RANKING NFL SECONDARIES GOING INTO THE 2024 SEASON

Cornerback and safeties might be the hardest position to play in the league physically. If your team cannot pressure the QB, you need corners and safeties to both give more time to you defense to apply pressure or to just blow the play up thanks to great coverage. let's look at every teams' cornerbacks, safeties, and nickelbacks.

32. New York Giants (LCB Cor'Dale Flott, RCB Deonte Banks, SS Dane Belton, FS Jason Pinnock, NB "Dru Phillips")

Banks had a good rookie year. He should continue to trend upward. Phillips, the Giants third round pick may see a rather limited role. Flott has not looked great in his limited starts. Belton has not played enough to judge, and Pinnock has some upside, but has not really had an above average season yet.

31. Denver Broncos (LCB Pat Surtain II, RCB Riley Moss, SS PJ Locke, FS Brandon Jones, NB Ja'Quan McMillian)

Surtain is an elite corner. Jones had a great season last year. He will just need to build onto it. McMillian looked good but will need to be more consistent down-to-down. Locke looked good in the 8 games he started. Moss has not played enough to judge.

30. Arizona Cardinals (LCB Sean Murphy-Bunting, RCB "Max Melton," SS Budda Baker, FS Jalen Thompson, NB Garrett Williams)

The Cardinals are trying to rebuild their secondary staring with 2nd round pick Max Melton. You have Murphy-Bunting who cannot seem to stay on the field. Baker who is the elite piece to the defense. Thompson who has played pretty well. Finally, Williams who has not played much, but the little he did, he seemed inexplosive. The Cardinals invested multiple draft picks into rookies. If any of these guys begin to play poorly, we may see some of these rookies take some snaps.

29. Washington Commanders (LCB Benjamin St-Juste, RCB Michael Davis, SS Jeremy Chinn, FS Quan Martin, NB "Mike Sainristil")

St-Juste and Davis have been decent, but not much more. Martin has big play ability but struggles with fundamentals. Chinn is elite when on the field but hasn't stayed healthy is last couple of seasons.

28. Los Angeles Rams (LCB Darious Williams, RCB Tre'Davious White, SS Kamren Curl, FS John Johnson III, NB Quentin Lake)

Williams had a career year last year and the Rams hope he can make that play consistent. White is elite when on the field but has health concerns what feels like every year. Johnson, who plays very well under HC, Sean McVay. Curl who played great last year. Lake has not started enough to judge.

27. Carolina Panthers (LCB Jaycee Horn, RCB Mike Jackson, SS Xavier Woods, FS Jordan Fuller, NB Troy Hill)

Horn is great when on the field but deals with injuries. Woods is very good but needs to show more consistency. Jordan Fuller is great, but also needs to show more consistency. Jackson can hold his own but has not started much. Hill had a fantastic season back in 2020, but for some reason was never put in the position to start another. He was used more situationally.

26. Las Vegas Raiders (LCB Jack Jones, RCB Jakorian Bennett, SS Marcus Epps, FS Tre'von Moehrig, NB Nate Hobbs)

Jones and Moehrig both had fantastic seasons last year. Hobbs gets better and better each year he plays. Epps had a rather down year last season but can hopefully return to his 2022 form. Bennett has not played much but looked pretty good in his limited play.

25. Indianapolis Colts (LCB JuJu Brents, RCB Jaylon Jones, SS Julian Blackmon, FS Nick Cross, NB Kenny Moore II)

Moore is one of the better CBs in the league. Blackmon is a great FS. Brents needs a to take a step forward in year two. Jones looks promising, but I want to see a full season out of him. Cross has not played enough to make a proper judgement.

24. Jacksonville Jaguars (LCB Ronald Darby, RCB Tyson Campbell, SS Antonio Johnson, FS Andre Cisco, NB Darnell Savage)

Darby is a very good CB. Cisco has had a couple of solid years in Jacksonville. The Jaguars hope he stays consistent. Savage has been a disappointment since entering the league, but still shows flashes of great play. Hopefully a team/culture change can help bring out the best in him. Campbell is good, sometimes very good when on the field, but he has recently dealt with some injuries. Johnson has not played much but looked good the little he did.

23. Pittsburgh Steelers (LCB Donte Jackson, RCB Joey Porter Jr., SS DeShon Elliott, FS Minkah Fitzpatrick, NB "Beanie Bishop Jr.")

Fitzpatrick is an elite safety that has taken a step back to very good. The Steelers hope he returns to form and keeps his elite play consistent. Porter should show improvement with another offseason under his belt. Elliott has been slightly below average, while Jackson misses more times than he hits. Bishop will probably see a role increase as we get further into the season.

22. Chicago Bears (LCB Tyrique Stevenson, RCB Jaylon Johnson, SS Jaquan Brisker, FS Kevin Byard III, NB Kyler Gordon)

Byard is one of the best safeties in the league. Johnson earned himself a new contract after a big season last year. Stevenson, Brisker, and Gordon are all mid risk, high reward players.

21. Los Angeles Chargers (LCB Asante Samuel Jr., RCB Kristian Fulton, SS Derwin James Jr., FS Alohi Gilman, NB Ja'Sir Taylor)

James suffers injuries like crazy, but when on the field, he and Samuel are two of the best. I am excited to see Fulton in his first full season under a new regime. Gilman had a breakout season last year. Gilman has not started enough to judge.

20. Houston Texas (LCB Derek Stingley Jr., RCB "Kamari Lassiter," SS Jimmie Ward, FS "Calen Bullock," NB Jalen Pitre)

Stingley and Pitre had elite caliber seasons last year. Ward is great, but aging. Lassiter, I expect has a solid rookie year. I am not so sure about Bullock.

19. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (LCB Zyon McCollum, RCB Jamel Dean, SS Jordan Whitehead, FS Antoine Winfield Jr., NB "Tykee Smith")

Winfield and Whitehead are probably the best safety duo in the league. Paired with a great CB in Dean. McCollum looks promising. If Smith can play well his rookie season, this group will skyrocket up this list.

18. Detroit Lions (LCB Carlton Davis, RCB "Terrion Arnold," SS Brian Branch, FS Kerby Joseph, NB Amik Robertson)

Branch and Joseph are both fantastic safeties. Davis is a great CB, and Arnold was graded as one of the best CBs coming out of the draft. Robertson should be fine in a minimal role.

17. Kansas City Chiefs (LCB Trent McDuffie, RCB Nazeeh Johnson, SS Justin Reid, FS Bryan Cook, NB Chamarri Conner)

McDuffie is one of the better CBs in the league. Reid is an elite, veteran safety. Conner was an under the radar name that performed well last season. Johnson has not gotten much of a chance, but reportedly has not impressed in camp. I want to see Cook in a full season before making a judgement call. Joshua Williams look pretty impressive last season. I would not be surprised to see him take Nazeeh's spot.

16. Atlanta Falcons (LCB Mike Hughes, RCB AJ Terrell Jr., SS Justin Simmons, FS Jessie Bates III, NB Dee Alford)

I do not like to say this so many times in a row, but Simmons and Bates also have an argument of being the best safety tandem in the league. Simmons put this secondary up the list tremendously. Terrell is also very good but needs to be more consistent. Hughes has moved around teams over his 6-year career. I am surprised he has a starting job, and do not believe he has one past this year. I want to see a full season from Alford before giving thoughts on him.

15. Cincinnati Bengals (LCB Cam Taylor-Britt, RCB Dax Hill, SS Vonn Bell, FS Geno Stone, NB Mike Hilton)

Jordan Battle was a top 10 safety last season, and why he would be on the bench is beyond me. I guess it does add great depth though. Bell is great, Stone is very good, but I would want to give Battle more reps over him. Hill had a great first full season, while Cam dealt with an injury. Hilton had the best season of his career seeing more starts than he would typically. We may finally get to see a full season after some of the flashes he has been showing us for years.

14. New Orleans Saints (LCB Paulson Adebo, RCB Marshon Lattimore, SS Jordan Howden, FS Tyrann Mathieu, NB Alontae Taylor)

Mathieu and Adebo were both top 15 at their respective positions. Lattimore is also elite. Taylor looked promising in his first full season, while Howden did not look good in his seven starts.

13. Tennessee Titans (LCB Chidobe Awuzie, RCB L'Jarius Sneed, SS Amani Hooker, FS Quandre Diggs, NB Roger McCreary)

Every player in this starting unit has potential. Sneed is great. McCreary had a great year 2. Diggs has been great. Awuzie and Hooker are good but show flashes of greatness.

12. Dallas Cowboys (LCB Trevon Diggs, RCB "Caelen Carson," SS Donovan Wilson, FS Malik Hooker, NB Jourdan Lewis)

DaRon Bland will be out 6 weeks, but I cannot wait to see him return. He had one of the best sophomore seasons we have ever seen. Diggs is an elite CB but needs more consistency when he is not making a big play. The same can be said for Hooker in terms of consistency. Wilson has looked impressive but missed some games due to injury last season. I believe Lewis will have a breakout year this season.

11. Green Bay Packers (LCB Eric Stokes, RCB Jaire Alexander, SS Xavier McKinney, FS "Javon Bullard," NB Keisean Nixon)

McKinney is elite in coverage. Alexander is elite when healthy. Stokes is certainly no push-over. Nixon had a breakout season last year and plays a nice factor into special teams. Bullard, the second round pick out of Georgia looks like a future NFL star.

10. Minnesota Vikings (LCB Stephon Gilmore, RCB Shaq Griffin, SS Harrison Smith, FS Camryn Bynum, NB Byron Murphy Jr.)

Gilmore has to start declining at some point due to age, but he still hasn't. Smith and Bynum both faced decline in production, but I believe another year with Flores may bring them back to greatness. Murphy has been a one season wonder thus far in his career; Flores hopes he can bring that good play back out of him. Griffin had a few good years in Seattle but has not been the same since being traded in 2021.

9. Philadelphia Eagles (LCB Darius Slay Jr., RCB Isaiah Rodgers, SS CJ Gardner-Johnson, FS Reed Blankenship, NB "Quinyon Mitchell")

This whole group had a bad season. The whole team really. Slay is elite. James Bradberry is elite but is out for the first few weeks due to injury. Replacing him, CJ has flashes of brilliant plays, he just needs to be more consistent. Blankenship had a breakout season last year and I do not see him declining. Rodgers was more of a special team's player, but he has never started a full season, so my thoughts on him are incomplete. I believe Quinyon Mitchell is the next start DB. He felt like a sure thing in this year's draft.

8. New England Patriots (LCB Jonathan Jones, RCB Christian Gonzalez, SS Kyle Dugger, FS Jabrill Peppers, NB Marcus Jones)

Gonzalez looks to be one of the next elite CBs. He only played 4 games last season before injury. Jones, Dugger and Peppers all had great seasons last year, and look to build off them.

7. Baltimore Ravens (LCB Marlon Humphrey, RCB Brandon Stephens, SS Kyle Hamilton, FS Marcus Williams, NB Ar'Darius Washington)

Humphrey, Hamilton, and Williams are all some of the best at their positions. Stephens looks poised for a breakout season. Washington has not started enough to judge.

6. Cleveland Browns (LCB Denzel Ward, RCB Martin Emerson Jr., SS Grant Delpit, FS Juan Thornhill, NB Greg Newsome II)

The Browns face injuries a lot, and that is no exception to the secondary. When they stay healthy, they play lights out. Every player is very good to great that can play elite, just not consistently. Most of them are still great when not playing elite.

5. Buffalo Bills (LCB Christian Benford, RCB Rasul Douglas, SS Taylor Rapp, FS Damar Hamlin, NB Taron Johnson)

Benford, Douglas, and Johnson are all great to elite. Rapp will be starting his first full season while in Buffalo. He had a few great seasons in Los Angeles, but there is a trend of players that leave Sean McVay's system that do not pan out. For that reason, I am hesitant and need to see how he plays. Hamlin had a solid 2022 campaign before tragedy struck. I do believe there is a chance he breaks out.

4. Miami Dolphins (LCB Kendall Fuller, RCB Jalen Ramsey, SS Jordan Poyer, FS Jevon Holland, NB Kader Kohou)

Fuller and Poyer are two of the best at their positions. Holland played elite last year, while Ramsey missed some time, but is a superstar as long as his injury does not linger, or his age catch up to him. Kohou has played well the last couple of seasons but did slightly decline in production last year.

3. San Fransisco 49ers (LCB Charvarius Ward, RCB Isaac Yiadom, SS Talanoa Hufanga, FS Ji'Ayir Brown NB Deommodore Lenoir)

Ward is elite in coverage. Yiadom is great in the slot. Hufanga was an all-pro in 2022 but missed some time last season due to injuries. Lenoir looks like a future star, and Brown looked good in his few starts last season.

2. Seattle Seahawks (LCB Tre Brown, RCB Tariq Woolen, SS Rayshawn Jenkins, FS Julian Love, NB Devon Witherspoon)

Woolen, Jenkins, Love, and Witherspoon are all elite at their positions. With Mike MacDonald at HC, this will be a top 10 unit in the league. Brown is unproven and has only started 10 games. I cannot wait to see how he performs under MacDonald.

1. New York Jets (LCB Sauce Gardner, RCB DJ Reed, SS Chuck Clark, FS Tony Adams, NB Michael Carter II)

Gardner is elite. Clark can be elite but is inconsistent at times. Even when he is not elite, he is still great. Reed, Carter, and Adams are all great DBs. Not a hole in this group.

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