last offseason. We started to see signs of the Louisville product's playmaking ability in 2019, as his 16 forced incompletions ranked second at the position. Free Agent Rankings QB Annual 2022 PFF analyzes every player and every play of every game in the 2022 NFL season. Bobby Wagner 8452. Henderson. Seattle Seahawks: Ahkello Witherspoon, D.J. From Week 7 on, he was one of the 25 highest-graded cornerbacks in the NFL. Bryce Callahan, Denver Broncos In 2020, Howard led the league in interceptions (10) and pass breakups (20) for his first All-Pro nod. Instead, hes heading in the wrong direction. Jenkins has been about as consistent as they come over his nine-year career. 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. Still, the Saints defense was great last season and has continued to be so in 2021. His 19.1% forced incompletion rate was a top-five mark at the cornerback position last year, tied with Jaire Alexander. 18. Dean expanded his role in the Buccaneers defense from fewer than 400 snaps in 2019 to 935 defensive snaps this past season. Fuller is set to be reunited with Vic Fangio in Denver. 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. And there are a couple of surprise names feature among those secondaries who look ready to take a leap in 2021. Whether it was injuries or age starting to show in one of the man-heaviest defenses in the NFL, he was not the same player in 2020. Overall, Philadelphia's cornerback room finished second in coverage grade this season. Unlock all tools and content including Player Grades, Fantasy, NFL Draft, Premium Stats, Greenline and DFS. 4) Patrick Surtain II, Denver Broncos. 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). Cornerback Trevon Diggs has been possibly the biggest boom-or-bust cornerback of the PFF era. T. Washington: 7-9. 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. Washington possessed one of the better defenses in the NFL in 2020;Jacksons addition should only improve it, giving them a No. And even he had a volatile season with a 60.5 coverage grade. Okudah allowed the offense to gain +1.0 EPA on 43.2 percent of his targets in coverage, the worst rate in the league . Theyre simply on a tier of their own for the time being. Jalen Ramsey, Los Angeles Rams. 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