2019 Draft Preview: Corners
April 5, 2019
by Steve Thomas
We’re getting close to the end of our 2019 draft preview series, which is good because the draft begins on April 25 this year, and that’s right around the corner. Thusfar, we’ve covered interior offensive line (click here), running backs (click here), wide receivers (click here and here), defensive line (click here), inside linebackers (click here), edge rushers (click here), safeties (click here), and tight ends (click here). I’m going to save quarterbacks for the very end, so that just leaves corners.
The Redskins have an interesting corner group, with big-money Josh Norman in the #1 slot. Norman has a $14.5M cap hit in 2019 and a dead cap figure of $6M, so plenty of fans are rooting for Norman to be cut, although that’s unlikely this year. The other starter, Quinton Dunbar is (hopefully) returning from a nerve injury in his lower leg. Behind those two is Fabian Moreau, the 2017 UCLA product, who was originally slated to play in the slot prior to the start of last year’s injury parade. Dominque Rodgers-Cromartie is the only experienced corner on the roster beyond Norman and Dunbar, but the rumors are that Rodgers-Cromartie is a free safety candidate. Other than those players, the Redskins have 2018 sixth round supplemental draft choice Adonis Alexander, 2017 seventh round pick Josh Holsey, 2018 seventh round pick Greg Stroman, and 2018 undrafted free agent Danny Johnson, who came out of nowhere last year to earn both a spot on the roster and playing time. Washington also has a number of back of the roster depth signings such as Alex Carter, Harlan Miller, and Jeremy Reaves. It therefore seems unlikely that the Redskins make a big move this year and pick up a starting-level corner in the first few rounds, but given the Redskins’ history of drafting lots (….and lots) of corners (to read my historical analysis of the Redskins draft tendencies going back to 1992, click here), it wouldn’t be all that surprising to see the team make the move, more pressing needs notwithstanding. Let’s dive in and check out this group. As I always say, I’m not a professional scout, #notascout, so take these observations for what you will. This column is based on my personal observations and study of the views of a variety of real experts.
1. Greedy Williams, 6’2” / 184, LSU. Williams redshirted his freshman year in 2016, then played a total of 24 games in 2017 and 2018, making 71 tackles, including 49 solo, and 8 touchdowns. Williams ran the 40 yard dash in 4.37 seconds, which was second-best among all corners, but did not do any of the other objective tests. He was a Third Team All-American in 2017 and earned Second Team honors in 2018. Williams is known as an outstanding man corner, and while he has zone coverage skills as well, that isn’t what he’s known for. He’s an explosive athlete with length and good ball skills, but is also thin and can be bullied. He can use his athletic skills to pattern match at a very high level in man coverage. He’s not a plus contributor in run defense and is a bad tackler. Williams is a top 3 corner in the view of nearly every analyst and is expected to be a first round pick.
2. Byron Murphy, 5’11” / 190, Washington. As did Williams, Murphy also redshirted his freshman year in 2016. In 2017 and 2018, he played 20 games for the Huskies, with 74 tackles, including 50 solo, 6 interceptions, and 1 touchdown. He missed 7 games of the 2017 season due to a broken foot. Murphy earned Second Team AP All-American honors. At the Combine, he ran the 40 yard dash in 4.55 seconds, jumped 36.5 inches in the vertical leap and 10’0” in the broad jump. Murphy is known as a physical, aggressive player with ball skills, but lacks the elite long speed typically associated with quality NFL outside corners. Murphy is universally known as a player with a high football IQ. He’s not known for quality run support. Some analysts view him as the top-ranked corner in the class over Williams because of his combination of aggressiveness and football intelligence. Murphy is most likely going to be a first round draft pick.
3. DeAndre Baker, 5’11” / 193, Georgia. Baker played 36 games in four years at Georgia, and started his last 2 seasons. He made a total of 116 tackles, including 83 solo, and made 7 interceptions. Baker won the Jim Thorpe Award in 2018 given to the top defensive back in the nation and was a Consensus All-American. Baker ran the 40 yard dash in 4.52 seconds and jumped 9’10” inches in the standing broad jump at the NFL Combine. He is first and foremost a press-man corner, but also has quality skills in zone coverage. He lacks some athleticism, long speed, and size that could come into play when covering NFL-quality outside receivers. Baker is an intelligent player who is projected to be an immediate starter, and is also most likely a first round draft pick.
4. Julian Love, 5’11” / 195, Notre Dame. Love played 38 games in three seasons for the Fighting Irish, making a total of 176 tackles, including 126 solo, 5 interceptions, and 2 touchdowns. He was a Consensus All-American in 2018. He ran the 40 yard dash in 4.54 seconds at the NFL Combine, and jumped 36 inches in vertical leap and 10’1” in the standing broad jump. Love is known as an outstanding man coverage corner, but is also praised for his skills in cover 2. He lacks burst, so Love may not be ideal for a cover 3 situation where he has significant downfield duties that the Redskins prefer. He’s yet another top player from this class without ideal size and bulk, and unlike others, he’s more of a finesse player than a physical defensive back. Love is projected to be a second round pick.
5. Justin Layne, 6’2” / 192, Michigan St. Layne played 31 games in three seasons at Michigan St., making 130 total tackles, including 79 solo tackles, with 3 interceptions and 1 touchdown. He was awarded with Second Team All-Big 10 honors in 2018. At the Combine, Layne ran the 40 yard dash in 4.50 seconds, jumped 37 inches in the vertical leap and 11’2” in the standing broad jump (2nd among all corners). Layne originally was a top-ranked receiver prospect who converted to corner as a freshman, so he has outstanding ball skills. Layne has good size and length for an NFL outside corner. He’s known to be a physical press-man corner with good route-matching skills, but his zone coverage skills are probably his worst trait. Layne is projected to be drafted in the mid to low second round.
6. Joejuan Williams, 6’4” / 211, Vanderbilt. Williams played 34 games in three years at Vanderbilt, making 119 tackles, including 95 solo, and 4 interceptions. He was given Second Team All-SEC honors in 2018. He ran the 40 yard dash at the NFL Combine in 4.64 seconds, which is the third-slowest time of any corner in the group. He has great size for a corner, but is slow and lacks refined technique. He’s a quality tackler and plays aggressively, and while he lacks speed, he’s known to be agile for his size. Williams is more suited to zone coverage than press-man, but is better in off-man. He’s probably a third round pick.
7. Rock Ya-Sin, 6’0” / 192, Temple. The man with the most unique name in the draft originally begin his collegiate career at Presbyterian University, where he played 11 games as a true freshman, then started 11 as a sophomore. He transferred to Temple for the 2018 season, where he was a graduate student. He ran the 40 yard dash in 4.51 seconds, jumped 39.5 inches in the vertical leap and 10’0” in the broad jump, but was downright slow by corner standards in the 20 yard shuttle and 3 cone drill, running 4.31 seconds and 7.31, respectively. In 2018, Ya-Sin played in 12 games, making 47 tackles, including 36 solo, and 2 interceptions. He earned First Team All-American Conference honors. Ya-Sin was something of a tough, aggressive, hard-nosed playmaker at Temple, but he lacks experience and technique as a result of his collegiate path. This is a player who should be drafted with the expectation that he can develop into a starter given time and coaching. His draft grades are a bit varied, with some rating him significantly higher, but is generally expected to be drafted in the third round range.
8. Amani Oruwariye, 6’2” / 205, Penn St. Oruwariye played 38 games in 4 seasons with Penn St., making 106 tackles, including 72 solo, 8 interceptions, and 1 touchdown. He was selected for First Team All-Big Ten honors in 2018 and Second Team in 2017. Oruwaiye has some speed: he ran the 40 yard dash in 4.47 seconds at the Combine, which is particularly good considering his size. He’s best for a team that is zone-heavy, but his size gives him the ability to play press-man coverage as well. His downsides are that, (1) despite playing 38 games, he was only a one year starter and (2) he isn’t overly agile. Oruwariye will need pro coaching, but his ceiling is as quality starter. His draft grades vary widely – some have him as a first round pick, whereas others rank him down in the third round.
9. Travon Mullen, 6’1” / 199, Clemson. Mullen played 29 games in three seasons for the Tigers, making 93 tackles, including 68 solo, with 4 interceptions. He received honorable mention All-ACC honors in 2017 and Second Team All-ACC honors in 2018. At the NFL Combing, Mullen ran the 40 yard dash in 4.46 seconds, jumped 34.5 inches in the vertical leap and 10’3” in the broad jump. He’s the first cousin of Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson. He has size, length, and physicality to play the outside in the NFL. He’s known to be fairly agile, but doesn’t have elite burst or acceleration. He needs to improve his pattern matching technique. Mullen is expected to be a day two pick.
10. Lonnie Johnson, 6’2” / 213, Kentucky. Johnson began his college career at Garden-City Community College before transferring to Kentucky for the 2017 and 2018 seasons. He played in 22 games for the Wildcats, making 64 total tackles, including 52 solo, and 1 interception. Johnson ran the 40 yard dash in 4.52 seconds, which isn’t overly fast but is fast enough considering his size. He jumped 38 inches in the vertical leap, and 10’9” in the broad jump. Johnson’s lack of ball skills and technique will limit him in the NFL, at least initially, particularly in man coverage, but his physical profile should get him drafted – maybe overdrafted – as high as day 2.
In conclusion, I don’t think it’s likely that the Redskins spend their first round draft pick on a corner, so I doubt folks like Greedy Williams, Byron Murphy, or DeAndre Baker will become a Redskin, but given Washington draft history, it’s entirely possible that they spend a mid-round pick on a corner despite the position group being stacked with young players already. What do you think? Let me know in the comment section.