LA Rams Top 5 positional rankings: Defense edition

Cornerback

1.- Jeff Okudah (Ohio State): Okudah is a dream of player at cornerback. He is tall, lengthy, and fast; his feet control and hips fluidness is just dazzling. Jeff is more of a man-coverage defender, but he will become the shadow of any receiver; he’ll put them on an island, and quarterbacks will be scared of targeting him.

2.- C.J. Henderson (Florida): C.J. is closer to Okudah in terms of ranking than people think. They measured basically in the same ballpark, with Henderson having a quicker 40. What pushes Henderson a spot down, is the fact that he looks, on film, reluctant at run-support, and lacks the willingness to be a good tackler.

3.- Kristian Fulton (LSU): Feisty press corner that will bump his assignment at the line of scrimmage. His combination of smooth feet, amazing hand usage and buttery fluid hips might be the best in this class. The only downside I can find is his second gear; when he falls behind a route, he usually can’t catch up to it, and that could play a game on his pursuit ability as well. But don’t get me wrong, he will use all of his other special abilities to not let that happen often.

4.- Jeff Gladney (TCU): Another man coverage specialist, and maybe the most athletic one, as he was a three-sport kind of guy, adding basketball and track to his resume. I don’t think he should play inside often (maybe just at the beginning of his career) as he is a bump-and-run player with an exceptional pursuit and closing speed. He is maybe too eager to get to the ball, rather than just shutting it down, which can lead to blown plays, but hey, that’s easily coachable.

5.- Trevon Diggs (Alabama): Trevon has the feel and experience to be one of the best here; as he played out at wide receiver too (like his NFL brother Steffon) he has more “inside information” of what could or should the opposing player be doing next, and that will play both for and against him, at times he might look eager to jump on to the ball and miss out, same as Gladney. He may be too “touchy and grabby” and will need to work on that, or will be having many penalties thrown at him. His pursuit speed is not elite but is not a liability on him.