Ranking who the top 32 cornerbacks in the NFL are for 2021 is like trying to rank your children. The Cardinals are under pressure to produce a playoff campaign in the third year of Kliff Kingsbury as head coach and Kyler Murray as quarterback and a look at their depth chart in the secondary indicates the offense may have to carry this team to a first postseason appearance since the 2015 campaign. 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. He has featured in a versatile role this season, with over 300 snaps each in the slot and on the outside. Patrick Mahomes, Chiefs. Jackson hasnt quite reached those lofty heights in the three years since, but he is coming off his best statistical season since 2017, with just 52% of the passes into his coverage being completed in 2020. The 2021 second-round pick is a valuable piece to this secondary moving forward, but the other cornerback spots need some work. In the last six years, Darius Slay Jr. has made it to the Pro Bowl five times, a remarkable stretch of dominance. Houstons fielded the lowest-graded secondary in the NFL by a whopping eight grading points. Melifonwu was tied for ninth in the fewest burn yards per snap (1.23) allowed among Power 5 corners in his final season with Syracuse. These rankings are solely analyzing the performance and impact of every secondary in the NFL from the 2021 regular season. via Seth Galina. I wouldnt have any issue calling White the best cornerback in football if Ramsey and Alexander didnt exist. Subscribe to PFF+ to unlock . The Rams opted to let 2021's slot cornerback Darious Williams leave via free agency, replacing him by bringing back Troy Hill in free agency. In the worst case scenario, Surtain could be a good safety in the NFL, but he looks like a safe pick . The Broncos' secondary underwhelmed to a certain extent in 2021, with veteran safety Kareem Jackson and cornerback free agent pickups Kyle Fuller and Ronald Darby all producing poor coverage grades below 60.0. Sign up and be the first to receive exclusive stats, news, and updates from the Analyst. 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. Aug 3, 2021. The league's inaugural 17-game season . Greedy Williams, Cleveland Browns When hes been asked to man up against some of the best receivers in the NFL, hes delivered. And star cornerback Jalen Ramsey is a huge reason why. Kenny Moore II, Indianapolis Colts13. Design by Matt Sisneros. Denzel Ward, in my opinion, is another year away from being a potential top-five cornerback in the NFL. Which team has the most wins as road dogs since 2015? Defensive coordinator Vance Joseph did a good job of adjusting his defense and playing less man coverage to take stress off that unit, but the Cardinals still finished 26th in outside coverage grade for the year. Jackson has been one of the stingiest cornerbacks in the league on deep targets since entering the league. Terrell. 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. To look exclusively at the secondary, the results for defenders who spend their playing time almost exclusively in the box have been filtered out. Episode 2 of the "Top 100 Players of 2022" aired on Sunday, with three cornerbacks making the list between Nos. 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. But from the slot, the Seahawks' coverage unit was a bit of a nightmare. In the News: Patrick Mahomes, Derek Carr, Aaron Rodgers, Jalen Hurts, Tom Brady, Brock Purdy. Fuller was back in Washington for the 2020 season following a two-year stint in Kansas City. The only member of the Detroit Lions on our initial 2022 NFL top 100 players list, Frank Ragnow missed a majority of the 2021 season with a turf toe. His six penalties this past season were fewer than any year since his rookie season in 2013. Reed Jr. and safety Quandre Diggs were two of Seattle's bright spots. His on-field and sideline hijinx make it look like he legitimately loves every second of playing football. Howard is one of the best playmaking cornerbacks that the NFL has to offer. The amount of top-level play from NFL cornerbacks is astonishing. The defense endured blows at multiple position groups, including in the secondary with, Detroits secondary has been problematic over the past few years, and it didnt get any better in Year 1 under Dan Campbell. All Rights Reserved. Ward and Newsome, in particular, produced top-10 coverage grades when in single coverage. Outside of safety Derwin James, the Chargers' secondary left a lot to be desired in 2021. Jalen Ramsey, Los Angeles Rams 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. Davis and Dean form one of the best cornerback pairings in the NFL. worst 2021 cornerback 2021. worst 2021 cornerback 2021. Hes one of the more impactful free agents still on the market. After a broken-up pass against Wake Forest in 2016, he pranced behind the unsuspecting receiver in a manner Ive never witnessed. 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. Should the Giants opt to move on from the 27-year-old cornerback, they would clear $8.6 million . One was to Waynes, and the other was to interior defensive lineman D.J. NFL Player Grades - current. Here is the fourth version of our Vikings 2023 Mock Draft Tracker, which features 16 recent predictions from around the world of . Casey Hayward, Las Vegas Raiders 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. I still expect a lot from Stephon Gilmore, and with those expectations will come quick criticism if he doesnt perform to his standards. 24. Tennessees loss has turned into the Giants gain. With their help, the Raiders ranked top five in yards per attempt and explosive pass rate allowed this year. We rank all 32 teams in 10 different position groups, plus we offer an overall roster outlook. Top Nine Defenses. 15. Despite that, the Buccaneers outside cornerbacks still combined for the highest unit coverage grade 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. 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. The lack of talent and experience was apparent, especially without safety Marcus Maye, who ruptured his Achilles midway through the season. Even with the big plays allowed early in the season, quarterbacks have just a 68.1 rating when targeting Lattimore this season. The Bengals handed out two big contracts on the defensive side of the ball last offseason. 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. Bryce Hall, New York Jets, XFL Fantasy Football Rankings Week 2: Josh Gordon, Jeff Badet, Max Borghi, and More, Final Fantasy PPR Rankings for the NFL Playoffs: Tony Pollard, Ezekiel Elliott, James Cook, and More, NFL All-Time RB Records: Season and Career Leaders, College football Week 6 live reactions, results, and takeaways. Not a single one of Dallas' top eight defensive backs by snaps earned a coverage grade in poor territory below 60.0. 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. If that happens and J.C. Jackson progresses, they could solidify themselves with a gold medal there. Bears. He led the position in interceptions (11), yards allowed (1,026) and penalties (11) this regular season. According to PFF WAR, the veteran corner was the sixth-most valuable cornerback in the league over the 2015, 2017 and 2018 seasons. Last week, we took a look at offensive lines. Sign Up. Still, they held up well, ranking sixth in coverage grade and second in EPA per pass play allowed on such plays. 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. NAME SEASON TM GP TKL AST COMB SCK SCKY INT INT YDS INT TD FF FR FR TD; Jahleel Addae: 2021: IND. Buffalos offense carried the load last season as the Bills progressed to the AFC Championship Game, though the talent in the secondary is such that they can afford to have confidence in putting more of the burden on their pass coverage in 2021. Another of those factors was health, as Darby played over 600 defensive snaps in 2020 for the first time in four seasons. Hill had his best seasons in LA . Yet, despite his All-Pro name, Mercilus has not been great the last couple of years. 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. 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. If you built a cornerback in a lab, they would look like Ramsey. And Peters ranks tied for fifth at the position in pass breakups (52) over that same time frame. 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. Detroits defensive backs aggregate coverage grade is 27% below average. LAS VEGAS RAIDERS. We use our own and third-party cookies to improve your experience and our services. 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. The seven touchdowns allowed into his coverage this past season were tied for second-most of any cornerback in the league. Ramsey produced the highest coverage grade and most PFF WAR among all cornerbacks in the regular season. . Even if the young Jaycee Horn hadnt gone down to injury, this would have been an outstanding move for the Panthers. Waynes three-year, $42 million contract was likely an overpay, but he does profile as a quality starting option. Consequently, defenses are more stressed than ever before. There is a massive amount of talent currently at the position. Overall, Philadelphia's cornerback room finished second in coverage grade this season. Health remains the biggest concern for Verrett heading into next season. Over the past few weeks, PFF has unveiled its positional rankings and unit rankings for the 2021 NFL season. Thats a tip of the cap to everyone in the secondary for stepping up, including 2020 seventh-rounder Dane Jackson, who didnt allow a touchdown in any regular-season start after replacing White. Last season, he allowed 46 slot catches on 72 targets for 392 yards, 167 yards after the catch, one touchdown, no . When Diggs is targeted, the opponents quarterback rating is 45. 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. Cross died in 2021. The top 2021 Cornerback prospects available for the 2021 NFL Draft. 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. Xavien Howard has always been an outstanding blend of consistency and aggression. The yards on Diggs ledger are largely hollow. 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. After an offseason in which Arizona did little to address the cornerback position, the onus may again be on that pair to elevate those around them, unless Butler and Alford unexpectedly recapture their form of old. Were taking a look at the best and worst units in football at each positional grouping. The ability to limit production like Ramsey did against top-flight talent is invaluable for the Los Angeles Rams defense. Use our own and third-party cookies to improve your experience and our services grades when in single coverage even the... Other cornerback spots need some work if Stephon Gilmore has a bounce-back season news, and other!, which features 16 recent predictions from around the world of Dean form one of the more impactful agents... Waynes, and with those expectations will come quick criticism if he doesnt perform to his standards each. Was back in Washington for the first to receive exclusive stats, news, and with those will... 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