NFL Draft 2022: Ranking the Top 7 CB Prospects
Corner is one of the more delicate positions in the NFL draft. Pick right, and your defensive coordinator could be getting a lockdown pass defender, able to shut down opposing WR1s without a second thought. Pick wrong, and you have a liability on your hands that can single-handedly cost you a match. The best example is Kevin King in the 2020 NFC championship game.
The upcoming 2022 NFL draft is being touted as having one of the strongest cornerback classes in recent memory. As many as seven players regularly show up in first-round mocks.
The following seven players all appear in the top 35 on PFF's draft giant board. Only around 30% of first-round picks on average live up to the expectations.
The top CB prospects in the 2022 NFL Draft
#7 - Daxton Hill, Michigan
The lowest-ranked CB on PFF's board (ranked 33rd) is also the lowest-ranked cornerback on this list.
Daxton Hill spent most of his Michigan years at safety before transitioning to slot cornerback before the start of the 2021 college season.
Unfortunately for Hill, this is all too apparent - though he's physical and aggressive, both in coverage and in his hits, this season on many occasions, Hill looked unbalanced and uncomfortable.
The reason for this primarily is Daxton's poor fluidity, as you frequently see him stumble when he tries to match his opposite number's breaks. Now this was forgivable at the start of the season - he was new to the position, so you wouldn't have expected him to play like a refined pass defender.
The problem, however, is that he looked lost even late in the season. Hill had arguably his worst game in the Wolverines' week eight clash against Michigan State, giving up numerous deep plays to MSU wide receivers.
Even in Michigan's penultimate game (vs. Iowa in the Big 10 Championship), Daxton Hill didn't look like he'd shown any development towards becoming a genuinely reliable slot corner.
I mean, this is kinda what you'd expect if you regularly played a safety as a slot corner. https://t.co/iWcXAng5Vk
Ultimately taking Hill as a corner is a bet on him developing, but considering how he failed to do that over the last year, he doesn't seem worth the risk up high.
Value: 6th round pick
#6 - Derek Stingley Jr., LSU
It's understandable why you may be surprised with Stingley being this low, considering he's PFF's top-rated CB (number four overall). Still, even the PFFs themselves recognize the danger of taking the LSU man up high.
Over the past two seasons, Stingley has played ten games. He missed the last two games of the 2020 season due to a leg injury. He went on to play the first three games of 2021 before undergoing surgery on an injured foot that he hurt during practice.
What's the latest on Derek Stingley Jr's injury?
@BruceFeldmanCFB has the details 👇 https://t.co/csNp9ZxFk1
This may age poorly, but Stingley hasn't looked 100% since 2019. It's too much of a risk to spend a valuable draft pick on, no matter how sensational he is.
Value: Early 4th round pick
#5 - Roger McCreary, Auburn
PFF's 25th ranked player is fifth on this list. McCreary is a great technician, with good feet and fluidity to stay on receivers' hips down the field. Complementing this, he has impressive acceleration and explosiveness - able to quickly drive the ball when a receiver stops on a hitch or comeback route.
His hand usage leaves little to be desired, as occasionally, his lack of contact can result in him being beat on stop or comeback routes if the QB is on time. However, the main issue with McCreary is how he defends (or, more accurately, how he doesn't defend) position and leverage-based routes such as slants and crossing routes.
McCreary doesn't actively make use of his hands around the line of scrimmage. Potentially because of his relatively lighter build at 190 lbs (by comparison Ahmad Gardner and Andrew Booth Jr. are both 200lbs).
The issue with this lack of physicality and more diminutive stature is that on slants and crossing routes, where the receiver is simply trying to cross the face of the corner and then box him out of the catch, McCreary doesn't have the physical tools to prevent the WR from crossing his face or to compete at the catch point.
This wouldn't be a significant concern if the senior CB had the recovery speed to catch up and contest with the pass-catcher; unfortunately, McCreary doesn't have this speed.
If he loses, he loses on these types of routes, but in a league with many great slant and crossing route runners such as DK Metcalf and AJ Brown, these routes are ones you can't afford to be vulnerable on.
This but with DK Metcalf running the slant. 👀 https://t.co/vhfcO9FhN0
Though not as important, it is also worth mentioning that McCreary is by far the worst running defender and tackler on this list, demonstrating absolutely no interest in supporting rushing downs.
Value: Mid 3rd round pick