In its ongoing summer series, The Pewter Report examines and ranks each position group in the NFC South. So far, we’ve documented and ranked quarterbacks, running backs, wide receivers, tight ends, offensive lines, defensive lines and linebackers in the NFC South. Well, next is NFC South’s cornerback.
quarterback
running back
wide receiver
offensive line
line of defense
linebacker
The NFC South has a young and talented group of cornerbacks, which makes for interesting conversations about the standings of each team. According to PFF, NFC South will Includes five of the NFL’s top 32 cornerbacks heading into the 2023 season.
Tampa Bay Bucks
Bucks CB Carlton Davis III – Photo Credit: USA Today
The Bucks led the NFC South’s cornerback rankings as the only team with multiple players listed in the aforementioned PFF article. What’s interesting about the Bucks’ starting outside duo is that their number one corner may not be the best corner for them.
Carlton Davis III has established himself as the Bucks’ top cornerback room player since his second season in 2018. Davis is a talented press man he corner. Lock down some of the NFL’s premier wide receivers. Davis’ PFF stats don’t necessarily bear this out, due to the typical hiring practices of Bucks head coach Todd Bowles.
Across from Davis is Jamel Dean. Dean has climbed to one of the top 10 spots in the NFL and could be in the top 5 in man coverage. Dean started 2022 by stealing the starting job from Sean Murphy Bunting, then improved his zone coverage and run defense.Only Dean was targeted Last year, he allowed 68 catches and 34 catches for 412 yards. In fact, in 2022, Dean was top five in run defense in corners and top two in tackles.
Where the Bucks may have trouble is outside the top two teams. the current. Dee Delaney is penciled in the nickel corner position. Delaney faces tough competition from rookie sixth-round pick Josh Hayes. Delaney has shown himself to be a solid, albeit understated, option, with over 400 snaps to offer over the past two years. Hayes was a surprise selection by the Bucks, but the team is very proud of him for his strong run at Kansas State in 2022.
If Dean or Davis drop, the Bucks will turn to Zion McCollum. McCollum suffered a tough rookie year, but still has an incredible physique. If McCallum can destroy parts of his brain, the ceiling for him is almost limitless.
The Bucks have the NFC South’s top duo, which propels them to the top of the rankings.
carolina panthers
Panthers CB Jaycee Horn Photo Credit: USA Today
The Panthers are led by former Top 10 pick Jaycee Horn. Horn has been plagued with injuries in his career so far, and his record is scarce. 1,000 snaps and 16 appearances in the first two seasons. But when he’s healthy, few corners match his level of play. Horn is adept at playing man, press and zone coverage. If he can make it through a full season, he could well become one of the top cornerbacks in the NFL.
Donte Jackson is a consistent and capable starter the Panthers can count on. Over the past three years, Jackson has made seven successful passes but never allowed a receive longer than 40 yards. His 4.32 speed for Jackson helps him keep up with receivers lined up on the other side.
Former first-round pick CJ Henderson will be the primary backup for Jackson and Horn. Henderson never lived up to draft status and could not pass Jackson for the starting spot alongside Horn. Even if Horn’s injury problems continue, he’ll still provide an enviable amount of depth.
Jeremy Chin is currently listed as the team’s primary nickel corner, according to safety ourlads.com. Chin played his 40% of snaps on this slot last year. At 6-foot-3 and weighing 220 pounds, Chin is a physically intimidating presence, and although he struggled somewhat in coverage last year, he has shown before that that he can play at a high level in coverage.
If Chin can get back playing coverage in 2021 and Horn can stay healthy all season. This group could challenge the Bucks for the top corner unit in the NFC South.
new orleans saints
The low ranking of the Saints on this list may surprise some. But this isn’t so much an indictment of the Saints’ corner as a compliment to the talent level of the NFC South team as a whole. New Orleans has the best corner in the division at Marshon Lattimore (although that baton may pass to Dean or Horn this year).
Lattimore has long been considered one of the top three players in the NFL, but didn’t perform as well until his rookie season. Still, Lattimore can contain some of the best receivers in the game, including Bucks’ Mike Evans. Bucks fans like to say Evans is better than Lattimore, but the fact is that Lattimore has held Evans to 5 catches on 10 targets for 69 yards and 1 touchdown over the last five games. is.
Paulson Adebo struggled last year in its sophomore campaign. At 6-foot-1 and weighing 192 pounds, he has the physique to succeed, but last year he was targeted 69 times for 652 yards and five touchdowns. Former Bronco and Texas native Bradley Robbie is in his third season with the Saints and has been named the team’s nickel corner. Robbie’s level of play has declined every two seasons, and at the age of 31, it’s understandable to wonder if he’ll be able to recapture the strong level of play he showed between 2015 and 2020.
Saints CB Alonte Taylor Photo Credit: USA Today
2022 second-round pick Alonte Taylor could steal Adebo and take the starting spot across from Lattimore. Taylor got off to a strong start last year, scoring his PFF grade of 91.1 in his debut performance against the Bucks in Week 2. But he succumbed to the inevitable rookie struggle and finished the year with a 54.5 record. Taylor’s tackle miss rate was 23.6% last year, so he’ll need to improve his tackles. However, he had high hopes, catching just 45.3% for 283 yards and no touchdowns.
Isaac Yadom rounds out the group with a veteran presence who knows his job well. Yadom is a long way from when he started for the Giants in 2020 and had a productive season as a decent No. 2. He had just two snaps on defense for the Houston Texans last year.
Any team that could enjoy a high-end season in Lattimore would have a chance at getting one of the best cornerback rooms in the NFL, let alone the NFC South. And head coach Dennis Allen has a way of making the sum of the parts bigger than the parts themselves, much like Bowles. But there’s also a natural question mark about Lattimore. Personally, Taylor is ready to take a big step in 2023 and that could help put this unit back in a position to compete with the Bucks for the top spot in the NFC South for years to come. I believe it has the potential.
Atlanta Falcons
Former Lions, now Falcons CB Jeff Okuda Photo: USA Today
AJ Terrell was one of the league’s best cornerers in 2021, catching just 29 catches for 200 yards and earning a PFF Grade of 82.6. He’s taken a step back in 2022, but has performed well in the last four weeks. Terrell is big and fast and can take on anyone on an equal footing.
The Falcons made headlines before the draft when they traded former Top 5 pick Jeff Okder. It represented low-risk, high-return play. Okder finally delivered on his promise to be draft-qualified at the start of last year, but he couldn’t sustain that performance all year. His fate is not sealed and as number two he could be very useful. Relinquishing a fifth-round pick in favor of a player who could get into the starting lineup with good news is a great move to strengthen the secondary as a whole.
Signed former UCF Knight Mike Hughes to add depth. Hughes has always been an immense talent, as evidenced by his scoring touchdown on the 95-yard kickoff return that saved UCF’s undefeated season in 2017. Things didn’t go his way with the Vikings, who picked him in the first round of the 2018 draft. They traded him to the Chiefs before the 2021 season. It led to the best season of his career. He put that to good use on a one-year deal with the Lions, and while his coverage dropped a bit, he continued to play a strong run defense. In Atlanta, he will try to recapture the magic of 2021.
Clark Phillips III could debut in Week 1 as the team’s starting corner. Phillips had some of the most exciting tapes of corners in the very strong 2023 NFL Draft class. His lack of measurable physical ability and his 5-foot-9 stature dropped him all the way to the fourth round, but he may end up being one of the draft thieves. Phillips’ best record in Utah was an outside corner, but there’s no reason to believe he can’t transition well into the frame.
Tre Flowers has over 3,000 career snaps of just below average play. You can do even worse in the fifth corner.
NFC south corner back room has talent
There are 24 possible combinations of what the NFC South cornerback rankings will look like at the end of the year. There is a way for all four teams to come out on top. All four teams have a way to finish last. After all, all four teams have a good mix of talent and question marks to make next season a season to watch.
