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10 impactful cornerbacks to look out for ahead of 2025 NFL draft ft. Will Johnson

The 2025 NFL draft class is loaded with talent at the cornerback position. These defensive backs will attempt to use the 2024 college football season to increase their draft stock and prove why they should be considered the first cornerbacks taken off the board next year.

With the 2024 college football season quickly approaching, here is a look at 10 impactful cornerbacks to look out for ahead of the 2025 NFL draft.


10 impactful cornerbacks to look out for ahead of the 2025 NFL draft

#1. Will Johnson, Michigan

Michigan CB #2 Will Johnson
Michigan CB #2 Will Johnson

Will Johnson heads into the 2024 college football season as the top 2025 NFL draft prospect at cornerback. Johnson won a national championship with Michigan last season and was named the College Football Playoff National Championship Game Defensive MVP in that game.

Johnson was a First-Team All-American and First-Team All-Big Ten in 2023 as a sophomore and a Freshman All-American in 2022.


#2. Benjamin Morrison, Notre Dame

NCAA Football: Ohio State at Notre Dame
NCAA Football: Ohio State at Notre Dame

Cornerback Benjamin Morrison is entering his third season at Notre Dame before the 2025 NFL draft after finishing last season as a Thorpe Award semifinalist. Morrison has nine career interceptions, including six during his freshman season in 2022. He gets into the backfield as well, with 4.5 tackles for loss in his career on top of his 14 career pass breakups.


#3. Travis Hunter, Colorado

NCAA Football: Colorado at Washington State
NCAA Football: Colorado at Washington State

Travis Hunter presents the 2025 NFL draft class with one of the most versatile athletes in history. Hunter's 1,044 snaps in nine games were the most in college football last season after he lined up on both sides of the ball at cornerback and wide receiver.

Hunter was a consensus All-American last season and finished with 721 receiving yards and five touchdowns on offense. He posted 30 tackles and three interceptions on the defensive side of the ball, with five pass breakups.


#4. Tacario Davis, Arizona

NCAA Football: Arizona at Arizona State
NCAA Football: Arizona at Arizona State

Arizona Wildcats Tacario Davis is going into his junior season as one of the top cornerbacks in the country ahead of the 2025 NFL draft. Davis was second-team All-Pac-12 last season with one interception on 15 passes defended. Davis was targeted many times last season but was consistently up to the task.


#5. Jabbar Muhammad, Oregon

Former Washington CB #1 Jabbar Muhammad
Former Washington CB #1 Jabbar Muhammad

Jabbar Muhammad will be transferring to Oregon after three seasons at Oklahoma State and one season at Washington. Muhammad was second-team All-Pac-12 last season and led the conference with 16 passes defended. He added three interceptions last season and one fumble recovery with 46 total tackles during Washington's run to the national title game.


#6. Denzel Burke, Ohio State

Ohio State CB #10 Denzel Burke
Ohio State CB #10 Denzel Burke

Ohio State's senior cornerback Denzel Burke returns to the Buckeyes secondary as one of the top prospects at his position ahead of the 2025 NFL draft. Burke has two interceptions and 26 passes defended through the first three years of his college football career and led the Big Ten with 12 passes defended in 2021.


#7. Sebastian Castro, Iowa

NCAA Football: Big Ten Football Championship-Michigan at Iowa
NCAA Football: Big Ten Football Championship-Michigan at Iowa

The loss of Cooper DeJean in the 2024 NFL draft will hurt the Iowa secondary in 2024, but Sebastian Castro is next in line to lead the defensive backfield this season. Castro is entering his fifth season and has appeared in 31 games for the Hawkeyes.

He earned Second-Team All-Big Ten honors in 2023, finishing with 67 total tackles, 8.0 tackles for loss, eight passes defended, and three interceptions.


#8. Dorian Strong, Virginia Tech

NCAA Football: Wake Forest at Virginia Tech
NCAA Football: Wake Forest at Virginia Tech

Dorian Strong is a fifth-year senior to watch out for ahead of the 2025 NFL draft who has put together an impressive career at Virginia Tech. Strong has appeared in 41 games with the Hokies and has 22 passes defended and five career interceptions.

He posted a career-high of 25 total tackles, eight passes defended, and three interceptions last season on his way to earning Third-Team All-ACC honors.


#9. Quincy Riley, Louisville

NCAA Football: Louisville at Pittsburgh
NCAA Football: Louisville at Pittsburgh

Louisville's Quincy Riley was one of the top corners ahead of the 2025 NFL draft and has a ton of experience going into what will be his sixth season of college football. He spent three seasons at Middle Tennessee before transferring to Louisville in 2022.

Riley has 13 career interceptions, 25 passes defended, and posted a career high of 49 tackles last season.


#10. Cobee Bryant, Kansas

NCAA Football: Guaranteed Rate Bowl-Kansas at UNLV
NCAA Football: Guaranteed Rate Bowl-Kansas at UNLV

Kansas cornerback Cobee Bryant earned back-to-back first-team All-Big 12 honors in 2022 and 2023. Bryant is a physical corner who has finished inside the top-10 in interceptions among players in the Big 12 since 2021.

He added four interceptions on five passes defended last season on top of his 5.0 tackles for loss. He is one of the most physical corners in college football ahead of the 2025 NFL draft, and his game could excel at the next level if he can stay disciplined and not get overly aggressive too often.


Which cornerback do you think will be the first selected in the 2025 NFL draft? Let us know your early draft predictions in the comment section.

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