Positional Breakdown: Defensive Backfield

Heading into the heart of the 2013 off-season, the Browns will look to address weaknesses due to poor performance through free agency and the NFL Draft.

As new Browns Defensive Coordinator Ray Horton sifts through film of last year’s defense, he’ll likely identify poor performances in the defensive backfield as a weakness that must be addressed. The unit, as a whole, was very underwhelming in pass defense last season, as opposing teams seemingly threw the ball where they wanted, as often as they wanted, with little disruption from the Browns defense.

Heading into the heart of the 2013 off-season, the Browns will look to address this weakness through free agency and the NFL Draft. The first step in their plans is likely to find a new running mate for Joe Haden. Other major holes include the starting free safety spot and nickel corner, as well as depth all-around.

This year’s draft class of cornerbacks can be described as both deep and top heavy. Alabama’s Dee Milliner and Florida State’s Xavier Rhodes are both widely regarded as Top 15 prospects and likely Day 1 starters next season. After those two, the drop off is significant to the next grouping, where players like Washington’s Desmond Trufant, North Carolina State’s David Amerson and Connecticut’s Blidi Wreh-Wilson are trying to establish themselves as 1st Round material. There’s no guarantee that any of those three opens 2013 as a starter, but each possesses unique physical skills and ideal size to garner optimistic expectations.

	Name	School	Class	HT	WT	40 time	Cone	Vertical	Arm Length	Projection
1.	Dee Milliner	Alabama	JR	6’0	201	4.37	6.95	36”	32”	Top 10
2.	Xavier Rhodes	Florida State	rJR	6’2	210	4.43	-	40 ½”	33 3/4”	Top 15
3.	Desmond Trufant	Washington	SR	6’0	190	4.38	-	37 ½”	31 1/4"	1st
4.	David Amerson	North Carolina State	JR	6’1	205	4.44	-	35 ½”	32 5/8”	1st-2nd
5.	Blidi Wreh-Wilson	Connecticut	rSR	6’1	195	4.53	6.97	36”	32”	2nd
6.	Logan Ryan	Rutgers	rJR	5’11	191	4.56	6.69	32 ½”	31 3/8”	2nd
7.	Johnthan Banks	Mississippi State	SR	6’2	185	4.61	6.97	34”	33 7/8”	2nd
8.	Darius Slay	Mississippi State	SR	6’0	192	4.36	6.90	35 ½”	32 1/4”	2nd-3rd
9.	Robert Alford	Southeastern Louisiana	rSR	5’10	188	4.39	6.89	40”	32”	2nd-3rd
10.	Jamar Taylor	Boise State	rSR	5’11	192	4.39	6.82	35”	30 3/4"	3rd
11.	B.W. Webb	William & Mary	rSR	5’10	184	4.51	6.82	40 ½”	30 1/4"	3rd
12.	Dwayne Gratz	Connecticut	rSR	5”11	201	4.47	6.70	38”	32 1/8”	3rd-4th
13.	Tyrann Mathieu	Louisiana State	JR	5’9	186	4.50	6.87	34”	31 1/8”	3rd-4th
14.	Leon McFadden	San Diego State	SR	5’10	193	4.54	6.81	34 ½”	32 3/8”	4th
15.	Jordan Poyer	Oregon State	SR	6’0	191	4.54	6.87	30 ½”	31 3/4"	4th
16.	Adrian Bushell	Maryland	rSR	5’9	186	4.58	6.92	33”	32”	4th
17.	Tharold Simon	Louisiana State	JR	6’2	202	4.51	-	34”	33 3/4"	4th-5th
18.	Terry Hawthorne	Illinois	SR	6’0	195	4.44	-	35 ½”	31 1/4'	5th
19.	Brandon McGee	Miami	SR	5’11	193	4.40	6.71	33 ½”	32"	5th
20.	Khalid Wooten	Nevada	rSR	5’11	210	4.53	6.95	33 ½”	32 3/4"	5th-6th
21.	Sanders Commings	Georgia	rSR	6’0	216	4.41	7.10	34 ½”	32”	5th-6th
22.	Micah Hyde	Iowa	SR	6’0	197	4.56	6.78	33”	31 1/2"	5th-6th
23.	Johnny Adams	Michigan State	rSR	5’10	185	4.44	-	-	31 1/4"	6th
24.	Nickell Roby	Southern California	JR	5’7	169	4.53	6.74	37 ½”	29 3/4"	6th
25.	Marc Anthony	California	rSR	5’11	196	4.63	6.74	35”	32 1/8”	6th

The Browns forfeited their 2^nd Round pick for the rights to receiver Josh Gordon, so their likely target range for a project in the defensive backfield will come in the 3^rd-4^th round. There should be several enticing talents available, including players like Boise State’s Jamar Taylor, Connecticut’s Dwayne Gratz and William & Mary’s BW Webb. Each of them possess impressive quickness and drive on the ball, and all three can likely start their careers comfortably in the nickel.

There are a few corners who could wind up changing positions this summer, talents like South Carolina’s Sanders Commings and Louisiana State’s Tyrann Mathieu, each regarded as a corner by some evaluators, a safety by others. Nevada’s Khalid Wooten is a potential candidate for a switch to free safety as well. Wooten works well with his back to the ball as a corner, but he doesn’t possess the speed or quickness needed to keep up with receivers at the next level.

This year’s safety class is a mixed bag, with Texas free safety Kenny Vaccaro the only prospect likely to be drafted in the First Round. The caliber of free safeties fall off fast after Vaccaro, with LSU’s Eric Reid and Fresno State’s Phillip Thomas the only other prospects who look like immediate starters. Oklahoma’s Tony Jefferson and Georgia’s Bacarri Rambo are talented defenders, but each has personal baggage that’s likely to hurt their stock. Projects like California (PA) safety Rontez Miles and Tulsa’s Dexter McCoil could prove to be late round gems.

	Name	School	Class	HT	WT	40 time	Cone	Vertical	Arm Length	Projection
1.	Kenny Vaccaro	Texas	SR	6’0	214	4.63	6.78	38”	32 3/4"	1st
2.	Eric Reid	Louisiana State	JR	6’1	213	4.53	6.99	40 ½”	33 5/8”	1st-2nd
3.	Phillip Thomas	Fresno State	rSR	6’1	208	4.65	-	35”	30 5/8”	2nd
4.	Tony Jefferson	Oklahoma	JR	5’11	213	4.75	-	-	31 5/8”	3rd
5.	Bacarri Rambo	Georgia	rSR	6’1	211	4.56	-	-	31”	3rd
6.	D.J. Swearinger	South Carolina	SR	5’11	208	4.67	6.70	37”	32 3/8”	3rd-4th
7.	Josh Evans	Florida	SR	6’1	207	4.58	6.64	34 ½”	31 7/8”	4th
8.	Rontez Miles	California (PA)	SR	6’0	203	4.62	6.97	36 ½”	32 7/8”	5th
9.	Rashard Hall	Clemson	rSR	6’1	213	4.52	-	-	33”	6th
10.	Dexter McCoil	Tulsa	SR	6’4	218	-	-	-	-	6th-7th
11.	Zeke Motta	Notre Dame	SR	6’2	213	4.83	6.75	35 ½”	31 3/8”	6th-7th
12.	Bradley McDougald	Kansas	SR	6’0	215	4.74	7.07	34 ½”	32 1/2"	6th-7th
13.	Brandan Bishop	North Carolina State	SR	6’1	206	4.62	-	-	29 3/8”	UDFA
14.	Corey Broomfield	Mississippi State	rSR	5’10	180	4.50	-	-	-	UDFA
15.	Jordan Dangerfield	Towson	rSR	5’10	198	-	-	-	-	UDFA

The class of strong safeties offers a lot of potential, but few immediate difference makers. Florida’s Matt Elam, Syracuse’s Shamarko Thomas and Florida International’s Jonathan Cyprien seem to be flip-flopping weekly for the top spot at the position. Georgia’s Shawn Williams and USC’s T.J. McDonald are solid run stuffers, but each lacks adequate coverage skills to be penciled in as starters. North Carolina State’s Earl Wolff is a tempting prospect with ideal size and exceptional test numbers, but he disappears far too often on film. Georgia Southern’s J.J. Wilcox and Richmond’s Cooper Taylor are two small school prospects with the potential to stick in the league.

	Name	School	Class	HT	WT	40 time	Cone	Vertical	Arm Length	Projection
1.	Jonathan Cyprien	Florida International	SR	6’0	217	4.56	-	38 ½”	31 3/4"	2nd
2.	Matt Elam	Florida	JR	5’10	208	4.54	-	35 ½”	32 5/8”	2nd
3.	Shamarko Thomas	Syracuse	SR	5’9	213	4.42	-	40 ½”	31 1/2"	2nd-3rd
4.	Shawn Williams	Georgia	SR	6’0	213	4.46	7.01	36”	30 3/4"	3rd
5.	TJ McDonald	Southern Cal	SR	6’3	219	4.59	6.89	40”	33 1/8”	3rd
6.	Earl Wolff	North Carolina State	rSR	5’11	209	4.44	-	39”	31 1/2"	3rd-4th
7.	Robert Lester	Alabama	SR	6’1	220	4.66	-	33 ½”	32”	4th
8.	JJ Wilcox	Georgia Southern	SR	6’0	213	4.57	7.02	35”	31”	4th
9.	Duke Williams	Nevada	SR	5’11	201	4.41	-	-	31 3/4"	5th
10.	Keelan Johnson	Arizona State	rSR	6’0	209	4.54	6.77	36 ½”	32 1/2"	5th-6th
11.	Cooper Taylor	Richmond	rSR	6’4	229	4.57	-	-	32 1/4"	6th-7th
12.	Jawanza Starling	Southern California	SR	6’1	202	4.64	6.68	36”	32”	6th-7th
13.	Dominick LeGrande	Marshall	rSR	6’2	215	-	-	-	-	UDFA
14.	Drew Frey	Cincinnati	rSR	6’2	202	4.58	-	-	31”	UDFA
15.	Martavius Neloms	Kentucky	SR	6’0	187	4.52	-	-		UDFA