My Thoughts On Corners In This Draft

DearbornDolfan

Active Member
Something I wrote on Finheaven to slap a reality check on the Sean Smith fanboys. Keep in mind this needs to be viewed from the prism of Miami's defense and the responsibilities the corners will have within the Quarters base coverage scheme. I didn't bother with Jenkins or Davis because they'll be long gone by 25 and I didn't bother with any corner that could be considered draftable material past 64.




Sean Smith
Pros: Very tall, decent timed speed, excellent hands, plays zones very well
Cons: Will not play in receiver's hip pocket, does not have the acceleration to recover against faster receivers, is not aggressive in any facet of his game
Comments: Seems to be a Cover 2 corner or free safety in most other schemes with no real fit in Miami's primary coverage. I rank him as the sixth best corner in this draft.

DJ Moore
Pros: Good size, aggressive in pass coverage, sits in the receiver's hip pocket and does not leave, sure tackler in the open field, played frequently on the offensive side of the ball (including as the sweep option back in the Wildcat), excellent kick returner
Cons: Aggressiveness does not translate to the run game often leading to bigger plays than necessary, might be too aggressive in pass coverage if opponent uses double moves, short, slow timed speed
Comments: Because he wouldn't be primary outside contain in Miami's scheme he isn't such a liability in the run game, but he will need to temper his aggression on pass plays if he is to fit in the Quarters scheme. Would be worth the 2b pick.

Darius Butler
Pros: Elite timed and game speed, aggressive in all aspects of his craft, a threat on offense and defense, has the vertical necessary to play the tallest receivers, will bait quarterbacks
Cons: Height might be a concern to some teams (but not Miami)
Comments: A perfect fit for Miami's 1st round pick.

Alphonso Smith
Pros: Good timed speed, does not give up the big play, plenty aggressive in the pass game, has fire and a nasty streak, makes snap reads and breaks
Cons: Height not prototypical, does not have the vertical to cover the likes of Hardy, is not multi-dimensional like Butler and Moore
Comments: He probably shouldn't be matched up against really tall or really fast receivers but he'll shut down anybody that's slightly less superhuman (kinda sounds like Will Allen). Worth the 2a pick.
 

WesDawg

'Burghapologist
I stated elsewhere that I really put a value on hybrid guys. Smith fits that description although I'm almost positive he'll be a Safety in the league. In this draft he'd be the #2 rated safety in my opinion.

With that said, he brings even more value because he matches up extremely well size-wise with the big WR's, who normally aren't speed demons anyway, so he could roll deep coverage against the Moss's and T.O.'s of the world for a team with smallish CB's. The same could be said about Malcolm Jenkins, although he's probably a small step ahead as a pure cover corner.

Smith, Moore, and Butler are the type of smallish CB's 'm referring to, but I think height is overstated in this context if a guy has good recovery speed and coverage technique. You just don't see a quality 5'9"-5'10" CB getting exposed by a 6'3" WR all that often.

As for Hardy, from what I've seen thus far he could be adequately covered by a reasonably fast OLB.
 
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