Corner Report: Week 9

This article will go game by game for the Sunday main slate looking at the top wide receivers from an offense and, based on the inside/outside and left/right splits in the alignment data of those receivers, identify the cornerbacks most likely to face them in man coverage. The corners named will parenthetically cite the rank of their coverage grade from Pro Football Focus from the 2020 season, though sometimes with reference to prior years when noted.

Receivers very rarely see the same corner every play, be it due to formational quirks or zone coverage calls by the defense, so a receiver's fortunes depend on much more than just the quality of the corner they're likely to see the most in a given game. Even against a bad corner, a good receiver can be denied the opportunity if the pass rush or something else outside his control complicates things. But it's part of the puzzle, and it's worth keeping track of.

Receivers are left with an Upgrade, Downgrade, or Even verdict based on their projected matchup. This shouldn't be read as 'good' or 'bad' but rather a measured tweak from the receiver's baseline projection.
 

MIN vs DET

MINNESOTA WIDE RECEIVERS

Desmond Trufant (36.1 PFF) might be able to return from his hamstring injury this week, and if he does he may or may not shadow either of Adam Thielen or Justin Jefferson. Considering the substantial threat posed by both, the Lions might instead opt to keep Trufant on one side, assuming one of Thielen or Jefferson will incidentally line up there. Neither receiver should be intimidated by Trufant, either way. The main corner opposite Trufant figures to be Amani Oruwariye (59.8 PFF), while the slot corner should be Darryl Roberts (49.7 PFF). It's an upgraded situation for Thielen and Jefferson, but slot receiver Chad Beebe wouldn't make a CFL roster and is ill suited to beat any NFL corner in particular.

Upgrade: Adam Thielen, Justin Jefferson
Downgrade: N/A
Even: Chad Beebe

DETROIT WIDE RECEIVERS

Kenny Golladay (hip) appears out, leaving the Lions without their top left-side target and top wideout generally. Quintez Cephus picked up most of the remaining left-side snaps earlier this year, but lately it's been all Marvin Hall there. Hall is almost exclusively a downfield specialist, but he's drawing targets at a solid frequency and he played 42 snaps last week. Hit-or-miss or not, running 40-plus snaps against these Vikings corners is a good way to stumble into a big play or two. The corner likely to see the most of Hall might be Kris Boyd (49.5 PFF), who played right corner in Week 8. Boyd is athletic and might be able to run with Hall somewhat, but the on-field results have never been great for Boyd. Probably have to call it an upgrade for Hall, who should also run a smaller percentage of his snaps against rookies Jeff Gladney (46.0 PFF) and Harrison Hand (61.2 PFF). Marvin Jones should see more of those two than Boyd, while the fact that Gladney moves inside in nickel formations means Danny Amendola should run the vast majority of his reps against Gladney.

Upgrade: Marvin Jones, Marvin Hall, Danny Amendola
Downgrade: N/A
Even: N/A

ATL vs DEN

ATLANTA WIDE RECEIVERS

Julio Jones will see all the Denver corners, and no doubt with disguised double teams to tempt Matt Ryan into unseen danger. Or at least, that's what Vic Fangio and company will need to pull off, because no corner can stop Jones one on one, and especially not any of Bryce Callahan, Michael Ojemudia or Essang Basey. You have to respect Fangio, though – as much as this is a great spot for Jones' usage share and as much as no human can cover him, there's a chance that Fangio blindsides Dirk Koetter with unfamiliar looks. Christian Blake played when Calvin Ridley (foot) got hurt last week, so we might expect Blake to start this game if Ridley is out. Blake can't play and shouldn't be in the NFL, so I would consider Ojemudia to be too much. Olamide Zaccheaus is the better player but he might not play, so it's hard to capitalize there. Russell Gage will run against either Callahan or Bassey – he would prefer to see Bassey.

Upgrade: N/A
Downgrade: Christian Blake
Even: Julio Jones, Russell Gage

 
 
DENVER WIDE RECEIVERS

Isaiah Oliver (55.8 PFF) really needs to move to safety, but for now he remains Atlanta's likely slot corner. As much as Jerry Jeudy deserves no benefit of the doubt at the moment, his quick-separation traits seem like an advantage over a bigger corner like Oliver. Jeudy has drawn targets at a high rate all year, and this could be a setting where he can maximize his returns. Tim Patrick should draw a comparatively tough matchup in A.J. Terrell (67.9 PFF), but Patrick has beaten a handful of tough corners lately, so it's probably at worst an 'even' grade. KJ Hamler should see a lot of Kendall Sheffield (31.7 PFF), an athletic corner but one who has never played very well.

Upgrade: Jerry Jeudy
Downgrade: N/A
Even: Tim Patrick, KJ Hamler

JAC vs HOU

JACKSONVILLE WIDE RECEIVERS

New quarterback Jake Luton isn't much of a quick-release guy, which might be bad news for Laviska Shenault and Keelan Cole, who tend to run most of the underneath routes for the Jaguars. The matchup against Houston cornerback personnel is in their favor, though – Bradley Roby should shadow DJ Chark, leaving Shenault to run against outside corners like Vernon Hargreaves and Phillip Gaines, who are not good. Safety Eric Murray has covered the slot lately, where Cole has the advantage. But again, it's not clear whether Luton can capitalize on any of this.

Upgrade: Laviska Shenault, Keelan Cole
Downgrade: N/A
Even: DJ Chark

HOUSTON WIDE RECEIVERS

Will Fuller might draw the shadow coverage of CJ Henderson (60.3 PFF), but Fuller has to have the upper hand on the rookie, even if Henderson turns out to be a good one. As much as Fuller should be able to beat Henderson, Deshaun Watson should have other options at receiver. If Henderson is on Fuller, then Brandin Cooks is on Tre Herndon (44.4 PFF), and Herndon can't cover Cooks. Slot corner Sidney Jones (80.4 PFF) has played well through 79 coverage snaps, but Randall Cobb should give the recent pickup a significant challenge.

Upgrade: Brandin Cooks, Will Fuller
Downgrade: N/A
Even: Randall Cobb

KC vs CAR

KANSAS CITY WIDE RECEIVERS

The Panthers figure to use lots of zone coverage to keep their corners from getting isolated against Tyreek Hill and Mecole Hardman, and the first fear with either of those players is the deep ball. The Panthers might therefore make their zones heavy with coverage over the top, which might funnel targets away from Hill/Hardman and more toward Travis Kelce or the underneath receivers. Sammy Watkins and Demarcus Robinson might catch some of that usage also, but this is mostly all a reason for Andy Reid to try to get Hill and especially Hardman going more underneath.

Upgrade: N/A
Downgrade: N/A
Even: Tyreek Hill, Mecole Hardman, Sammy Watkins, Demarcus Robinson

CAROLINA WIDE RECEIVERS

Curtis Samuel should see the most of Tyrann Mathieu (52.5 PFF), who's more dangerous than his PFF grade implies, and fellow slot corner Rashad Fenton (73.9 PFF). Charvarius Ward (62.3 PFF) and Bashaud Breeland (79.2 PFF) are the primary outside corners, left and right respectively. Robby Anderson should see all of Ward, Breeland and Fenton in descending order, while D.J. Moore mostly just sees Breeland and Ward. The three Panthers receivers are all good, but their matchups aren't easy.

Upgrade: N/A
Downgrade: N/A
Even: Robby Anderson, D.J. Moore, Curtis Samuel

BUF vs SEA

BUFFALO WIDE RECEIVERS

Shaquill Griffin (concussion) is out, so the Bills can line up Stefon Diggs away from the intimidating Quinton Dunbar if they choose and instead run against the hapless Tre Flowers. Diggs can probably beat Dunbar, though, and John Brown would definitely have an advantage on Flowers for however many snaps they get against each other. Cole Beasley gets an inconclusive matchup in the slot against D.J. Reed (57.9 PFF), but Beasley too probably has the advantage there.

Upgrade: Stefon Diggs, John Brown, Cole Beasley
Downgrade: N/A
Even: N/A

SEATTLE WIDE RECEIVERS

We have an interesting potential collision between DK Metcalf and Tre'Davious White (69.2 PFF), the latter of which has a history of shadowing team's top outside receivers. Tyler Lockett plays in the slot enough that Metcalf would meet that definition first between the two, so if White shadows someone it would seem to be Metcalf. Now, is White a truly great corner? Maybe – I think he's more like a very good one – but at 5-11, 192, White is at risk of getting beat by the 6-3, 228 Metcalf even if the coverage is good. Considering Metcalf runs about 0.15 seconds faster in the 40 at 35 pounds heavier, I'm not taking any good coverage for granted. Still, while White probably can't shut down Metcalf, the other Bills corners might be such comparatively easy targets that a funnel might occur away from Metcalf and toward Lockett, who should mostly run against the sharp but slow Levi Wallace (63.7 PFF). Slot corner Taron Johnson has been a mess this year and should see Lockett on the reps where Wallace does not. Be it Wallace or Johnson, David Moore can beat the non-White Bills corners.

Upgrade: Tyler Lockett
Downgrade: N/A
Even: DK Metcalf, David Moore

TEN vs CHI

TENNESSEE WIDE RECEIVERS

A.J. Brown and Corey Davis are both very good and will pose substantial challenges to Jaylon Johnson (57.4 PFF) and Kyle Fuller (72.9 PFF), who should respectively be the primary matchups for those wideouts. Both Fuller and Johnson are protected somewhat by the zone designs of the Bears defense, but if they fall into one-on-one scenarios it's almost definitely Johnson who's more vulnerable, both because Fuller is far more experienced and because Fuller is the more toolsy of the two. Fuller has long arms and is highly explosive at 190 pounds (4.4 40, 38.5-inch vertical, 128-inch broad jump), whereas at 6-foot, 193 with 4.5 speed and slightly shorter-than-average arms, Johnson needs to get by a bit more by his wiles. Going against a nearly 230-pound wideout with sub-4.5 speed probably isn't the occasion where Johnson would be at his best, but to his credit he is a talented corner who knows how to play tough. Slot wideout Kalif Raymond in any case poses a major burn threat to slot corner Buster Skrine. We just need the Titans to manage the Khalil Mack pass rush and keep Ryan Tannehill from getting spooked.

Upgrade: N/A
Downgrade: Corey Davis
Even: A.J. Brown, Kalif Raymond

CHICAGO WIDE RECEIVERS

Allen Robinson is a beast, and the Titans can't cover him. They might have had a prayer if Adoree' Jackson were healthy, but he isn't and they don't. Malcolm Butler (64.3 PFF) might be the main matchup for Robinson, but it's All Clear if so. If not Butler, then Robinson would likely face Desmond King, Kareem Orr, or Tye Smith, only King of which is believed to be any good. Darnell Mooney has shown some vicious route running lately and can hurt any of these Titans corners. And yet, the most vulnerable corner of them all might be the rookie seventh-round pick out of Marshall, Chris Jackson (33.2 PFF), who simply isn't ready for the task the Titans have heaved upon him this year.

Upgrade: Allen Robinson, Darnell Mooney, Anthony Miller
Downgrade: N/A
Even: N/A

IND vs BAL

INDIANAPOLIS WIDE RECEIVERS

Marcus Peters (55.8 PFF) is a good player at left corner, but it's not clear whether Jimmy Smith (back) will be able to play at right corner. Smith would have been an excellent counter to Colts wideout Michael Pittman, but whoever the replacement might be won't be able to imitate Smith. Marcus Johnson will see both corners but especially Peters on the left. Slot corner and general shadow guy Marlon Humphrey is a big problem for Zach Pascal.

Upgrade: N/A
Downgrade: Zach Pascal, Michael Pittman (raise to 'even' if Smith is out)
Even: Marcus Johnson

BALTIMORE WIDE RECEIVERS

Marquise Brown should mostly run against Rock Ya-Sin (51.7 PFF), who will have safety help but basically can't cover Brown. The good news for Ya-Sin is that the Ravens can't hurt the Colts if the Colts decide to flood their coverage toward Brown. That's because Miles Boykin will be hard-pressed to do anything at all against Xavier Rhodes (77.2 PFF) – a player almost lab-built to stop receivers like Boykin. Willie Snead might be able to beat Kenny Moore (54.4 PFF) but I find PFF's grade a little uncharitable toward Moore.

Upgrade: N/A
Downgrade: Miles Boykin, Willie Snead
Even: Marquise Brown

WAS vs NYG

WASHINGTON WIDE RECEIVERS

The great Terry McLaurin draws a tough assignment against James Bradberry (72.8 PFF), but you still like McLaurin's chances of beating pretty much anyone. If the Giants leave less help for Bradbury then it could counterintuitively help McLaurin – if you don't keep a safety over McLaurin you are begging to get beat deep. Slot corner play has been bad for the Giants all year and should offer a favorable matchup to either Steven Sims or Isaiah Wright, depending on which plays the slot.

Upgrade: Steven Sims, Isaiah Wright
Downgrade: N/A
Even: Terry McLaurin

GIANTS WIDE RECEIVERS

Kendall Fuller (80.8 PFF) is good at right corner, where he should see the most of Darius Slayton. Both players are good – Slayton caught two passes for 41 yards and a touchdown on four targets the last time they played, despite playing through a foot injury. Left corner Ronald Darby (66.5 PFF) also has a tough test, as when he isn't on Slayton he should have to face Sterling Shepard. Slot corner Jimmy Moreland (52.6 PFF) should get Golden Tate or whoever is running from the slot.

Upgrade: N/A
Downgrade: N/A
Even: Sterling Shepard, Darius Slayton, Golden Tate

LAC vs LV

CHARGERS WIDE RECEIVERS

Keenan Allen versus Lamarcus Joyner is a big mismatch in Allen's favor, and a big reason why he drew 21 targets on 118 snaps against the Raiders last year. Things look bad for the Raiders outside, too, where Mike Williams and Jalen Guyton can both get deep against Trayvon Mullen and Nevin Lawson.

Upgrade: Keenan Allen, Mike Williams, Jalen Guyton
Downgrade: N/A
Even: N/A

LAS VEGAS WIDE RECEIVERS

Casey Hayward (64.2 PFF) cannot cover Henry Ruggs deep, so the Raiders would be smart to make Hayward turn and sprint all game – he would eventually fail. He probably wouldn't fail underneath, where he's comfortable. Michael Davis (68.2 PFF) is better than Hayward at this point and should see the most of Nelson Agholor, though both Agholor and Ruggs should switch sides occasionally. Hunter Renfrow should mostly see Tevaughn Campbell (44.5 PFF).

Upgrade: Henry Ruggs, Hunter Renfrow
Downgrade: N/A
Even: Nelson Agholor

ARI vs MIA

ARIZONA WIDE RECEIVERS

DeAndre Hopkins should run almost all of his routes against Byron Jones (57.7 PFF) – an athletic corner with excellent mirroring skills, but probably lacking the ball skills to stop Hopkins at the catch point. As Hopkins showed against the strong coverage of Quinton Dunbar in his last game, running with Hopkins is just one small part of the equation. Christian Kirk should catch Xavien Howard (80.2 PFF). Howard has been up and down over the past couple years and Kirk is no slouch, but this is likely a tougher matchup for Kirk than Jones is for Hopkins. Larry Fitzgerald will run against Nik Needham (48.7 PFF) – perhaps the one NFL corner he might beat in a race.

Upgrade: N/A
Downgrade: Christian Kirk
Even: DeAndre Hopkins, Larry Fitzgerald

MIAMI WIDE RECEIVERS

DeVante Parker may well draw the shadow coverage of Patrick Peterson (56.0 PFF), but if so that suits Parker just fine. Parker is one of the best and Peterson is not, and the tempo detail adds further reassurance for Parker's projection. Tua Tagovailoa is a question, but the only one for Parker in this setting. Preston Williams sets up well too, as Dre Kirkpatrick (37.2 PFF) isn't much better. Jakeem Grant might be the team's new WR3 and general slot receiver in light of the Isaiah Ford trade, and he'd run against Budda Baker (72.5 PFF), who has good but not great speed, and perhaps Kevin Peterson.

Upgrade: DeVante Parker, Preston Williams
Downgrade: N/A
Even: Jakeem Grant

DAL vs PIT

DALLAS WIDE RECEIVERS

The offensive line and quarterback situations are so bad in Dallas that I have to call everyone a downgrade. A worse secondary than Pittsburgh's would project for the advantage here.

Upgrade: N/A
Downgrade: Amari Cooper, CeeDee Lamb, Michael Gallup
Even: N/A

PITTSBURGH WIDE RECEIVERS

JuJu Smith-Schuster probably has the toughest draw against the competent Jourdan Lewis in the slot, but Dallas is in such comprehensive collapse that I don't know a player like Lewis can affect much. Chase Claypool and Diontae Johnson have even easier matchups than JuJu, with that said.

Upgrade: JuJu Smith-Schuster, Diontae Johnson, Chase Claypool
Downgrade: N/A
Even: N/A

TB vs NO

TAMPA BAY WIDE RECEIVERS

Upgrade: Mike Evans, Chris Godwin
Downgrade: N/A
Even: Antonio Brown, Scotty Miller

NEW ORLEANS WIDE RECEIVERS

Upgrade: N/A
Downgrade: N/A
Even: Michael Thomas, Emmanuel Sanders, Tre'Quan Smith

NYJ vs NE

JETS WIDE RECEIVERS

Upgrade: N/A
Downgrade: Jamison Crowder, Braxton Berrios, Denzel Mims, Jeff Smith
Even: N/A

NEW ENGLAND WIDE RECEIVERS

Upgrade: Damiere Byrd, Jakobi Meyers
Downgrade: N/A
Even: N/A