Tag: cornerbacks

Wisconsin secures official visit with top 2025 CB target Charles Bell

Wisconsin secures official visit with top 2025 CB target Charles Bell

Wisconsin class of 2025 cornerback target Charles Bell will officially visit the Badgers the weekend of June 14.

The program offered Bell back on March 14. The Oakdale, Connecticut native is currently a three-star recruit.

247Sports’ composite ranking has the cornerback as the No. 964 player in the class of 2025, No. 80  player at his position and No. 11 recruit from the state of Connecticut. The rising senior has received 17 Division 1 offers to this point, including from Notre Dame, Rutgers, Penn State, Minnesota, Tennessee, Temple, Wisconsin and Massachusetts.

The 6-foot-1, 170-pound athlete represents St. Thomas More School in Oakdale, Connecticut.

247Sports has Wisconsin’s 2025 recruiting class ranked No. 17 in the nation at this stage in the proccess. The class currently has one cornerback committed: Jaimier Scott from Cincinnati, OH.

Both On3 and Rivals have Rutgers as Bell’s most likely destination, but the corner still has ample time to decide where he will play college football.

Wisconsin top class of 2025 cornerback target commits to SMU

Wisconsin top class of 2025 CB target commits to SMU

Wisconsin class of 2025 defensive back target Zay Gentry announced his commitment to SMU via social media on Sunday.

Gentry received 30 total offers dating back to January of 2023. UW extended its offer on October 16, 2023, and he was slated to officially visit Madison on May 31 per 247Sports.

The 6’0,” 165-pound corner also had official visits scheduled with the Nebraska Cornhuskers and Baylor Bears in June.

Both Rivals and 247Sports ranked the corner as a three-star. He landed as the No. 419 player in the class of 2025, No. 38 cornerback and No. 65 recruit from the state of Texas. The junior also recorded a 22-6 long jump and a 14.09 110-meter hurdles time during his early junior track and field season.

This past season, he posted 41 tackles and a pair of interceptions on the gridiron, and he concluded his sophomore campaign with 35 tackles, 3 TFL, one pick and 10 pass breakups.

Wisconsin top class of 2025 defensive line target Gordy Sulfsted also committed elsewhere today.

Wisconsin’s class of 2025 currently ranks No. 16 in the nation with 11 players committed.

Cowboys’ Al Harris ‘fired up’ to unleash Diggs, Bland as full-time starting CB duo

From @ToddBrock24f7: Both have turned in All-Pro campaigns, but Diggs and Bland have played relatively little together. A new era dawns this season.

Trevon Diggs led the NFL in interceptions in 2021. Last year, DaRon Bland set a new league record for most pick-sixes in a season.

The Cowboys’ presumptive starters at cornerback pose a significant challenge for opposing quarterbacks. But while each man has enjoyed an All-Pro season individually, packaging them together- on the field at the same time- is still a relatively new proposition.

It may be hard to believe given their respective successes, but there have been just 16 contests at all (postseason included) in which Diggs and Bland both took defensive snaps. They’ve started only ten total games together, and Bland played the nickel in every single one.

So when Cowboys defensive backs coach Al Harris was asked about trotting both of them out onto the field as his starting outside-CB tandem in 2024, the former two-time Pro Bowler lost his composure just long enough to drop a NSFW bomb to begin his answer.

“[Expletive], I’m fired up,” he beamed.

Harris notched 21 interceptions over his 14-year pro career. The fact that both Diggs and Bland are within realistic reach of topping his total this season- in their fifth and third years, respectively- is just a testament to the fact that, even at 49, Harris can still teach the gift of grab.

“When you can get guys that you’ve groomed and coached, mentored, and you see your work on tape, that’s all I can ask for as a coach,” he told reporters at The Star in Frisco this week.

“It’s, ‘Hey, look, I’m asking you to do this. I know your job is hard. Go out and do it.’ I’m fired up to see those guys out there together.”

It’s been a while since Diggs was out there at all. When the Cowboys’ Week 1 date in Cleveland finally rolls around, it will have been 357 days since his last appearance in a game. The ACL tear he suffered in practice last Sept. 21 has kept him sidelined ever since, but Harris promises the 25-year-old “looks good” in his rehab work.

As for Bland, Harris knows the fifth-round draft pick isn’t the league’s best-kept secret anymore. But that doesn’t mean he doesn’t have room to improve even further.

“Seven interceptions for a touchdown would be awesome,” he joked.

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In truth, Harris expects the Fresno State product to simply work on his consistency.

“Whether that’s playing it safe or making a play, just be consistent with it.”

He vows that won’t be a problem for Bland. Despite breaking a gaudy 30-year-old pick-six record last season, Bland, at least according to Harris, hasn’t changed a bit.

“Not at all. The man- you know, take the player out- the man isn’t that type of guy. He’ll always be able to handle success. He’s an extremely humble young man.”

Bland and Diggs both exude the quiet-yet-extreme confidence that also marked Harris as a player. It’s a trait that can be found running through the rest of the CB room, too, from longtime Cowboys stalwart Jourdan Lewis to second-year man Eric Scott Jr. and even (so far) to incoming rookie Caelen Carson.

That’s the way Harris likes his charges.

“One day, you could be great,” Harris cautions, “but there’s somebody who’s got your number.”

So now Harris is looking for each of his corners to take their game to the next level and boost their own numbers, even if they don’t come right out and announce they’re going to do it.

“Don’t stay. It doesn’t stop. You add on goals. That’s the approach that we take, as far as corners,” he explained. “So whether you have four picks, nine picks, 11 picks, you add on to that and you just keep rolling from there.

As for which one of his starters- Diggs or Bland- will have more success in 2024, Harris isn’t picking sides.

“That just depends on which side they throw the ball to the most.”

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Wisconsin football offers three-star class of 2026 safety

Wisconsin football offers three-star class of 2026 safety

Wisconsin football extended an offer to class of 2026 safety Koby Sarkodie on Thursday. 

On3 lists Sarkodie as a three-star recruit. His teammate at Milford Mill Academy Damon Ferguson also received an offer from the Badgers today.

The Gwynn Oak, Maryland native already holds offers from six other schools including Charlotte, Indiana, Minnesota, Penn State, Syracuse and Virginia Tech.

On3’s industry ranking has Sarkodie as the No. 48 safety in the class of 2026, No. 8 recruit from Maryland and No. 550 overall player. He currently stands at 6’2,’’ 190 pounds and has two years of high school remaining before he can jump to the collegiate level. 

His first gridiron offers arrived on December 13, 2023. Syracuse, Charlotte, Virginia Tech, Minnesota and Penn State were the first to extend offers until Indiana and Wisconsin followed in 2024. 

247Sports is yet to log a crystal ball prediction for where Sarkodie will land. The outlet notes that he has yet to schedule any unofficial or official visits. 

Currently, UW’s safety room features nine athletes and is led by veterans Hunter Wohler and Kamo’i Latu.

Wisconsin has offered several 2026 recruits in the past few days, including Damon Ferguson, Evan Jacobson and Brayden Trimble, 

Wisconsin football offers three-star class of 2026 cornerback

Wisconsin football offers three-star class of 2026 cornerback

Wisconsin football extended an offer to class of 2026 cornerback Damon Ferguson on Thursday. 

247Sports ranks the cornerback as a three-star recruit. He already holds offers from five other schools: UCF, Syracuse, Massachusetts, Maryland and Boston College. 

247Sports’ composite ranking has Ferguson as the No. 31 cornerback in the class of 2026, No. 5 recruit from Maryland and No. 353 overall player. He currently represents Milford Mill Academy and stands at 5’10,’’ 175 pounds. 

His first gridiron offer arrived from Boston College in May 2023. From then on, the sophomore’s offers cooled off until the last three months.

247Sports is yet to log a crystal ball prediction for where Ferguson will land. The outlet notes that he has yet to schedule any unofficial or official visits. 

Currently, UW’s cornerback room features eight athletes and is led by Ricardo Hallman, RJ Delancy III and Nyzier Fourqurean. 

Wisconsin has offered several 2026 recruits, including Koby Sarkodie, Evan Jacobson and Brayden Trimble, in the past few days. 

Raiders Draft Radar: Top cornerback fits by round

It seems like every year the Raiders head into the draft with a need at the cornerback position. This year is no exception. While they had Nate Hobbs locking down the slot, the boundaries were a revolving door of cornerbacks that is still not …

It seems like every year the Raiders head into the draft with a need at the cornerback position. This year is no exception. While they had Nate Hobbs locking down the slot, the boundaries were a revolving door of cornerbacks that is still not settled.

From the looks of things, Jack Jones is the answer on one side, but the other side is very much in need of an influx of talent. The team flat out ignored the position in free agency, leaving them in the same situation today.

Though it’s hard to really blame them for being skeptical that free agency would solve anything. Last year, they signed two cornerbacks early in free agency (David Long Jr and Duke Shelley) and then Marcus Peters just before camp and none of them were on the team by the end of last season.

They also drafted Jakorian Bennett in the fourth round and he was benched after four starts. So, now they must take another shot at it and you would figure that would happen by the end of day two. Perhaps more than once.

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2024 NFL draft: A cornerback in every round for the Steelers

One of the biggest moves the Pittsburgh Steelers made this offseason was to trade away wide receiver Diontae Johnson, getting cornerback Donte Jackson in return. This gives the Steelers a pair of starting cornerbacks on the outside but there remains …

One of the biggest moves the Pittsburgh Steelers made this offseason was to trade away wide receiver Diontae Johnson, getting cornerback Donte Jackson in return. This gives the Steelers a pair of starting cornerbacks on the outside but there remains a need for a quality slot cornerback. Or, if the Steelers want to kick Jackson inside, Pittsburgh will want to look for another boundary cornerback.

Here is a cornerback for the Steelers to consider in each round of the 2024 NFL draft.

NFL draft: Could 49ers buck their recent trend at cornerback?

The 49ers picked CB Ahkello Witherspoon No. 66 overall in the 2017 draft. Since then the earliest they’ve taken a CB is 102 overall. It may be the year to change that trend:

It seems like every year heading into the NFL draft the 49ers have cornerback at or near the top of their list of needs. Most teams on some level need CB depth, but for San Francisco specifically they’re in a spot where they have plenty of bodies at the position with no real clarity on their long-term viability as NFL starters. This year they may need to make an investment in CB via the draft that they’ve never made before.

Typically the 49ers have taken an approach where they add bodies at CB and hope their pass rush lowers the bar enough for CB play that a few of the players in their large pool can rise up and clear that bar.

With their pass rush as the top priority under general manager John Lynch and Kyle Shanahan, CBs have mostly gone by the wayside in terms of investment. Save for Charvarius Ward, the club hasn’t paid a big-name free agent to come in. They’ve selected eight CBs since the 2017 draft. That year they took Colorado CB Ahkello Witherspoon No. 66 overall. They’ve not used a pick earlier than 102 on a CB since then, and only three of the eight CBs were taken in the top 50.

NFL Media’s Daniel Jeremiah believes the 49ers are in a spot with this year’s draft that it may be time to buck that trend.

“They can continue to look at the corner position,” Jeremiah said Wednesday on a conference call. “I think, in a draft like this where they’re picking those picks at 63, 94, I think there’s opportunities there to get players that can come in in the secondary and help out and be a part of their mix right away.“

If the 49ers take a CB at No. 63 it would be the earliest they’ve taken one since 2017 and it would be the first time they used a pick earlier than Round 3.

While it may not fit their roster-building ethos, it may be the year to do it. The 49ers have a handful of needs they could conceivably address at 63 overall, particularly if they don’t take an offensive lineman in the first round. Finding a starting-caliber CB to put alongside Ward and Deommodore Lenoir should be at least a medium-priority task if there’s no player available who can bolster San Francisco’s pass rush.

Building depth this year in the draft is paramount for the 49ers, but so is finding some upgrades at a couple starting spots. Cornerback is one of those spots, and we may see the 49ers pursue a player at that spot earlier than they ever have under Lynch and Shanahan.

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Texans host Missouri DB Ennis Rakestraw Jr. before NFL Draft

With the NFL Draft approaching, the Texans recently hosted Missouri DB Ennis Rakestraw Jr for an in-person visit.

With the NFL draft a week from Thursday, teams are scrambling to get as much information on prospects as possible. The Houston Texans have been knocking out the top 30 visits for weeks, adding another top prospect to the list on Monday.

Houston recently hosted Missouri defensive back Ennis Rakestraw Jr., according to Bleacher Report’s Ryan Fowler.

Rakestraw spent four years at Missouri and became one of the premier corners in the 2024 draft class. In his final season with the Tigers, Rakestraw allowed 197 yards and one touchdown on 28 targets thrown by opponents.

Rakestraw recorded the fifth-highest run defense grade among draft-eligible defensive backs, according to Pro Football Focus. 

A native of Duncanville, the 5-foot-11 and 183 pounds displayed the ability to play in the slot or outside during his time in Columbia. Last month at the combine, Rakestraw posted a 40-time of 4.51 seconds with a 1.54 10-yard split.

Most draft analysts project Rakestraw to be a second-round pick, and with two picks in the opening round, Houston may call the SEC corner. 

Houston continues its search for a long-term corner opposite Derek Stingley Jr. The Texans took chances on former first-round picks Jeff Okudah and CJ Henderson in free agency, but both are only signed to one-year deals.

With uncertainty opposite Stingley, Houston is likely to take a few shots at the position during the draft. Since being named general manager, Nick Caserio has also drafted at least one defensive back in two of his three classes. 

Rakestraw joins Canadian Football League DB Qwan’Tez Stiggers, Auburn’s Jaylin Simpson and Georgia’s Javon Bullard as the defensive backs the Texans have brought in for 30 visits. 

Caserio values in-person visits with potential prospects. Last year, the Texans hosted 28 players before the draft and selected five of them with their nine draft picks, including Offensive Rookie of the Year C.J. Stroud and Defensive Rookie of the Year Will Anderson Jr. 

The Texans own nine picks entering next week’s draft, including two selections in the second round at No. 42 and No. 59.

15 Most Impactful Texans of 2023: No. 6 Derek Stingley

Up next in our “15 Most Impactful Texans of 2023” series is Derek Stingley, who’s coming off a breakout season.

The Houston Texans had an extremely successful 2023 campaign.

They cruised to a 10-7 record under new head coach DeMeco Ryans and captured several accolades along the way. They won the AFC South and won a playoff game for the first time since the 2019 season. Rookie quarterback C.J. Stroud won PFWA’s Offensive Rookie of the Year, rookie edge rusher Will Anderson won PFWA’s Defensive Rookie of the Year, and even Ryans took home hardware with PFWA’s Coach of the Year.

With a revamped team effort that led to dramatic improvements compared to both the 2021 and 2022 Texans, it’s worth examining who created that impact this past season and what their future projects moving forward.

This series has taken a look at defensive tackle Sheldon Rankins, running back Devin Singletary, rookie receiver Tank Dell, and veteran tackle George Fant, and upstart linebacker Blake Cashman.

Entering the top 10, we took a closer look at cornerback Steven Nelson and linebacker Christian Harris, and offensive coordinator Bobby Slowik, and franchise left tackle Laremy Tunsil.

Before entering the top-5, cornerback Derek Stingley makes an appearance after a breakout 2023 campaign.