The NFL has been around for many years and it has seen many talents come and go, some so incredibly gifted that they have changed the course of history. Teams and coaches are known to build their tactics around the quality of their team’s players and the caliber of quarterbacks they expect. As a result, defense is an essential part of any team, so the longer the cornerback holds your side, the better the team’s chances of getting away with it. Cornerbacks are the last line of defense and they have a lot to prove. Here is a list of the top 10 cornerbacks who have impressed us all with their abilities.
The best NFL cornerbacks of all time
10. Jimmy Johnson
Although it’s easy to look at Jimmy’s low interceptions and conclude that the player wasn’t a very good cornerback, but that would be a hasty and wrong conclusion because, in his active days, 60s back to the ’70s when interceptions were very common and virtually every cornerback was going 6-10 in a single year, so his low numbers show how terrified quarterbacks were of throwing passes his way.
He was drafted right out of UCLA by the SanFrancisco 49ers. He was one of the very first stoppage cornerbacks who shaped the careers of those who followed him. Jimmy didn’t just hustle and manhandle receivers, he was a master tactician who could see multiple forward moves and adjust his moves accordingly.
9. Willie Brown
Brown spent 16 marvelous seasons in the NFL, resulting in an AFL Championship title, three Super Bowls, four Pro-Bowls and an undisputed title as one of the greatest cornerbacks of all time. He is credited with being the player who invented ‘bump and run’ coverage, which involves playing hard on the line of scrimmage so that a receiver misses the clock on a pass and then twists and trails behind the receiver on a field run.
Brown has claimed 54 interceptions throughout the span of his career using this technique. The most iconic moment of his career was in Super Bowl XI when he intercepted a pass from Fran Tarkenton and ran for 75 yards to seal a touchdown and a win for the Oakland Raiders.
8. Ronnie Lott
Ronnie Lott is one of the most complete players the NFL has ever seen. He played for the Los Angeles Raiders, New York Jets, Kansas City and San Francisco 49ers. He was the reason the 49ers could boast of being more than a team with finesse and supporting him on the field. As a cornerback, Ronnie was phenomenal as he could attack at the line of scrimmage, intercept the ball, cover teammates and tackle quarterbacks.
He made history in 1983 after making 108 tackles, one sack and four intersections in a single season as a quarterback. His hard shots from the safety position were key to the club’s many wins for several years. He took great pleasure in outplaying wide receivers, delivering stunning performances every time. Ronnie has been named to the Pro Bowl four times in a row and 10 times overall, 8 times to the All-Pro first team and four Super Bowls.
7. Bailey Field
A look at Bailey’s career stats will leave no one indifferent and full of appreciation how much the player had even late in his career. He made the Pro Bowl 12 times, the All-Pro three times, 10 career picks and had 54 steals by the end of his career. Bailey was a player who had it all. He went from an underrated player to one of the greatest NFL talents of all time.
Bailey pretty much made the Broncos, leading them to victory after victory until his retirement. His most wonderful career moment was when he held Larry Fitzgerald for 19 yards and three catches, without passing a touchdown in 80 targets.
6. Darrell Green
Throughout his 20-year career, there have been a few things every football fan could count on: rain, taxes, death and Darrell Green securing the corner for the Washington Redskins. Considering he holds the record for consecutive seasons with at least one interception in the NFL, it’s hard to dispute Darrell’s place on this list of greatest cornerbacks of all time. He was named to the Pro Bowl team 7 times and All-Pro 4 times.
He is ranked as one of the fastest players in the NFL, so much so that he was still recording a 4.5/40 speed rate even at age 50. His most iconic career moment was in 1987 during the playoffs when he broke his ribs on a punt return and still managed to outrun the Chicago Bears to help his team surrender. to their second Super Bowl victory.
5. Mike Haynes
This 1984 NFL Defensive Player of the Year was drafted as the fifth overall pick by the New England Patriots in 1976. He has 9 Pro-Bowls under his belt, 6 for the Patriots and three for the Raiders. He also won the Super Bowl with the latter. Haynes has 46 career interceptions to his name, 112 punts for two touchdowns and an average of 10.4 yards; he was twice named to the All-Pro first team.
His partnership with Lester Hayes was one of the greatest coin mashups of all time. They complement each other perfectly. Haynes used his incredible speed, technique, size, reliability and fluidity to terrorize the offenses that came before him. He was so great that he remains a legend in Los Angeles Raiders history, and his former club The Patriots retired his jersey to honor his years there.
4. Deion Sanders
Deion Sanders might very well be the best cornerback cover the league has ever seen. His pass coverage is virtually undefeated. He played for Atlanta, San Francisco 49ers, where he received the NFL Defensive Player of the Year award and earned a hard-earned victory over the Dallas Cowboys in the postseason before their Super Bowl victory. He finally brought his talents to the Cowboys in 1995, helping them steal a victory over the Steelers in that season’s Super Bowl.
Sanders really enjoyed putting on quarterbacks that crossed him into their spot. He pretty much set the standard for what was expected of a superstar and NFL free agents. Despite not being pictured, the iconic cornerback has managed to win championships, viciously sell himself and land lucrative endorsement deals. Since retiring, the Cowboys have struggled to find a player to fill their shoes.
3. Ty Law
Law was mainly responsible for the astonishing success in 2001-2003. He carried the team’s defense on his back straight to the Super Bowl. Wherever he was on the pitch he was guaranteed to be locked out, as the opposing offenses pretty much knew that trying to pass him a ball was pointless and those who tried to fail miserably. His contributions to the team were so significant that they led to the Patriots becoming one of the most powerful dynasties in sports history. The team probably wouldn’t have gone as far as they had without Law ruthlessly defending his side.
2. Mel Blount
Blount is credited with being the player who popularized and refined the 1970s corner style of play, which involved hitting the receiver at the line, off the line, hitting him whenever he attempted a cut, hitting him every time and hitting him the second the ball arrived. The cornerback had an incredible 4.5 speed and incredible recovery time. His techniques became so popular and widely copied that he sparked an offensive revolution.
He won Defensive Player of the Year in 1975 thanks to the record 11 passes he intercepted for the Steelers. His style of play was so aggressive that the NFL instituted a Mel Blount rule that prevented contact with receivers five yards beyond the line of scrimmage. Blount consequently adjusted his style to be more focused on finesse and continued to scare the heart of the opposition’s offense. He had 57 career interceptions to his credit at the time of his retirement, as well as four Super Bowl rings. He is definitely one of the best cornerbacks of all time.
1. Dick “Night Train” Lane
Night Train was a player who was ahead of his time. He was truly phenomenal in his first season as a rookie when he intercepted 14 passes for two touchdowns. In 1959, he intercepted 10 passes and earned the first of seven Pro-Bowl selections and three All-Pro selections. From literally nothing, Lane evolved into one of the greatest cornerbacks of all time.
He made 68 interceptions for 1,207 return yards in his career, ranking him fourth and sixth best in NFL history. He earned his nickname because he had a peculiar habit of ramming into opponents like he was a speeding train and they were helpless against the force of his power. Some records set by Lane are still in effect or have only recently been broken. It’s only natural that he will now be remembered as one of the greatest cornerbacks in NFL history.