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Indianapolis Colts cornerback Kenny Moore has been steadily making a name for himself as one of the premier slot defenders in the NFL. However, it seems he has more respect to gain from ESPN’s rankings.
In the same ESPN survey of executives, coaches and scouts that ranked DeForest Buckner at No. 3 and Darius Leonard at No. 4 in their respective positions, Moore didn’t get the same type of love. He was an afterthought and didn’t even get a nod in the ‘Honorable Mention’ section for their cornerback rankings.
Maybe it’s because he’s primarily a slot defender and most of the cornerbacks on the list were outside defenders. But the slot cornerback position is becoming increasingly vital to defenses as nickel packages have become the norm. At the least, he deserves an honorable mention.
And it’s not like Moore isn’t making an impact. He’s arguably the most impactful player on the defensive side of the ball—maybe outside of the aforementioned Buckner.
He does it all in Matt Eberflus’ defense. Moore not only handles receivers in coverage regardless of technique, but he’s also one of the best run-defending cornerbacks in the NFL.
Among slot cornerbacks with at least 200 coverage snaps in the slot, Moore had the second-best passer rating against (79.1) during the 2020 season, per Pro Football Focus.
Moore did get some respect from Pro Football Focus, who ranked him as the top slot defender, and our friends over at Touchdown Wire, who ranked him as the third-best slot defender.
Most of the national media has been sleeping on Moore despite his impact and production. It seems more work has to be done for the premier slot defender.
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