When the Carolina Panthers traded for cornerback C.J. Henderson on Monday, they traded for a bit of a mystery. He hasn’t exactly been in the spotlight in Jacksonville, even as last year’s ninth overall selection.
So is he even good?
Why did the Jaguars already give up on him?
And why do the Panthers want him?
Well, let’s try to uncover at least some of that enigma with a few pertinent facts about the second-year defensive back. Here’s what we currently know about Christopher Henderson Jr.
He’s a true son of the Sunshine State
Henderson is a Florida boy through and through.
He was born in Miami, attended Christopher Columbus High School in Miami and went off to play his college football at the University of Mi . . . oh, wait. He actually deuced out on the hometown Hurricanes to become a Florida Gator.
He was then, of course, drafted by Jacksonville in 2020. His career in Carolina will mark the first time in his life he’ll be playing for a team outside of the Sunshine State.
He was consistently ranked as a top-three cornerback prospect in 2020
Those days in Gainesville helped solidify Henderson’s spot amongst the top corners leading into the 2020 draft. He was consistently boarded as one of the best three at his position, often alongside Ohio State Buckeye Jeffrey Okudah and LSU Tiger Kristian Fulton.
Here’s how a few of those rankings from a few noted publications turned out for Henderson:
Draft Wire: 3rd
Pro Football Focus: 3rd
NFL.com: 2nd
CBS Sports: 3rd
Bleacher Report: 2nd
The Ringer: 2nd
The Panthers also liked him as a 2020 draft prospect
During his presser on Monday, head coach Matt Rhule noted how the team did more than their due diligence on Henderson leading up to the draft. In fact, he was under some serious consideration with Carolina’s seventh overall pick.
“Went through the process last year of getting ready for the draft evaluating him,” Rhule said about his new corner. “He’s someone we seriously considered at our pick. I think he has tremendous upside. And excited to get him here and help this team.”
The Panthers, obviously, went with Auburn University defensive tackle Derrick Brown instead. And while that’s worked out quite well, now they’ll have both the seventh and ninth overall selections on the same defense a year later.
Pro Football Focus has, now as a pro, not liked him so far
PFF isn’t the be-all, end-all of football evaluation. But they are a useful resourceful nonetheless.
Their tape junkies have not been particularly fond of Henderson’s work thus far in the league. In his rookie campaign, he was marked out at an overall grade of 57.9, which was seventh amongst all first-year corners. He received a 58.3 in coverage, a 53.7 in run defense and a 58.6 in pass rush.
2021 hasn’t started out much better, as he’s currently at a 51.5 with a saving grace of an 80.5 versus the run.
That performance is why, in part, Jacksonville gave up on him
No matter how much weight you put into those grades, Henderson had not performed up to his billing in Jacksonville. That’s the truth no matter how you slice it.
He’s also not an Urban Meyer guy. Henderson, after an underwhelming rookie campaign, became even more dispensable when Meyer was given the reins and named team czar. There’s no distinct attachment to Henderson, making the move a little easier for the current regime.
But the Panthers won’t have to give up on him so quickly
Carolina has quite a bit now invested in this move for Henderson. Not only did they have well-liked tight end Dan Arnold and a 2022 third-rounder pried from their hands, but they’ll also be on the hook for a fully-guaranteed three-year, $7.17 million contract.
As long as Henderson is even okay, that payout will be well worth it. And the Panthers believe it can be, as the 6-foot-1 corner fits the mold of the lengthy, athletic and fluid defensive back general manager Scott Fitterer and the rest of the Seattle Seahawks’ brass loved so much in their more dominant days.
Fitterer and Rhule will have plenty of time to figure out what Henderson can do.
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