BananaMan
06-28-2007, 12:20 AM
Underrated Cornerbacks
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Glossary
YPA (Yards Per Attempt): A quick barometer of a quarterback/wide receiver/tight end's efficiency.
Depth level: A measurement of how far downfield a receiver was on a pass attempt. It is measured from the point at which the receiver touched the ball. Short passes are 1-10, medium 11-19, deep 20-29, and bombs 30 or more yards downfield.
Success percentage: The percentage of plays on which a player does something successful with the ball. Successful plays include completions (for offensive players), incompletions (for defensive players) and penalty plays that go in the player's favor.
Missed passes: Inaccurate or dropped passes that cause an incompletion. Missed passes are used to measure how successful a QB/WR/TE could have been if not for the mistakes. They also help measure how lucky a cornerback was in coverage.
Near interception: Near interceptions are either dropped interceptions or interceptions that landed close enough to a defender that he could have had a chance to catch the ball had luck been on his side.
Stripped/dropped pass: A pass that a receiver starts to catch but then has the ball stripped away by the cornerback.
Forced incompletions: Any incomplete pass that a defensive back is physically responsible for causing. It is a combination of passes defensed, stripped/dropped passes and plays where a hit by a defensive back causes an incompletion.
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Charles Woodson
Normally, I would not include Woodson in the underrated category because he is considered a very good cornerback. However, his 2006 metrics indicate he should have been a lock for the Pro Bowl.
Woodson had the sixth-lowest overall YPA in the league last year. He also had the second-best YPA among cornerbacks with more than 60 passes thrown their way. Only Champ Bailey beat him out in that category.
Woodson tied for the most stripped/dropped passes, and had the eighth-most forced incompletions. His six interceptions tied for sixth in the league and his 14 combined interceptions/near interceptions were the second most in the league. That Woodson was snubbed in favor of DeAngelo Hall and Ronde Barber for the Pro Bowl is a shame.
Nathan Vasher
The Bears recently signed Vasher to a contract extension, and the metrics indicate he certainly deserved it. His 6.0 YPA last year was the 12th best in the league. Vasher had good YPA numbers across the board, but his bomb pass YPA numbers were tremendous. He allowed zero completions in six bomb attempts and was even able to draw a 10-yard offensive pass interference call on one of the plays, thus making his YPA on bomb passes a superb -1.7 yards.
The main reason Vasher wasn't seen as a Pro Bowl-level cornerback is that his interception total dropped from eight in 2005 to three in 2006. Vasher did notch seven near interceptions last year, a total that ranked him second in the league in that category. If he can catch some of those near interceptions in 2007, a trip to Hawaii should be in his future.
Honorable mention
Johnathan Joseph: His 7.3 overall YPA was already very good, and if his poor performance against the Saints was removed, his YPA would drop to a mere 5.9 yards. He also helped the Bengals by leading the league in near interceptions (12).
Leigh Bodden: Only appeared in nine games for Cleveland last season, but had the third-best success percentage in the league, and led the NFL in forced incompletion percentage.
Al Harris: Was not quite as good as Woodson, but still ranked 18th in YPA and seventh in success percentage.
Charles Tillman: A 6.7 YPA, 52.1 success percentage and seven near interceptions indicate the Bears should do what they can to keep him around as well.
Overrated Cornerbacks
DeAngelo Hall
This is the second consecutive season Hall makes this list. He receives this honor because he once again made the Pro Bowl, despite posting simply abysmal metrics.
His 9.2 YPA ranked 76th among cornerbacks. Hall's 47.1 success percentage was solid (31st in the league), but his 17.9 missed pass percentage was one of the highest in the league. That means a large percentage of Hall's success was due to luck.
His supporters would point out that many of the big plays he allowed were due in part to not getting good help from the Falcons' safeties. That might be the case, but Hall's overall YPA was still only .8 yards better than Jason Webster's figure. Furthermore, Woodson had just as little help from the Packers' mediocre safeties and still put up great metrics.
Ronde Barber
Barber also didn't deserve a trip to the Pro Bowl. His 7.9 overall YPA was tied for 58th in the league, and his 37.6 success percentage was 76th. To put these numbers in perspective, Barber's YPA was equal to Terrence McGee's, and he ranked just below Carlos Rogers in success percentage.
Barber did have one great game last year, notching two interception returns for touchdowns in Tampa Bay's 23-21 win over Philadelphia in Week 7, but he had only one interception the rest of the year. He also only had three near interceptions. Barber is still a solid cornerback but to say he was one of the best in the NFC last year is simply not accurate.
Honorable mention
Will Allen: Allen is touted as the best cornerback on the Dolphins' roster, but his 38.8 success percentage was the worst of any qualifying cornerback on his team last year (30 pass attempts needed to qualify).
Marcus Trufant: His 9.0 YPA and 36.4 success percentage in 2006 didn't even measure up to his Seattle teammate Kelly Herndon, and Herndon was released this offseason.
Rashean Mathis: A starter in Jacksonville, Mathis has a number of really good metrics, but his 7.5 YPA is average and his 44.2 success percentage is borderline mediocre. He also allowed 22.3 YPA on the 10 combined corner/go/double move go passes thrown at him, so he definitely has a tendency to get beaten deep.
Terence Newman: He is considered much better than his Dallas teammate Anthony Henry, but Newman's 2006 overall YPA was only .4 yards higher than Henry's. He also ranked 57th in the missed pass percentage category, so luck was on his side.
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Glossary
YPA (Yards Per Attempt): A quick barometer of a quarterback/wide receiver/tight end's efficiency.
Depth level: A measurement of how far downfield a receiver was on a pass attempt. It is measured from the point at which the receiver touched the ball. Short passes are 1-10, medium 11-19, deep 20-29, and bombs 30 or more yards downfield.
Success percentage: The percentage of plays on which a player does something successful with the ball. Successful plays include completions (for offensive players), incompletions (for defensive players) and penalty plays that go in the player's favor.
Missed passes: Inaccurate or dropped passes that cause an incompletion. Missed passes are used to measure how successful a QB/WR/TE could have been if not for the mistakes. They also help measure how lucky a cornerback was in coverage.
Near interception: Near interceptions are either dropped interceptions or interceptions that landed close enough to a defender that he could have had a chance to catch the ball had luck been on his side.
Stripped/dropped pass: A pass that a receiver starts to catch but then has the ball stripped away by the cornerback.
Forced incompletions: Any incomplete pass that a defensive back is physically responsible for causing. It is a combination of passes defensed, stripped/dropped passes and plays where a hit by a defensive back causes an incompletion.
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Charles Woodson
Normally, I would not include Woodson in the underrated category because he is considered a very good cornerback. However, his 2006 metrics indicate he should have been a lock for the Pro Bowl.
Woodson had the sixth-lowest overall YPA in the league last year. He also had the second-best YPA among cornerbacks with more than 60 passes thrown their way. Only Champ Bailey beat him out in that category.
Woodson tied for the most stripped/dropped passes, and had the eighth-most forced incompletions. His six interceptions tied for sixth in the league and his 14 combined interceptions/near interceptions were the second most in the league. That Woodson was snubbed in favor of DeAngelo Hall and Ronde Barber for the Pro Bowl is a shame.
Nathan Vasher
The Bears recently signed Vasher to a contract extension, and the metrics indicate he certainly deserved it. His 6.0 YPA last year was the 12th best in the league. Vasher had good YPA numbers across the board, but his bomb pass YPA numbers were tremendous. He allowed zero completions in six bomb attempts and was even able to draw a 10-yard offensive pass interference call on one of the plays, thus making his YPA on bomb passes a superb -1.7 yards.
The main reason Vasher wasn't seen as a Pro Bowl-level cornerback is that his interception total dropped from eight in 2005 to three in 2006. Vasher did notch seven near interceptions last year, a total that ranked him second in the league in that category. If he can catch some of those near interceptions in 2007, a trip to Hawaii should be in his future.
Honorable mention
Johnathan Joseph: His 7.3 overall YPA was already very good, and if his poor performance against the Saints was removed, his YPA would drop to a mere 5.9 yards. He also helped the Bengals by leading the league in near interceptions (12).
Leigh Bodden: Only appeared in nine games for Cleveland last season, but had the third-best success percentage in the league, and led the NFL in forced incompletion percentage.
Al Harris: Was not quite as good as Woodson, but still ranked 18th in YPA and seventh in success percentage.
Charles Tillman: A 6.7 YPA, 52.1 success percentage and seven near interceptions indicate the Bears should do what they can to keep him around as well.
Overrated Cornerbacks
DeAngelo Hall
This is the second consecutive season Hall makes this list. He receives this honor because he once again made the Pro Bowl, despite posting simply abysmal metrics.
His 9.2 YPA ranked 76th among cornerbacks. Hall's 47.1 success percentage was solid (31st in the league), but his 17.9 missed pass percentage was one of the highest in the league. That means a large percentage of Hall's success was due to luck.
His supporters would point out that many of the big plays he allowed were due in part to not getting good help from the Falcons' safeties. That might be the case, but Hall's overall YPA was still only .8 yards better than Jason Webster's figure. Furthermore, Woodson had just as little help from the Packers' mediocre safeties and still put up great metrics.
Ronde Barber
Barber also didn't deserve a trip to the Pro Bowl. His 7.9 overall YPA was tied for 58th in the league, and his 37.6 success percentage was 76th. To put these numbers in perspective, Barber's YPA was equal to Terrence McGee's, and he ranked just below Carlos Rogers in success percentage.
Barber did have one great game last year, notching two interception returns for touchdowns in Tampa Bay's 23-21 win over Philadelphia in Week 7, but he had only one interception the rest of the year. He also only had three near interceptions. Barber is still a solid cornerback but to say he was one of the best in the NFC last year is simply not accurate.
Honorable mention
Will Allen: Allen is touted as the best cornerback on the Dolphins' roster, but his 38.8 success percentage was the worst of any qualifying cornerback on his team last year (30 pass attempts needed to qualify).
Marcus Trufant: His 9.0 YPA and 36.4 success percentage in 2006 didn't even measure up to his Seattle teammate Kelly Herndon, and Herndon was released this offseason.
Rashean Mathis: A starter in Jacksonville, Mathis has a number of really good metrics, but his 7.5 YPA is average and his 44.2 success percentage is borderline mediocre. He also allowed 22.3 YPA on the 10 combined corner/go/double move go passes thrown at him, so he definitely has a tendency to get beaten deep.
Terence Newman: He is considered much better than his Dallas teammate Anthony Henry, but Newman's 2006 overall YPA was only .4 yards higher than Henry's. He also ranked 57th in the missed pass percentage category, so luck was on his side.