The Cleveland Browns found a gem in the third round when they selected cornerback Martin Emerson Jr. out of Mississippi State. As a starter when the Browns go into nickel sets across from Denzel Ward, Emerson has been a force, including a standout performance against Mike Evans of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
And it shows up in deeper metrics as well. Pranav Rajaram of 4for4 Fantasy Football pulled data to highlight both forced incompletions and receiving yards allowed, and Emerson Jr. grades out quite well in both categories. This locks Emerson into the same quadrant as the likes of Sauce Gardner of the New York Jets, A.J. Terrell of the Atlanta Falcons, and James Bradberry of the Philadelphia Eagles.
It would be a tough ask to want more out of Emerson Jr. than what he has given the Browns as a rookie. Greg Newsome II was also listed in the “solid” section as well.
NFL Cornerback Receiving Yards allowed per Target vs. Forced Incompletion Rate (data from @PFF):
– Sauce Gardner is ridiculous, DROY without a doubt
– Ravens secondary has struggled
– Darious Williams was an underrated offseason signing by the Jags#nflverse pic.twitter.com/Ahqs5jspfq— Pranav Rajaram (@_pranavrajaram) January 2, 2023
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