2023 NFL DRAFT: TOP 10 CORNERBACKS

BY ADAM GREENE

Our field of cornerbacks is deep as we get ever-closer to the NFL’s Annual Amateur Player Selection meeting kicking off Thursday night and it’s a good thing. Pretty much every team in the league is in dire need of a corner.

I could have probably listed 20 here, but no one wants that. Especially me. These take long enough to put together as it is. As such, here are my Top 10 corners ranked ahead of this weekend’s NFL Draft.

1. BRIAN BRANCH, ALABAMA

Age: 21

Size: 6-0, 190 pounds

2022: 90 tackles, 14 for a loss, three sacks, two interceptions, seven passes defended

PFF Grade: 89.5

Odds to be 1^st cornerback selected: +2500

You’re going to see Brian Branch on two lists, because he doesn’t have a defined position. Like Jalen Ramsey in his time at Florida State, Branch primarily played safety for the Crimson Tide, but in the NFL he could end up at corner, and probably should. Or, you know, some defensive coordinator could get real creative. Either way, he tops the list not only for his talent and ability, but for his versatility. For his sake, I hope the team that selects him does put him at corner. He’ll make more money in the NFL. Branch practically doubled his statistical output this past season when Alabama was on a down year, for them. He went from 55 tackles as a second year player to 90 last season and from five tackles for a loss to 14. Branch was named an Associated Press second-team All-American. Last year, he was the only player in the entire SEC who recorded 90 tackles, two or more interceptions and two or more sacks.

NFL Mock Draft 2.0 Prediction: No. 10 overall to the Philadelphia Eagles

2. CHRISTIAN GONZALEZ, OREGON

Age: 20

Size: 6-1, 197 pounds

2022: 50 tackles, one for a loss, four interceptions, seven passes defended

PFF Grade: 83.3

Odds to be 1^st defensive player selected: +5000

Odds to be 3^rd overall player selected: +4000

Odds to be 4^th overall player selected: +5000

Odds to be 5^th overall player selected: +1800

Odds to be 1^st cornerback selected: +110

The transfer portal kept Christian Gonzalez in the Pac-12, but didn’t alter his on the field performance at all. His final year of college football at Oregon looked a lot like his penultimate year of college football at Colorado, though he did record all of his interceptions this past season. Gonzalez was a second team All-Pac-12 selection and recorded the third most interceptions in the conference last season.

NFL Mock Draft 2.0 Prediction: No. 19 overall to the Detroit Lions

3. DEVON WITHERSPOON, ILLINOIS

Age: 22

Size: 5-11, 181 pounds

2022: 41 tackles, 2.5 for a loss, three interceptions, 14 passes defended

PFF Grade: 92.0

Odds to be 1^st defensive player selected: +3300

Odds to be 4^th overall player selected: +5000

Odds to be 5^th overall player selected: +1800

Odds to be 1^st cornerback selected: -210

Devon Witherspoon spent all four years at Illinois and started pretty much every game in which he was healthy. Last year’s stats are great, especially against Big Ten competition, but Witherspoon delivered similar campaigns in all four of his seasons with the Fighting Illini. He was a first team Associated Press All-American and allowed the fewest yards per attempt (3.0) in the entire FBS.

NFL Mock Draft 2.0 Prediction: No. 23 overall to the Minnesota Vikings

4. DEONTE BANKS, MARYLAND

Age: 22

Size: 6-0, 197 pounds

2022: 38 tackles, 0.5 for a loss, 0.5 sacks, one interception, eight passes defended

PFF Grade: 72.0

Deonte Banks made the most of his only full season as a starter for Maryland. Before last season, he started nine games as a freshman and just six over the next two years thanks to injuries. The speedster, who notched a 4.38 40-yard dash, had a solid season, earning him an honorable mention on the All-Big Ten list. He posted the third lowest completion percentage allowed, 39 percent, in the cinference and had only one missed tackle in all of 2022.

NFL Mock Draft 2.0 Prediction: N/A Projected to go in the second or third round

5. EMMANUEL FORBES, MISSISSIPPI STATE

Age: 22

Size: 6-1, 166 pounds

2022: 46 tackles, one for a loss, six interceptions, 10 passes defended

PFF Grade: 87.2

This might be the highest you see Emmanuel Forbes on any pre draft corner list and that astounds me. The production he had, the sheer numbers he put up, against the SEC and in the SEC West no less, should have elevated him into more “Top Fives” than just mine. He ran a 4.35 40 and put up nearly these exact numbers all three seasons as a full time starter for the Bulldogs. The kid has 14 career interceptions. His total this past season, six, is more than some guys ranked ahead of him have in their entire careers. Someone is stealing this kid on Day Two. In addition to all that, Forbes was an Associated Press second team All-American and, in 2023, is the all time FBS leader in interceptions returned for touchdowns. I mean, come on.

NFL Mock Draft 2.0 Prediction: N/A projected to go in round two or three

6. JOEY PORTER, JR., PENN STATE

Age: 22

Size: 6-2, 193 pounds

2022: 27 tackles, 11 passes defended, one fumble recovery

PFF Grade: 73.2

Odds to be 1^st cornerback selected: +2000

He’s got the pedigree to make Pittsburgh Steelers fans rub their tiny Kenny Picket-ian hands together with glee. Joey Porter, Jr. may not have piled up the stats, but has projected as a first rounder and I, myself, put him on the Steelers in both my first mock drafts. Porter took over a starting role for the Nittany Lions as a sophomore and produced in that position for the next three seasons. His best year was probably his redshirt sophomore campaign, where he recorded 50 tackles, one pick and four passes defended. He was a first team All-Big Ten selection last season and put down a 4.46 40-yard dash at the NFL Combine.

NFL Mock Draft 2.0 Prediction: No. 17 overall to the Pittsburgh Steelers

7. CAM SMITH, SOUTH CAROLINA

Age: 22

Size: 6-1, 180 pounds

2022: 27 tackles, one for a loss, one interception, five passes defended

PFF Grade: 65.1

Cam Smith is another guy that projects to the first round that saw a dip in production in his final season. The likely reason? He was so good the year before, opposing coaches game planned away from him. His redshirt sophomore season saw him pick up 41 tackles, 2.5 for a loss, three picks and 11 passes defended. So, yeah. They avoided that guy in 2022. Smith laid down a 4.43 40-yard dash at the combine and was named a second team All-SEC performer last year. He finished tied at 37 percent for the lowest completion percentage allowed in the conference in 2022. 

NFL Mock Draft 2.0 Prediction: No. 16 overall to the Washington Commanders

8. KELEE RINGO, GEORGIA

Age: 20

Size: 6-2, 207 pounds

2022: 42 tackles, two for a loss, two interceptions, seven passes defended, one forced fumble

PFF Grade: 71.4

The guy who nabbed a pick six against the Alabama Crimson Tide in the 2021-2022 NCAA FBS National Championship game shows up on our list at No. 8. That season was Ringo’s first as a starter for the Bulldogs and he delivered in a big way at the biggest times. He finished with 34 tackles, one for a loss, one sack, two picks and the aforementioned defensive touchdown. All Ringo did was improve on those stats this past season. He was selected to the All-SEC second team and posted a 4.36 40-yard dash at the Combine.

NFL Mock Draft 2.0 Prediction: No. 25 overall to the New York Giants

9. JAKORIAN BENNETT, MARYLAND

Age: 22

Size: 5-11, 188 pounds

2022: 39 tackles, 1.5 for a loss, two interceptions, 11 passes defended

PFF Grade: 71.8

Jakorian Bennett is pretty much your prototype NFL cornerback. He’s the type of guy who, if he’d been two or three inches taller, would have probably been a wide receiver. After coming out of the bullpen his freshman season with the Terps, Bennett took over the corner job full time in 2021 and put up similar numbers in back to back seasons. He’s fast, running a 4.3 40 with plenty of athleticism to go with it. Bennett posted the second lowest completion percentage allowed in the Big Ten at 37 percent and clinched the Duke’s Mayo Bowl and won its Most Valuable Player award with a game-sealing interception.  

NFL Mock Draft 2.0 Prediction: N/A projected to go in round three or four

10. CLARK PHILLIPS III, UTAH

Age: 21

Size: 5-9, 184 pounds

2022: 24 tackles, one for a loss, one sack, six interceptions, six passes defended, two defensive touchdowns.

PFF Grade: 85.2

Utah might be a Pac-12 afterthought, but Clark Phillips III put on an absolute show last season. He was a unanimous All-American and won the Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year Award. Not only is Phillips a ball hawk, but he can find the end zone when he nabs a pick. A season ago for the Utes, he recorded 61 tackles, one for a loss, two interceptions, one defensive touchdown and one forced fumble. Phillips scored at least one defensive touchdown in all three of his seasons at Utah.

NFL Mock Draft 2.0 Prediction: N/A projected to go in round three or four

Follow Adam Greene on Twitter @TheFirstMan.

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