Cornerbacks Stay on Ravens’ Radar at Combine

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The Ravens are fond of saying that you can never have too many corners, a saying originally credited to Ozzie Newsome that has been adopted by his successor. But Eric DeCosta’s investment of draft capital over his five drafts as Baltimore’s general manager hasn’t reflected that adage, as the Ravens haven’t spent a top-100 pick on a cornerback since the selection of Marlon Humphrey in the first round in 2017.

As a result, a cornerback selection should be in play for Baltimore’s first-round pick in 2024, and if not, the position should be a priority for one of the team’s Day 2 picks. With that in mind, let’s take a look at a few cornerbacks who stood out at the Combine and could find themselves on the Ravens radar.

In a draft class without a clear CB1, the Combine was a great opportunity for players to break away from the pack and solidify their first-round bonafides. One player to do so was Clemson’s Nate Wiggins, whose 40-yard dash was the highlight of the defensive back testing period. He likely tested himself out of the Ravens’ range, but even so, Baltimore may not have been fully sold on the undersized corner.

Wiggins came into the Combine as one of two players – the other being Texas WR Xavier Worthy – believed to have a shot at threatening the 40-yard dash record. And when Wiggins weighed in at 173 pounds, more than 10 pounds less than his listed playing weight at Clemson, the anticipation grew considerably. As a result, his 4.28-second 40 time was impressive but still somehow disappointing. If a player is going to cut that much weight to improve their 40 time, they had better break 4.3! It’s also worth noting that Wiggins’ 10-yard split was the second-slowest among CBs at 1.59 seconds.

The Ravens, meanwhile, have prioritized size in their cornerback drafting under DeCosta, with an average weight of 201.4 lbs., fifth-highest among NFL GMs. Forty time and 10-yard split have mattered, too, with an average of 4.44-seconds (7th-fastest) and 1.52-seconds (4th-fastest), respectively. But Wiggins’ speed is unlikely to overcome the size concerns in the eyes of Baltimore’s evaluators, if he were to even fall to the end of the first round.

Toledo CB Quinyon Mitchell’s 4.33-second time at 195 pounds (with an elite 10-yard split to match) is arguably just as impressive as Wiggins’ performance. Mitchell has nailed the pre-draft process, following up a standout Senior Bowl with an excellent Combine performance that saw him lead CBs with 20 bench press reps for good measure. More than any other player, he locked down his top-20 status and will likely keep himself out of the Ravens’ draft range.

Iowa CB Cooper DeJean has a ton of fans in scouting circles, but didn’t test at the Combine as he works his way back to full-strength following a broken leg suffered in November 2023. That was a bummer for those in attendance looking forward to the athletic marvel putting up some freaky numbers. At the moment, DeJean is also projected to go well ahead of the Ravens’ first-round pick, but any disappointment or setback at Iowa’s March 18 Pro Day could keep him within range.

A more likely cornerback option for the Ravens might come from one of their favorite training grounds: Alabama. Their duo of Terrion Arnold and Kool-Aid McKinstry have both been pegged as first-rounders over the last several months, but disappointing Combines could push them down towards the back end of Day 1.

Arnold’s tape oozes with potential, but his 4.5-second 40 at 189 pounds could give NFL teams pause due to the size-speed receivers that are taking over the NFL. His 10-yard split was similarly middle of the pack, and he only stood out in the broad jump portion of the testing.

Arnold is not yet 21 years old with just two seasons of college ball under his belt, and the Ravens have pursued early-declares at the end of the first round in the past. Getting him in the Ravens’ system, with a consistently-excellent coaching staff and a ready-made mentor in Marlon Humphrey, could be the best way to unlock his potential.

McKinstry – who might have the best first name in the entire draft class, regardless of position – was dealing with a Jones fracture in his right foot that was discovered during his medical evaluation at the Combine. He did not test in Indianapolis, turning attention to his March 20 Pro Day, after which he will undergo surgery. That could have an obvious impact on his draft stock, pushing him closer to the bottom of the first round while the more sure-thing CB prospects come off the board in the top 20.

But McKinstry’s calling card has never been his athleticism. His play is the definition of smooth, with a cerebral, technical approach to the position that eludes most college corners. In a Ravens defense that asks a good bit of its corners – disguised and match coverages, pre-snap switches from off-man to press, plus contributions in pass rush and run defense – McKinstry has the smarts and physicality to step right in. His Pro Day performance and recovery from surgery will be crucial to his draft stock, but he’s got almost 2,000 quality snaps of Alabama football on his resume that show why he belongs in the first round.

Missouri CB Ennis Rakestraw entered the Combine with questions about his long speed and mirroring ability in press-man coverage, something he was rarely asked to do in college. He has the competitive spirit and physicality needed to succeed there, but lacks prototypical size for the role. He fought through a groin injury suffered early in the testing period, but ultimately posted lackluster numbers as a result with the intention of re-testing at Missouri’s Pro Day.

Ennis Rakestraw Jr. is a CB prospect in the 2024 draft class. He scored an unofficial 4.79 #RAS out of a possible 10.00. This ranked 1159 out of 2222 CB from 1987 to 2024.

Splits Projectedhttps://t.co/DwyRLIb0j1 pic.twitter.com/hNwrBMI9JS

— Kent Lee Platte (@MathBomb) March 1, 2024

If he’s unable to put up improved numbers at Missouri’s Pro Day in March, he could slip out of the first round and become a potential value pick on Day 2 with a high football I.Q. and the kind of toughness the Ravens covet. They’ll still need to be convinced of his speed, but draft history is littered with examples of play speed mattering more than testing speed when the pads come on.

Prospect Profile: Ennis Rakestraw Jr., CB, Missouri

Perhaps the bigger highlight of the defensive back testing at the Combine was a series of impressive undersized cornerback prospects who stole the show as the day went on.

Michigan’s Mike Sainristil has become a draftnik favorite and one of my personal favorite prospects in the draft. He spent three years playing receiver and special teams at Michigan before converting to cornerback, where he started 26 of 30 games in the last two seasons, primarily at nickel.

He has the toughness and physicality the Ravens covet at cornerback, plus leadership experience as a two-time captain for the Wolverines. With just two years of CB play under his belt, he already has a burgeoning feel for the position which will only grow, and his receiver experience has directly translated into ball skills at the catch point.

Sainristil’s size and athleticism are his main concerns, and they do more to lower his ceiling than his floor. He measured in at 5-foot-9 and 182 pounds, so he’ll likely be restricted to the slot in the pros, especially in Baltimore, who prefer bigger outside corners but have embraced smaller nickels with the requisite physicality to defend the run, like Tavon Young and Ar’Darius Washington.

Sainristil fits that bill, and his testing at the Combine highlighted his short-area movement skills and explosiveness with the fourth-best broad jump and seventh-best vertical jump among 20124 CBs. His 1.51-second 10-yard split was tied for eighth-fastest at his position, and his 4.01-second shuttle drill was the second-fastest of all players at the Combine. He’s going to play nickel – a starting job in the modern NFL – at a high level for a long time in this league; we’ll be looking back on this draft class in five years and wondering why he wasn’t a lock for the first round.

Max Melton (Rutgers), Andru Phillips (Kentucky) and Daequan Hardy (Penn State) fill out the athletic depth of this slot corner, with Combines that could push them into Day 2 consideration.

Melton is perhaps the most pro-ready prospect of the three, but has very little experience in the slot which might be his long-term home in the NFL. Phillips has less long speed than Melton and Hardy, but has more inside-outside experience in college. Hardy is closer to Sainristil’s nickel-only size, where he played in college, and his Combine performance showed he has the athleticism to hang with speedy slot receivers in the pros.

At this point, Melton is probably going on Day 2, and Phillips is trending towards joining him. Either player would offer versatile cornerback depth for the Ravens, while Hardy would profile as a developmental slot backup behind Ar’Darius Washington.

One final cornerback who would be on the Ravens’ radar is Notre Dame’s Cam Hart. The Baltimore native has even more connections to the Ravens, having played more than 700 snaps in the same secondary as Kyle Hamilton in 2021.

At 6-foot-3 and 202 pounds, Hart has prototypical outside CB size but his 4.50 40 time and 1.57-second 10-yard split could substantiate doubts about his long speed. He recorded top-10 vertical and broad jumps among CBs, but finished dead last in the 3-cone drill at his position.

As a result, Hart’s athleticism scores remain a concern, especially for how they impact his game. He plays up to his size in press and has solid mirroring ability, but if he gets behind, he struggles to catch up or trust his instincts to make a play. Few other players in the draft class have his unteachable size and experience (over 1,700 snaps in the last three seasons!), but a team will need to put him in a position to succeed to get substantial returns on his rookie contract.

Athletic testing thresholds courtesy of Arjun Menon (@arjunmenon100 on X).

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