Tag: Kader Kohou

The NFL’s 11 best slot defenders

Doug Farrar continues his positional lists of the NFL’s best players with the 11 best slot defenders heading into the 2023 NFL season.

In the 2022 NFL season, defenses played nickel (five defensive backs) on 12,630 opponent passing attempts. Defenses played dime (six defensive backs) on 2,715 opponent dropbacks. With just 3,206 opponent dropbacks against four defensive backs last season, base defense is no longer base defense — nickel is the new base, and has been for some time.

Moreover, the influx of three-safety looks in the NFL has increased, as has the specific “big nickel” looks with three safeties and two cornerbacks.

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The point of this preamble? That slot defenders are more important than they’ve ever been. Whether it’s in a more traditional nickel or dime look with just one slot defender, or defenses aligning two slot defenders to the strong side of the 3×1 formation, slot defenders aren’t just pre-emptive starters anymore — they’re integral parts of modern defenses, and good luck having a great defense without at least one.

Slot defenders have their own skill sets. It’s not like it was 20 years ago, when the smallest, slowest defensive back on a roster was relegated to the slot. Now, those guys need to have the coverage skills of cornerbacks, the run-stopping abilities of strong safeties, and the blitz instincts of linebackers.

It’s a fascinating gig.

As Greg Cosell of NFL Films and ESPN’s NFL Matchup said in this week’s edition of the “Xs and Os” podcast/video, the requirements for top-tier slot defenders make it a unique position.

The Xs and Os with Greg Cosell: Building the perfect secondary

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“Slot defenders are an interesting breed. They can come in all shapes and sizes. They can be smaller, like Mike Hilton, who I think is one of the best slot defenders in the league. They can be bigger; it depends on what you want. But think of it this way — I know the numbers might be going down a bit, but teams line up in 11 personnel [one running back, one tight end, three receivers] a majority of the time. And teams are playing out of 11 personnel on first down — on second-and-3. What we consider normal down-and-distance situations where the run game is part of the offense. It’s not jst a third-down situation.

“Your slot defender is not just a pass defender. Your slot defender has to be able to defend the run, because there are a lot of teams that run toward the slot defender, because they know he’s not as good a run defender as you’d see running to the other side, where you might have bigger bodies. He also has to be part of pressure schemes. How often do we see slot defenders in today’s NFL as blitzers?

“So, not only do you have to play man coverage against receivers who have a two-way go, you also have to play underneath zone coverage, which is different than playing underneath zone coverage if you’re an outside cornerback. There are different rules, because zones all have their own rules.”

As has been the case with other defensive backs on this year’s list, the transfer of power from season to season is inconsistent, at best. Just two slot defenders from last year’s list — Derwin James and Kyle Dugger — made it in the 2023 group. Sometimes, that was about positional changes; other times, the performances from last year’s top slot defenders were simply eclipsed by the new guys.

No matter how you slice it, it’s tough to be a great slot defender in today’s NFL, and here are out 11 best heading into the 2023 season.

The NFL’s 11 best cornerbacks
The NFL’s 11 best safeties

(All advanced metrics courtesy of Pro Football Focus and Sports Info Solutions unless otherwise indicated). 

The NFL’s All-Underrated Team: One Secret Superstar for all 32 teams

From Matt Milano to Denico Autry to Tyler Lockett to Tony Pollard, here are the NFL’s most underrated players by team.

Why are great players underrated in any sport?

There are all kinds of reasons. In football, it could be that the guy playing your position is even better than you are, and he’s been doing it longer. Maybe we only have the attention span for one great player at your position Maybe you’re on a team that doesn’t get much national praise, or you’re part of a unit that… well, stinks… and you’re one of the few bright spots. Or, you’re just getting started on the ascent, and the world hasn’t quite caught up yet.

No matter the reason, there are many NFL players who ply their trade at an exceedingly high level, and they’re not given their proper due. Here, we look to rectify this in 32 individual instances with the most underrated player for every NFL team. Some of these guys have been doing it the right way in the shade for a long time for their teams; a few are new in their uniforms.

No matter why, all 32 of these NFL players deserve more love than they get, and here’s why. Here is every NFL team’s most underrated player.

(All advanced metrics courtesy of Pro Football Focus and Sports Info Solutions unless otherwise indicated). 

ESPN analyst ranks Dolphins CB unit as best in the NFL

With two former All-Pros they had to be pretty close to the top.

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With the NFL offseason underway, and teams holding their minicamps and organized team activities, this is a big time for evaluations, not just by the team but by the media as well.

ESPN NFL analyst Mike Clay recently put together a ranking of all 32 cornerback units across the NFL, and the Miami Dolphins found themselves atop the list. Rounding out the top five behind the Dolphins were the New York Jets, Philadelphia Eagles, Green Bay Packers and Dallas Cowboys.

Miami’s acquisition of Jalen Ramsey this offseason is the clear reason why they’re ranked so highly. He’s a former All-Pro that’s still considered one of the best in the game today, and he’s joining a group that already had a former All-Pro in Xavien Howard.

Beyond those two, the Dolphins selected South Carolina’s Cam Smith in the second round of the 2023 draft, and he’ll be fighting for opportunities with 2022 undrafted rookie Kader Kohou and Nik Needham, who is coming off of a torn Achilles.

Even their depth pieces like Keion Crossen and Justin Bethel got some invaluable snaps last year due to the vast number of injuries that plagued Miami’s defense.

If this secondary can stay healthy and play to their potential, Clay should be proven right, especially as part of a defense that’s now being coached by one of the most well-respected coordinators in Vic Fangio.

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Dolphins CB Kader Kohou changes his jersey number

He’s going single digit.

Last season, the Miami Dolphins brought in an undrafted cornerback from Texas A&M-Commerce who would have to fight way onto the roster.

Kader Kohou did exactly that, eventually moving up to the team’s second cornerback, opposite Xavien Howard, partially because of his talent and partially because of injuries to the rest of the group.

Now, as he prepares for his second season with higher expectations, Kohou has a new jersy number. The cornerback shared on his Instagram story that he would no longer be wearing No. 28. Instead, he’ll rock No. 4 – a number that was worn by Thomas Morstead in 2022.

Going into 2023, Kohou is expected to be the third or fourth cornerback on the roster after Jalen Ramsey was traded to Miami, and Nik Needham was brought back on a one-year deal.

He’ll have an opportunity to prove that his first season wasn’t a fluke, and he’ll try to do so with a single digit on his aqua and orange jersey.

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Dolphins re-sign CB Nik Needham

The cornerback room gets back one of its rising competitors.

One day after the Miami Dolphins took care of a few running backs of their own in Raheem Mostert and Jeff Wilson, they re-signed unrestricted free agent cornerback Nik Needham.

Needham has agreed to a one-year deal to return to Miami in 2023 worth just under $2 million, according to NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo. Needham was playing great football as a fourth-year defensive back following a tough-road-traveled to the NFL as an undrafted free agent in 2019.

The Dolphins fought off a number of teams, at least six, including one that employs his former head coach, as the Minnesota Vikings and new defensive coordinator Brian Flores were very much after Needham.

A top-tier slot corner in 2021, Needham, unfortunately, was hurt last season during a Week 6 game, ironically against the Vikings, when he tore his Achilles.

Ahead of schedule, running and aiming for normal participation in training camp, Needham will come back to the team that took a chance on him in 2019.

Needham is part of a deep cornerback room in Miami, with depth players like Kader Kohou and Trill Williams. He could be a valuable piece in Vic Fanigio’s defense, as he’s an originally-trained boundary cornerback and could also resume work in the slot. He could even be a candidate to help out with safety duties.

Of course, following a massive splash trade on Sunday, when the Dolphins sent a 2023 third-round pick and tight end Hunter Long to the Los Angeles Rams in exchange for superstar cornerback, Jalen Ramsey, their secondary is as deep as ever.

Ramsey now pairs with Xavien Howard for arguably the league’s most fearsome duo, as the pending release of Byron Jones doesn’t seem to be an issue anymore.

In his four seasons, Needham has tailed 192 tackles, six interceptions including a “Nik-6” touchdown, as well as 25 passes defended. You can also add in three sacks, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery.

A player who earned the respect of teammates, coaches and Dolphins fans, Needham will no doubt continue to work and rehab his way back to the field, and back to form.

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Analyzing Dolphins player value rankings this offseason

Taking a look at Spotrac’s true value system.

The business of football never truly has an offseason, and March is the time for the NFL combine as well as a countdown to the upcoming storm of transactional activity, league-wide.

While several factors are used for teams to determine who to re-sign, recruit and/or restructure, one potential barometer could be a metric like Spotrac.com’s “Value Ranking” or “TVS.”

As Spotrac explains, TVS is based on a mathematical comparison of a player’s current average salary against their cumulative “production points.” These points are made up of major statistical categories relevant to that player’s position. From there, a z-score is generated for each player within their position groups and ranked with a “true value” score.

Of course, this outside party breakdown is nearly an independent formula, and who knows if Dolphins salary cap guru Brandon Shore is scrolling through the data in his Miami Gardens office, perhaps translating the comparative data to general manager Chris Grier.

The administrative pair work well together at their jobs, similarly to other Dolphins duos, such as the Marks Brothers (Clayton and Duper), Ronnie Brown and Ricky Williams and Christian Wilkins and Zach Sieler.

We transition to talking about the Dolphins tag team in the trenches, Sieler and Wilkins.

The Dolphins happen to have a number of players within the top 10 of their respective positions in TVS, and most come to little surprise, as they’re on rookie deals while clearly performing well on the field. They are Jaelan Phillips, Jaylen Waddle, Robert Hunt, and Tua Tagovailoa.

Let’s get back to Wilkins for a moment, as his rookie deal had its fifth-year option picked up last April. Wilkins was Miami’s 13th pick in the first round of the 2019 NFL Draft. His performance in his fourth NFL season earned him a TVS of 92.26,

Let’s put this into perspective in raw stats. Wilkins totaled 98 tackles this season, which was the most by any NFL defensive lineman in a season since at least 1994.

Needless to say, the fifth-year option pick-up isn’t just looking like a success, yet Wilkins was miles ahead of any of his peers who were on the field for more than 75% of their defensive end snaps. Starting all 17 games, Wilkins was on the field for 83.26% of Miami’s defensive plays, fourth highest in the league behind Maxx Crosby, Brian Burns and rookie Aiden Hutchinson at the position.

Wilkins earned $3.8 million last season while Crosby pulled in $23.5 million, Burns $3.38 million and Hutchinson $8.92 million. The remarkable aspect of this is Wilkins’ TVS of 92.26, as Crosby’s was 52.05, Burns’ was 63.52 and the young Lion’s was 64.39.

This proves his dominance as well as value, so even the fact he will earn a guaranteed base salary of $10.75 million in 2023, his fifth year, it’s a bargain. He’s clearly in line for a massive extension, and if this metric proves, would be worth every single penny if Miami happens to be counting them.

When it comes to Sieler, he was famously a waiver-wire addition back in 2019, the same year as Wilkins was drafted, ironically. And early offseason rumors have his agent, Drew Rosenhaus, talking potential extension with Miami.

Sieler had a contract extension back in 2020, but in 2023 is when a “payday” is expected. In terms of his 2022 snap count, Sieler finished ninth among defensive tackles at 76.54%. Sieler’s contract last season was for $3.8 million, and his TVS was 80.68 also ninth.

When looking deeper, the average salary last year of those other top eight defensive tackles in snap count was a whopping $13.8 million, including players like Jonathan Allen ($18 million), Dexter Lawrence ($3.3 million), Da’Ron Payne ($3.6 million), and Chris Jones ($20 million).

Among his peers at the position who played over 75% of the snaps, only two defensive tackles had a TVS higher than Sieler’s 80.68. They are New York Giant Dexter Lawrence (98.59) who was a first-round, 17th-overall pick in 2019, and Washington Commander, Da’Ron Payne (88.95) who was the 13th overall pick, and Washington’s first-rounder in 2018.

The proof is in the pounding, and Miami would be wise to plan to pay these men and keep this duo together for the next half-decade.

Another Dolphin TVS to note would be Tua Tagovailoa’s seventh ranking for quarterbacks at 81.60. His “value” was higher in 2022 than Daniel Jones (75.24), Justin Fields (74.47), Justin Herbert (72.45), Trevor Lawrence (72.12) and Tom Brady (63.88.).

Diamond-in-the-rough find undrafted rookie cornerback, Kader Kohou was basically like buying Netflix stock in 2002. His on-field play ranked him 14th in the NFL among all cornerbacks with a TVS of 83.98. His salary is south of $900,000, and he’s signed through the 2024 season, becoming a restricted free agent in 2025.

Wide receivers Waddle and Tyreek Hill are ranked fifth and 14th, respectively. Hill has a TVS of 86.31, and Waddle’s was 95.48, behind only Justin Jefferson, Amon-Ra St. Brown, CeeDee Lamb and Ja’Marr Chase.

Heading into his third season, Jaelan Phillips ($3.5 mllion in 2022) is looking every bit the first-round pick he was from 2021, and has an outside linebacker TVS ranking of sixth, at 87.20.

Of the outside linebackers who played more than 70% of 2022 snaps, just four have higher TVSs than Phillips. Philadelphia Eagle Haason Reddick (87.46 TVS – 73.85% snaps – $15 million), Green Bay Packer Rashan Gary (95.19 TVS – 70.39% snaps – $3.9 million), Pittsburgh Steeler Alex Highsmith (91.73 TVS – 88.46% snaps – $1.1 million), and Dallas Cowboy Micah Parsons (98.11 TVS – 81.12% snaps – $4.2 million).

Helpful in analyzing potential free agents, 32-year-old, and available inside linebacker Bobby Wagner played 99% of the defensive snaps in 2022 for the Los Angeles Rams. He was ranked fifth at inside linebacker in snaps, and ninth in TVS at 86.87. Of all the inside linebackers (17) with over 90% of snaps in 2022, only three had a higher TVS than Wagner.

The ages of those three players are 25, 26 and 27, so Wagner not only is playing as he drank from the fountain of youth recently, he may be worth an expensive flier for Miami to throw his way, and pair with the Dolphins’ new defensive coordinator, Vic Fangio.

It may very well take a lot of work, number-crunching, and living in an Excel spreadsheet, or several, but Shore and Grier could cook the books (in a good way) to ensure this core defensive front will not break up for the foreseeable future.

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Dolphins have decisions to make on defense in free agency

Re-signing Nik Needham should be a priority.

The Miami Dolphins have had a fine week since the Super Bowl has come and gone. The announcement of Zach Thomas into the Pro Football Hall of Fame last week, followed this week by the finality to the Vic Fangio contract signing saga.

Ladies and gentlemen, they officially got him. Again. Officially.

Fangio will be ushered into Hard Rock Stadium on Monday, and his intro will be streamed on the Dolphins website to capture the moment. At this rate, it wouldn’t be shocking if Miami security snuck Fangio in the back entrance almost like that scene in “Goodfellas.”

Now that Fangio is the boss of the defense, as well as consigliere for Mike McDaniel, it’s expected he could attract free agents as well as entice important Dolphins to re-sign with the team.

On the defensive side of the ball, Miami has about a dozen players whose Dolphins’ contracts expired following the close of the 2022 season. A room’s worth of linebackers are all free agents in Andrew Van Ginkel, Duke Riley, Elandon Roberts, Melvin Ingram and Sam Eguavoen. This would be the unit to expect the shopping in the premium aisle of the free agency market.

Fangio is an expert in the linebacker role specifically, so whether it be through free agency or the draft, or even getting the most out of last year’s rookie Channing Tindall, the defensive guru could maximize talent in that area of the field.

As for the front line of interior defensive linemen and edge pass-rushers, Miami has great continuity returning with Christian Wilkins, Zach Sieler, Bradley Chubb, Jaelan Phillips and the hopeful comeback of Emmanuel Ogbah. Re-signed last season, Ogbah was injured nine games into the 2022 season and looks to return in 2023.

Continuity in 2022 was tough for the Miami defensive backfield due to several key injuries which started with the Byron Jones situation, which is a separate story in itself. He didn’t play a snap following surgery on his Achilles last March, and his future in South Florida is up in the air.

Xavien Howard, who was named to the Pro Bowl, didn’t have his best season and was banged up throughout the year, missing two games and was not his vintage self over the course of the season. Though finishing the season strong and helping Miami secure a playoff berth with a Week 18 win against the Jets, Howard looks to build on that momentum heading into 2023.

Safety Brandon Jones was having a solid year prior to getting hurt in the nationally televised Sunday Night Football game against the Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 7. Jones is rehabbing his left ACL injury, and his return is important with his pairing to Jevon Holland. The two safeties are an excellent tandem and a pair of players Fangio could work wonders with.

Back to the Byron Jones injury – it opened a door for rookie Kader Kohou to not only step up but make an impact as one of the league’s top undrafted free agents. It’s Kohou’s emergence that helps in dealing with the potential fallout if the veteran and the team part ways, yet there’s a component to this that is extremely important: re-signing free agent cornerback Nik Needham.

Sharing an undrafted free agent story in his own right, Needham is similar to Kohou in that they were both diamonds-in-the-rough finds for Miami. Many know Needham’s story and path by now, and as many hurdles as the young defensive back has faced getting to being one of the NFL’s top slot corners, 2022 saw another obstacle to tackle.

Needham tore his Achilles in Week 6 against the Vikings, and heading into a free agent year, the injury couldn’t have come at a worse time for him and of course Miami.

Needham was a restricted free agent at this time last season, and the Dolphins inked him to a one-year deal. Although the Achilles injury is the only issue standing in the way of making this a no-brainer re-sign, Needham is known for his work ethic and for proving naysayers wrong.

Not only is he ahead of schedule, but he’s also now represented by a top-tier agency, Athlete’s First, and he’s been busy working at their facilities in California preparing for the 2023 season. The heavy-hitters will no doubt bring options to the table for Needham, as there was interest in him last season and continued interest heading into this free agency period.

The good news is that Miami has told him that he’s, in fact, in their plans heading into the future. While Needham has said he would love to be a Dolphin, of course, this is the main opportunity he’ll have to cash in on a contract that could be a life set up, financially.

If Needham returns to form, which is a solid bet based on his history and current efforts, Miami would be wise to mix him with Fangio, as the versatile defensive back can be used in a variety of ways. He’s a natural boundary corner, but when asked to assume slot duties, he adapted and excelled. He even was called on for some snaps at safety, and his ability to be used in these ways makes for a potential chess piece and even insurance policy for the new defensive coordinator.

With Needham hopefully back, which, at this point, there’s a very solid chance should Miami simply match any competing potential offer, the core group of him, Howard, Holland, Brandon Jones and Kohou, could be a top-tier unit within a unit. Add in young depth pieces like Trill Williams, also returning from injury, and Verone McKinley III, and Miami could have a deep group.

A handful of teams could make the market competitive for the Dolphins, namely the new home of a former coach in the NFC North, as well as a few teams out west. However, with mutual interest, and the fact that Miami can make good on their initial discovery of Needham and bring things full circle with a multi-year deal, it could be excellent motivation for players entering the team similar to his path.

Re-signing Needham should be a top priority heading into the official start of the 2023 season come March.

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Grading the Miami Dolphins cornerbacks after their 2022 season

The room was decimated by injuries.

The Miami Dolphins have begun their offseason processes of evaluating their roster and coaching staff, as they look to achieve more in the 2023 season than they did in 2022.

While they’re doing their own assessments, it’s important for us to do the same.

We’ll continue to look through the Dolphins roster and break down the position groups, reviewing how they performed in their first season under head coach Mike McDaniel.

We’ve already hit on the:

Today, we’ll look at the cornerbacks.

PFF highlights Dolphins cornerback as 2023 breakout candidate

No one saw his 2022 season going the way it did.

The Miami Dolphins were one of the most intriguing teams to follow in 2022, as they had storylines all over the place.

From playing their first season under new head coach Mike McDaniel to acquiring Tyreek Hill for five draft picks in the offseason, there was always something to talk about.

One of the most impressive things to happen throughout the year was the ascension of undrafted rookie cornerback Kader Kohou. The Texas A&M Commerce product went from depth piece to second cornerback on the depth chart.

Heading into the offseason, Pro Football Focus’ Sam Monson listed Kohou among the breakout candidates for 2023.

Here’s what Monson wrote about Kohou (subscription required):

“Kohou was an undrafted rookie in 2022, but he played almost 1,000 snaps for the Dolphins defense. Across 630 coverage snaps and 114 targets, he managed 10 pass breakups to go along with his lone interception. He allowed a passer rating of 83.7 when targeted and has a clear pathway to covering the slot at a minimum next season.”

It’s very unclear what the position looks like in South Florida next season. Nik Needham, coming off of a torn Achilles, is an unrestricted free agent, and Byron Jones, who didn’t play a snap in 2022, could be moved.

Kohou’s roster spot is guaranteed, it’ll just be a question of where he lines up.

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Evaluating the Dolphins’ 2022 draft class after their rookie seasons

The undrafted players did more than those who were selected.

The 2022 Miami Dolphins didn’t reach the heights that they would’ve liked, but they still found their way into a playoff game for the first time in six years and lost by just three points to a team that was one of the best in the league.

While Mike McDaniel’s team got a great deal from the veterans, some of the first-year players made an impact on the field as well.

Today, we’ll take a look at the seasons of four rookies that the Dolphins used draft picks on, as well as some that they didn’t.