Free Agency 2023 – Cornerbacks
February 23,2023
By Noonefromtampa
Today’s free agency article will look at the cornerback position. This is a position of some need for the Commanders. In theory, Kendall Fuller and Bobby McCain (who moved over to slot corner during the last half of the season) could be cap casualties. Danny Johnson and Rachad Wildgoose are free agents. Benjamin St-Juste has struggled with injury issues the past two seasons. Christian Holmes, Tariq Castro-Fields and DeMarcus Fields are the remaining players currently under contract.
The Commanders could dip their feet into the free agency pool again after the William Jackson III fiasco but I’m not too sure they’re going to do that again. Also, the fact that defensive backs coach Chris Harris left for a position with the Titans is a factor. A new secondary coach may want his own type of guys on the team.
Top Free Agent Cornerbacks
Possible deal information is from Spotrac.
| Player | Pos. | 2022 Team | Snaps | Age | Int | PD | Tckl | Possible Deal |
| Jamel Dean | CB | Buccaneers | 78.90% | 27 | 2 | 8 | 57 | $16.5M/yr |
| James Bradberry | CB | Eagles | 97.50% | 30 | 3 | 17 | 44 | $15M/yr |
| Jonathan Jones | CB | Patriots | 80.90% | 30 | 4 | 11 | 69 | $12.4M/yr |
| Marcus Peters | CB | Ravens | 73.20% | 30 | 1 | 6 | 47 | $10M/yr |
| Emmanuel Moseley | CB | 49ers | 29.00% | 27 | 1 | 5 | 22 | $16.6M/yr |
| Eli Apple | CB | Bengals | 93.70% | 28 | 0 | 8 | 49 | $11.6M/yr |
| Tre Flowers | CB | Bengals | 16.50% | 30 | 1 | 3 | 27 | $11.4M/yr |
| Rock Ya-Sin | CB | Raiders | 59.00% | 27 | 0 | 7 | 45 | $10.8M/yr |
| Cameron Sutton | CB | Steelers | 87.50% | 28 | 3 | 15 | 43 | $7.6M/yr |
| Patrick Peterson | CB | Vikings | 95.20% | 33 | 5 | 15 | 66 | $6.5M/yr |
| Anthony Brown | CB | Cowboys | 63.60% | 30 | 0 | 7 | 42 | |
| Byron Murphy | CB | Cardinals | 53.40% | 25 | 0 | 4 | 36 | |
| Sean Murphy-Bunting | CB | Buccaneers | 39.80% | 26 | 2 | 7 | 31 | |
| Isaiah Oliver | CB | Falcons | 31.10% | 27 | 1 | 7 | 37 |
Jamel Dean has quietly become a pretty good cornerback. The former 3rd round pick from Auburn has played well across from Carlton Davis to give the Bucs a good tandem. However, the Bucs have some hard salary decisions to make with their bad cap situation. This all leads him to be one of the top free agent targets in 2023.
James Bradberry, Super Bowl holding call notwithstanding, had a good year overall and should see a big payday for it. Marcus Peters and Cameron Sutton are both solid players who can fill the number one corner role on a team.
Patrick Peterson seems ageless at 33 but he can still play; unfortunately, he will probably only get a smaller short-term deal because of his age.
Emmanuel Moseley, Anthony Brown, who is coming off an injury, Eli Apple, Tre Flowers and Rock Ya-Sin are the next best group of cornerbacks available. Most of them will get starting money from their current team or enter free agency with interest from several teams.
Byron Murphy, Sean Murphy-Bunting and Isaiah Oliver round out the list. They will either handle the slot corner position, which is so important with such a large percentage of plays being run with three wide receiver sets, or fill a depth or rotational role.
What will the Commanders do?
I don’t think the Commanders will go for a big contract free agent cornerback. The draft is very heavy in talented cornerbacks on day one and day two if they wants to cheaply add a more talented cornerback. I would not be surprised if the team re-signs Danny Johnson, who played well down the stretch.
Another option will be signing a veteran cornerback to a one-year deal later in free agency after the rush of signings are over. Also, the Commanders have two early-career cornerbacks in Holmes and Castro-Fields who could develop. The question here is that Chris Harris, defensive back coach, left for a position with the Titans. Coaching changes often bring different views on player capabilities and fit to scheme.
Hopefully, Wildgoose, who led the team in penalties, is not brought back.
Sources: overthcap.com, spotrac.com, pro-football-reference.com