The NFL’s best cornerbacks in zone coverage

Who are the NFL’s best zone coverage cornerbacks? When you match stats to tape, here are the 11 top players with that designation.

4. Stephon Gilmore, New England Patriots

(David Kohl-USA TODAY Sports)

Who’s the NFL’s best cornerback? Were you to extend that to the best guy overall and in any kind of coverage, it’s hard to top Gilmore, the 2019 NFL Defensive Player of the Year. Gilmore was absolutely the league’s best high-targeted man cornerback last season, he was also outstanding in the slot, and he was no slouch when the Patriots played zone — which they didn’t do very often, at a league-low rate of 37%. But when Bill Belichick and his staff did make zone coverage the preferred play, Gilmore was on it as he was in any other situation, allowing 11 receptions on 24 targets for 124 yards, no touchdowns, two interceptions, and a Positive Play Rate of 41.7%..