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While the New Orleans Saints appear locked in at the top of their cornerbacks depth chart with Marshon Lattimore patrolling one side of the field and Janoris Jenkins holding down the other flank, the team could still stand to improve that part of their roster.
It’s an area that ESPN’s Mel Kiper projected the Saints to address in his updated 2020 NFL mock draft, connecting New Orleans to Clemson Tigers cornerback A.J. Terrell.
Here’s what Kiper wrote to justify the pick:
I wrote last week that there is a big drop-off after the top two corners in this class, at least on my board. I have first-round grades on only two corners. That doesn’t mean, however, that teams see it the same way, and Terrell has been getting some first-round buzz. New Orleans desperately has to upgrade with young talent at the cornerback position. Terrell is physically gifted — he ran a 4.42 40-yard dash at 6-foot-1 — though he had an inconsistent 2019 season.
Kiper is one of several cornerbacks who could sneak into the end of the first round on draft day. along with Utah’s Jaylon Johnson (picked by the Minnesota Vikings at No. 25) and Auburn’s Noah Igbinoghene (landing with the San Francisco 49ers at No. 31).
After them, the next cornerback didn’t go off the board until LSU’s own Kristian Fulton was selected by the Carolina Panthers at No. 38 (reuniting with cornerback Donte Jackson, his former college teammate). Ohio State product Damon Arnette, TCU starter Jeff Gladney, Alabama’s Trevon Diggs, and Mississippi State prospect Cameron Dantzler round out the group of cornerbacks selected after Terrell in Kiper’s two-round mock draft.
It would be an interesting direction for the Saints to go in the first round, though Terrell’s path to earning snaps is longer than, say, a linebacker or wide receiver. That doesn’t mean he would be a bad pick, it just might take longer for the Saints to enjoy the benefits of a stacked secondary. Then again, there isn’t a team in the NFL that can say it has enough healthy, playmaking cornerbacks on its roster.
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