Cornerbacks

[Dantés]

In the spirit of the Mosqueda pieces I've linked to in the RB and OL threads, I did a survey of the cornerbacks drafted by TT since he took over in 2005. I've compared them for height, weight, 40 time, 3 cone time, short shuttle time, vertical and broad. The results were interesting.

Of the 9 true corners that Thompson has drafted, none were under 5'11" or 185 lbs.

None of them ran slower than 4.57, but three were above the 4.5 mark which would seem to suggest that pure 40 speed isn't a critical factor as long as a prospect exceeds a minimum.

The slowest three cone time of the bunch was 7.1 and seven of the nine were 7.0 or faster.

Only one corner (Goodson) was slower than 4.3 in the short shuttle (4.34) and he was a 6th round pick.

The jumps saw such a range that I didn't find much correlation.

So taken altogether, the data would seem to suggest that the TT "type" at corner is at least 5'11" 185, with 4.57, 7.0, and 4.3 marks in the forty, 3 cone, and short shuttle respectively. In this draft, those criteria would include the following prospects:

• Gareon Conley, Ohio State
• Marlon Humphrey, Alabama
• Quincy Wilson, Florida
• Kevin King, Washington
• Chidobe Awuzie, Colorado
• Fabian Moreau, UCLA
• Ahkello Witherspoon, Colorado
• Cam Sutton, Tennessee
• Shaq Griffin, UCF
• Chuck Clark, Va. Tech

The notable near misses would include:

• Sidney Jones, Washington: .02 slow on the three cone
• Tre'Davious White, LSU: .02 slow on the short shuttle
• Cordrea Tankersley, Clemson: .02 slow on the short shuttle
• Howard Wilson, Houston: 1 pound light

The notable players without sufficient data:

• Marshon Lattimore, Ohio State
• Nate Hairston, Temple
• Adoree' Jackson, USC (technically 1" short but might be a "near miss")

The notable players these criteria would totally rule out:

• **** Tabor, Florida
• Rasul Douglas, WVU
• Will Likely, Maryland
• Damontae Kazee, SDSU
• Corn Elder, Miami
• Channing Stribling, Michigan

I'll reiterate that none of this is meant to suggest that these are "rules" that will not be broken. I mean, before Casey Hayward was drafted one might have said that there was no way a corner under 190 lbs was going to be drafted. He set a new minimum. These are merely observations of past drafts that might give us indications of what TT prefers. But the nice thing about this cornerback class is that there are a lot of players who past muster even if you do want to be strict about the criteria.

 

[brandon2348]

I think we end up with Cam Sutton or Tre'Davious White.

 

[ThePerfectBeard]

Gareon Conley, Quincy Wilson, Chidobe Awuzie, and Fabian Moreau would be my first choices. Kevin King, Ahkello Witherspoon, and Cam Sutton are very interesting prospects that I need to watch more tape on.

 

[Dantés]

Kevin King is super interesting. Most of the knocks on him had to do with speed and athleticism, but clearly he had those qualities.

 

[Sky King]

I'm in favor of players with names that I can pronounce.

 

[Pokerbrat2000]

I'm in favor of players with names that I can pronounce.

Guessing Halapoulivaati Vitai wasn't on your radar last year?

Combing the scouting reports for any "John Smith's" (Smith rhymes with myth). I will get back to you.

 

[Pokerbrat2000]

Only posting this to help Sky King out with his fear of names. There will be a spelling and pronunciation quiz at the end of the week.

1) Ikponmwosa Igbinosun
2) T.J. Houshmandzadeh
3) Akwasi Owusu-Ansah
4) Devin Aromashodu
5) Michael Hoomanawanui
6) Legedu Nanee
7) Ma'ake Kemoeatu
8) Daniel Te'o-Neshiem
9) Ogemdi Nwagbuo
10) Ndamukong Suh
11) Oshiomogho Atogwe
12) Ropati Pitoitua
13) James Ihedigbo
14) Niko Koutouvides
15) Nnamdi Asomugha
16) Brendon Ayanbadejo
17) Mohamed Massaquoi
18) Osi Umenyiora
19) Prince Amukamara
20) Ezekiel Ansah
21) Star Lotulelei
22) Uche Nwaneri
23) Troy Polamalu
24) Adam Vinatieri
25) Barkevious Mingo

 

[Mondio]

can we use nicknames?

 

[Pokerbrat2000]

can we use nicknames?

LOL.....you asking for partial credit on the quiz?

 

[Mondio]

LOL.....you asking for partial credit on the quiz?

I'm asking if I can get points for getting my name correct

 

[Pokerbrat2000]

I'm asking if I can get points for getting my name correct

No points for correctly spelling your name on a quiz, but you will receive a participation trophy at the banquet.

 

[Mondio]

Confession time and this is no reflection on how I feel about you, but ever since I read your nickname, I always picture ....... Mongo! LOL

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I haven't aged well

 

[Sky King]

You must be logged in to see this image or video!

 

[OldSchool101]

Guessing Halapoulivaati Vitai wasn't on your radar last year?

Combing the scouting reports for any "John Smith's" (Smith rhymes with myth). I will get back to you.

Chuck Clark would be easy to remember

Only posting this to help Sky King out with his fear of names. There will be a spelling and pronunciation quiz at the end of the week.

1) Ikponmwosa Igbinosun
2) T.J. Houshmandzadeh
3) Akwasi Owusu-Ansah
4) Devin Aromashodu
5) Michael Hoomanawanui
6) Legedu Nanee
7) Ma'ake Kemoeatu
8) Daniel Te'o-Neshiem
9) Ogemdi Nwagbuo
10) Ndamukong Suh
11) Oshiomogho Atogwe
12) Ropati Pitoitua
13) James Ihedigbo
14) Niko Koutouvides
15) Nnamdi Asomugha
16) Brendon Ayanbadejo
17) Mohamed Massaquoi
18) Osi Umenyiora
19) Prince Amukamara
20) Ezekiel Ansah
21) Star Lotulelei
22) Uche Nwaneri
23) Troy Polamalu
24) Adam Vinatieri
25) Barkevious Mingo

it's like reading the book of Genesis all over again. Just add an Abram and Isaac and put the word "begot" inbetween each name and it makes a believable family tree

 

[Arthur Squires]

Only posting this to help Sky King out with his fear of names. There will be a spelling and pronunciation quiz at the end of the week.

1) Ikponmwosa Igbinosun
2) T.J. Houshmandzadeh
3) Akwasi Owusu-Ansah
4) Devin Aromashodu
5) Michael Hoomanawanui
6) Legedu Nanee
7) Ma'ake Kemoeatu
8) Daniel Te'o-Neshiem
9) Ogemdi Nwagbuo
10) Ndamukong Suh
11) Oshiomogho Atogwe
12) Ropati Pitoitua
13) James Ihedigbo
14) Niko Koutouvides
15) Nnamdi Asomugha
16) Brendon Ayanbadejo
17) Mohamed Massaquoi
18) Osi Umenyiora
19) Prince Amukamara
20) Ezekiel Ansah
21) Star Lotulelei
22) Uche Nwaneri
23) Troy Polamalu
24) Adam Vinatieri
25) Barkevious Mingo

You forgot Kabeer Gbaja Gbiamia or however you spell it haha.

 

[Arthur Squires]

I think we end up with Cam Sutton or Tre'Davious White.

We would end up with a very good CB in Sutton! A Hyde type player with more speed but White I think will be a #3 type corner in a few years.

 

[Arthur Squires]

Gareon Conley, Quincy Wilson, Chidobe Awuzie, and Fabian Moreau would be my first choices. Kevin King, Ahkello Witherspoon, and Cam Sutton are very interesting prospects that I need to watch more tape on.

I think Awuzie and Kevin King end up being 2 of the best CBs in this class. Watch some tape of Sutton the last 2 seasons and you'll see some similarities with Hyde. I think he would be a very useful hybrid type guy. But I don't think he can cover #1 WRs like Awuzie and King in ny opinion!

 

[thequick12]

I think awuzie is the one we get he's like a faster Hyde so he can play outside more effectively while also being able to and having experience lining up in the slot and at safety. thing is I think he's gonna be long gone by 2nd round pick

 

[Deleted member 6794]

We would end up with a very good CB in Sutton! A Hyde type player with more speed but White I think will be a #3 type corner in a few years.

Should we get excited about a cornerback being years removed from becoming a decent #3???

 

[Poppa San]

You forgot Kabeer Gbaja Gbiamia or however you spell it haha.

I think his brother Akbar still does one of those "ninja" TV shows.

 

[Mondio]

You forgot Kabeer Gbaja Gbiamia or however you spell it haha.

it's spelled "KGB"

 

[Dantés]

A little more information:

Mosqueda compiled all the first round corners from the last decade who were at least 5'11", ran a 4.49 or faster, and had a 3 cone of 6.87 or quicker. This is the list:

-Patrick Peterson
-Stephon Gilmore
-Darrelle Revis
-Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie
-Leon Hall
-Aqib Talib
-Desmond Trufant
-William Jackson
-Vontae Davis
-Damarious Randall
-Bradley Robey

Of the 11, 8 have at least three seasons under their belt and all 8 of them have had pro-bowl and/or all-pro seasons. The only three that haven't are just entering their 3rd seasons. That's a darn nice hit rate.

Two takeaways: Corners with strong tape and those measurables are pretty safe commodities. Randall would have to be quite the outlier not to bounce back from his injury plagued 2016 to be a useful player.

The corners in that top 50 discussion who hit these numbers are:

-Gareon Conley, Ohio State
-Marlon Humphrey, Alabama
-Kevin King, Washington
-Chidobe Awuzie, Colorado

We don't yet have sufficient data for Marshon Lattimore.

I'd sign up for any of those guys at #29.

 

[Pokerbrat2000]

I'd sign up for any of those guys at #29.

Good info, thanks for compiling. Would you still pick Damarious Randall at #30 in expectations of his 3rd year being his Pro Bowl year? Packers kind of have themselves in a Catch-22 situation at CB right now. If they are thinking that their current group of young talent had a poor showing in 2016 due to injuries/youth and will be much better in 2017, why spend a top pick on one? However, if they don't spend a top pick (still no guarantees) and the current group repeats 2016, they are another year behind fixing the problem. Not going to lament what should have been, but I would have hedged the risk and signed one of the top 5 FA CB's.

 

[Deleted member 6794]

If they are thinking that their current group of young talent had a poor showing in 2016 due to injuries/youth and will be much better in 2017, why spend a top pick on one?

After not adequately addressing the position in free agency there's absolutely no doubt in my mind the Packers have to use their first round pick on a cornerback.

 

[Pokerbrat2000]

After not adequately addressing the position in free agency there's absolutely no doubt in my mind the Packers have to use their first round pick on a cornerback.

Sadly, you may be correct. Even with what is thought to be a strong CB draft class, that is still pinning a lot of hopes on a #29 pick. Guessing someone will find me an example of one, but how many CB's picked that late in the first round have had an impactful rookie season?