Ranking top 10 cornerbacks, safeties in NFL

[Pitt Gorilla]

Marcus Peters lands redemption, Tyrann Mathieu steals the throne.

Click on the link to see all rankings:

https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/r...eu-steals-the/

Hold onto your horses, because there's a shakeup in the 2020 NFL defensive back rankings. Attempting to narrow the list of both cornerbacks and, separately, safeties is a daunting undertaking -- considering the number of nuances that exist from player to player and team to team. For example, when you think of the top cornerbacks in the league, surely names like Marshon Lattimore and Stephon Gilmore come to mind, along with a list of others, but then comes the factoring in of scheme, resumé, athletic ability, age and potential; making for a much more muddied puddle.

The same applies to the safety position, because of course there are obvious names like Jamal Adams and Earl Thomas, but who's rapidly climbing the ranks alongside the former? And what other elder statesmen, like Thomas, are fighting tooth-and-nail to hold them off to remain in the top-10 going forward? By the way, and I'm sure this is a news flash, but there are two different safety positions -- so apples-to-apples comparisons are often (although not completely) not possible.

In the end, there can only be 10 names sitting atop the mountain at both positions, and even those who just missed the cut had a solid chance of making it. That's how narrow the margin of error was in compiling the following two lists, but it was also fun to consider the curveballs that found their way into certain unexpected spots.

What do I mean by curveballs? Well, take a look and see for yourself.

....

1. Tyrann Mathieu, Chiefs
There's no honey in this badger, folks.

Winning his first-ever Super Bowl in 2019 was the culmination of a career's worth of stellar work, even though it also involved teams recently making the ill-advised decision to let him walk. All Mathieu does is change games and, like Fitzpatrick, he does it in a variety of ways. What sets Mathieu apart, however, is just how long he's been stellar at his craft -- since entering the NFL as a member of the Arizona Cardinals in 2013. And for all he excels at, what's often lost is that he's a former third-round pick, and not someone who was selected with a premium pick and expected to take over the league. And yet, here we are seven years later, with Mathieu being a key reason the Chiefs ended a half-century long championship drought, his four interceptions, 75 combined tackles and 12 pass break ups in the regular season helping them to secure home field advantage.

Those numbers were good enough to see him awarded another First-Team All-Pro honor to go along with his shiny new ring, and he earned both as much as he earned the right to top this list. For whether you need a free safety, strong safety or nickel corner -- this former Tiger is ... well ... great.

Word to Tony and his Frosted Flakes.

[suzzer99]

Originally Posted by Pitt Gorilla

Mentally, Mathieu is playing a completely different game than everyone else. Not sure I've ever seen another player defend three different players in around a second on one play.

Dude is 5'9" 170 and has torn both ACLs. He shouldn't be able to do the things he's doing. For whatever reason, God put Matrix-level safety protocol in Tyrann's brain and the Chiefs are the beneficiaries.

Yeah he's got Dennis Rodman-level smarts anticipating exactly where to be at the exact right time.

[redfan]

I thought he was DPOY last year, and not just for his on-field play. Brought that swagger to the locker room.