2024 Draft Preview: Cornerback

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April 5, 2024

By Noonefromtampa

Overview

The Washington Commanders let Kendall Fuller leave in free agency, while signing Michael Davis, an eight-year veteran, to fill his role. The team drafted Emmanuel Forbes Jr. in the first-round last year, and he was very up and down all season. Washington also has possible starting caliber cornerbacks in Benjamin St-Juste and former first round Noah Igbinoghene along with other young corners of Christian Holmes, Tariq Castro-Fields, and Kyu Blu Kelly on the roster. With Davis and Igbinoghene on one year deals and contracts for St-Juste and Castro-Fields expiring in 2025, there is a good chance that the Commanders add another corner early, possibly on day two of the draft.

Who are the top cornerback prospects in the draft this year? Looking at how three different sites grade the players, taking each site’s top 10 ranked players and putting them in a comparative list, you see there are twelve players, some with widely varying positioning.

Prospect NGS Rank PFF Rank Buzz Rank
Terrion Arnold 1 4 1
Quinyon Mitchell 2 2 2
Nate Wiggins 3 3 3
Kool-Aid McKinstry 4 5 4
Ennis Rakestraw Jr. 5 9 6
Cooper DeJean 6 1 5
Renardo Green 6 N/A N/A
D.J. James 7 N/A 8
Kamari Lassiter 8 8 7
Kris Abrams-Draine 9 N/A 12
Max Melton 10 N/A 10
T.J. Tampa 10 6 9
Khyree Jackson N/A 10 14
Mike Sainristil N/A 7 11

Details

Player School Height Weight 40-Time Day Drafted
Terrion Arnold Alabama 6’0” 196 4.50 1
Prospect Grade: 6.49 A two-year starter, Arnold moved from safety to cornerback and had an outstanding 2023 season, including 63 tackles including 6.5 for a loss, 5 interceptions and 12 passes defended. Better in man coverage than zone at this point in his career but is a likely round 1 pick.
Player School Height Weight 40-Time Day Drafted
Quinyon Mitchell Toledo 6’0” 195 4.33 1
Prospect Grade: 6.47 Mitchell played four years at Toledo and was a three-year starter. He had 123 total tackles, 6 interceptions (including 2 returned for touchdowns) and 45 passes defended. Mitchell is very athletic and is adept at zone coverages. Biggest weakness is tackling in space which he struggled at times with.
Player School Height Weight 40-Time Day Drafted
Nate Wiggins Clemson 6’2” 185 4.28 1
Prospect Grade: 6.43 Wiggins showed incredible speed at the Combine but has a slight frame which will come into play in the more physical NFL. Played in numerous zone coverage schemes at Clemson where his speed was an asset. Essentially a two-year player, he had 60 combined tackles, three interceptions and 21 passes defended.
Player School Height Weight 40-Time Day Drafted
Kool-Aid McKinstry Alabama 6’1” 195 4.55 2
Prospect Grade: 6.40 McKinstry played three years at Alabama and was also a punt returner. He had 93 combined tackles, 2 interceptions and 23 passes defended. Skilled at both man and zone coverages, but has some difficulty with more physical receivers. Will have to watch the hand fighting at the next level to avoid drawing flags.
Player School Height Weight 40-Time Day Drafted
Ennis Rakestraw Jr. Missouri 6’0″ 188 4.51 2
Prospect Grade: 6.35 Played four years with 107 combined tackles, 1 interception and 24 passes defended. Excels in man and press coverages. He did not have a fast 40 time at the Combine and needs to work on zone coverage skills.
Player School Height Weight 40-Time Day Drafted
Cooper DeJean Iowa 6’1” 209 4.50 1-2
Prospect Grade: 6.34 Some draft experts are very high on DeJean and others view him as just a solid pick. He has a lot of production in his three years at Iowa with 120 combined tackles, 7 interceptions (including 3 Pick 6’s) and 13 passed defended. Opposing teams avoided throwing at him in 2023 for the most part.
Player School Height Weight 40-Time Day Drafted
Renardo Green Florida State 6’0″ 186 4.49 2
Prospect Grade: 6.34 A lot of draft analysts have Green as a safety at the next level which is why he is not ranked on some lists. He has 148 combined tackles in his 5 years at Florida State, along with 22 passes defended and 1 interception.
Player School Height Weight 40-Time Day Drafted
D.J. James Auburn 6’0” 174 4.42 2
Prospect Grade: 6.30 James spent 3 years at Oregon and his final two at Auburn, He had 147 combined tackles, 5 interceptions and 24 passes defended. James is an excellent cover corner in both man and zone schemes. His negative is going to be his slight frame against the bigger, more physical NFL receivers.
Player School Height Weight 40-Time Day Drafted
Kamari Lassiter Georgia 6’0” 180 4.58 2
Prospect Grade: 6.30 Lassiter, a two-year starter, has 86 combined tackles, 1 interception and 14 passes defended. He is aggressive in run support with 8.5 tackles for a loss. Played a lot of the special teams unit in college and is known as a reliable tackler.
Player School Height Weight 40-Time Day Drafted
Kris Abrams-Draine Missouri 5’11” 178 4.44 2
Prospect Grade: 6.25 A three-year starter with good production having 136 combined tackles, 7 interceptions and 34 passes defended. He is adept at zone and man cover schemes. His speed got him noticed but there will be size concerns at the next level.
Player School Height Weight 40-Time Day Drafted
Max Melton Rutgers 5’11” 190 4.39 2
Prospect Grade: 6.24 Melton had 111 combined tackles, including 8.5 for a loss, 8 interceptions and 22 passes defended in his three-years as a starter. He had good production in college and showed good coverage skills with the eight interceptions. He tested very well at the combine, so his draft stock is rising.
Player School Height Weight 40-Time Day Drafted
T.J. Tampa Iowa State 6’1” 185 4.45 2
Prospect Grade: 6.24 Ideal size and length for a cornerback with decent Combine performance. Two-year starter who had 107 combined tackles, 3 interceptions and 19 passes defended. Good coverage skills in multiple scheme and strong open field tackler.
Player School Height Weight 40-Time Day Drafted
Khyree Jackson Oregon 6’4” 203 4.50 2
Prospect Grade: 6.15 Skilled press corner who uses his size well in stopping the run. Jackson. A one-year starter after transferring from Alabama. He had 48 combined tackles, 3 interceptions and 9 passed defended. He also needs to improve on his tendency to engage in hand fighting with the receivers.
Player School Height Weight 40-Time Day Drafted
Mike Sainristil Michigan 5’10” 182 4.47 2
Prospect Grade: 6.20 A five-year player for Michigan who started as a wide receiver before switching to cornerback the last two years. Sainristil had 108 combined tackles, 7 interceptions with two returned for touchdowns and 13 passes defended. His time as a receiver gives him quick route recognition skills. He is also a high motor, high effort type player who energizes the players around him. He is still developing his coverage skills and will take some development time at the next level.

 

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