Editor鈥檚 note: This is 10th in a series of position previews for the 2025 NFL draft. Today: Cornerbacks.
NFL draft fanatics may want to rethink the idea they can get a good handle on the 2025 cornerback class by watching a bunch of highlights of prospects.
Good tackling is an important prerequisite for the Buffalo Bills in evaluating cornerback prospects. It鈥檚 hard to get a good feel for a cornerback鈥檚 toughness in defending the run unless you鈥檙e watching video of full games.
This year鈥檚 cornerback draft class presents an interesting challenge. There are nine or 10 cornerbacks who could land in the top 60 on some NFL teams鈥 boards. But not many of them could be considered A-plus tacklers.
鈥淲e want our guys to be able to tackle as well,鈥 Bills general manager Brandon Beane said at the NFL owners meetings. 鈥淪ometimes you see this guy that is an athletic freak and turns the ball over but comes down and is a pile inspector, as we call them. Those guys are kind of non-fits for us. Is the guy our DNA 鈭 the type of physicality that we want?鈥
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Which corners clear the bar as run defenders? The Bills鈥 scouts no doubt have dug deep into the video to determine the answer.
鈥淚 was thinking along the lines of which defensive backs are kind of tone setters as run defenders in this year鈥檚 class,鈥 ESPN draft analyst Field Yates said on a conference call with NFL reporters. 鈥淚t鈥檚 actually a pretty low number.鈥
Last year鈥檚 corner class had some fierce run enforcers on the corner, Yates said.
鈥淭errion Arnold last year coming out of Alabama, had an edge to him,鈥 Yates said. 鈥淓nnis Rakestraw, both of those guys ended up going to the Lions, but Rakestraw was another guy who you said he has a real edge and a nastiness to him.鈥
鈥淚t鈥檚 a fair point about the lack of clear sort of edge-setter, tone-setter corners,鈥 Yates said. 鈥淭here鈥檚 not a ton of names that come to mind who if I were building the first three traits on their chart that I like the most, it鈥檇 be on there.鈥
Overall position grade: 5/10.
Bills view. Cornerback is the biggest need for the Bills because it鈥檚 the lone position where there is an open starter position. The Bills need to draft a rookie to fill the spot opposite Christian Benford, where free agent Rasul Douglas played last year. If a corner isn鈥檛 taken in the first round, then the Bills will have to take one in the second round (they own picks 56 and 62). It would be a good idea for the Bills to double up and take another corner on Day 3, like they did in 2022 when they selected Kaiir Elam and Benford.
Bills need ranking. 10/10.
The best. Heisman Trophy winner Travis Hunter of Colorado could be the No. 2 overall pick. Michigan鈥檚 Will Johnson and Texas鈥 Jahdae Barron both are top-20 talents.
Names to know. Kentucky鈥檚 Maxwell Hairston is a strong candidate to be the No. 4 corner in the class and would be a logical pick for the Bills at No. 30. ESPN鈥檚 Mel Kiper mocks Hairston to Buffalo.
Hairston ran a time of 4.28 seconds in the 40-yard dash at the NFL scouting combine, fastest of any player in the draft. He鈥檚 feisty, opportunistic and can play man or zone coverage. He improved his tackling in 2024 and he鈥檚 willing to defend the run, but he has a lean frame at 5-foot-11 and 183 pounds. He played only seven games in 2024 due to a shoulder injury.
Other corners who arguably could rank between 30 and 50 are Florida State鈥檚 Azareye鈥檋 Thomas, Ole Miss鈥 Trey Amos, Notre Dame鈥檚 Benjamin Morrison and East Carolina鈥檚 Shavon Revel Jr.
The 6-1, 197-pound Thomas (whose first name is pronounced uh-ZAR-ee-yay) is long, athletic and has good character. He brings strength and desire to run defense. His speed is not elite (4.56) and he hasn鈥檛 made a lot of plays on the ball. The 6-0 Amos has good size, length and light feet. He can play press or zone. He鈥檚 a willing tackler but can be a tad up and down in the run game.
Morrison suffered a major hip injury last year and isn鈥檛 a good tackler. The 6-2 Revel is supersized and plays physical in coverage. He tackles. But he tore knee ligaments on Sept. 18. Odds are he鈥檚 not going to be 100% as a rookie. A lot of mock drafters expect him to go to Seattle at 50 or 52 in the second round.
Late second round. Who will be there late in the second round if the Bills don鈥檛 go corner in the first round? ESPN鈥檚 Kiper has a run on corners early in the second, with Thomas at 40, Amos at 44, Morrison at 46 and Revel at 50.
That likely would leave a group of three in California鈥檚 Nohl Williams, Kansas State鈥檚 Jacob Parrish and perhaps Iowa State鈥檚 Darien Porter. Williams, 6-0, 190, is a ball-hawk, with 14 career interceptions, including seven pickoffs with eight pass breakups in 2024. Williams has good strength, tackles well and he鈥檚 durable. He gets a little handsy in coverage and he鈥檚 not an A-plus speedster (4.50). Parrish is a blazer with 4.35 speed. He鈥檚 a more fluid athlete than Williams although he鈥檚 not tall (5-10). He can play outside or in the slot. He鈥檚 a decent tackler. Porter is a projection. He spent six years at Iowa State, the first three at wide receiver, and he started only one year at corner. He鈥檚 a blazer (4.30) with elite length at 6-3 and 33录-inch arms (31 is good). He gets high grades for character. He could be a more consistent tackler and his play strength is suspect, but he blocked four punts in his career.
Intriguing. If the Bills want to double dip, Tulane鈥檚 Caleb Ransaw ran 4.33 and is a good tackler. He may last to the fifth round. Ditto for sure-tackling Upton Stout of Western Kentucky and LSU鈥檚 Zy Alexander, a tough tackler with size but not great speed. Some see Alexander as a safety. Ohio State鈥檚 Denzel Burke is a tough, zone-coverage corner who鈥檚 a fourth- or fifth-rounder. Zah Frazier of Texas-San Antonio is a long, slender, developmental corner with speed (4.36). Kansas鈥 Cobee Bryant is an aggressive zone corner. They鈥檙e all later-round picks.
Sleepers. Benford鈥檚 alma mater, Villanova, has another good cornerback with size in 6-1 Isas Waxter. His speed isn鈥檛 as good as that of Benford, but like Benford, he鈥檚 physical and smart. He鈥檚 probably a seventh-rounder or an undrafted signee. ... Kendall Paul of East Texas A&M is a diminutive 5-7, 161, but ran a reported 4.38 at his pro day.
TOP 10 CORNERBACKS
Rank Player, school Ht. Wt.
1 Travis Hunter*, Colorado 6-0 188
2 Will Johnson*, Michigan 6-2 194
3 Jahdae Barron, Texas 5-11 194
4 Maxwell Hairston*, Kentucky 5-11 183
5 Trey Amos, Ole Miss 6-1 195
6 Azareye鈥檋 Thomas*, Florida State 6-1 197
7 Shavon Revel Jr., East Carolina 6-2 194
8 Nohl Williams, California 6-0 190
9 Jacob Parrish*, Kansas State 5-10 191
10 Benjamin Morrison*, Notre Dame 6-0 193
* 鈭 Underclassman
NFL draft cheat sheet
Mark Gaughan’s annual NFL Draft Cheat Sheet is available to the first 300 Buffalo News subscribers who email him at mgaughan@buffnews.com. The 2025 Draft Cheat Sheet is an Excel file that includes a brief synopsis of more than 350 prospects for the NFL draft, with all their official measurements and drill results from the NFL scouting combine and pro day workouts.
