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Ranking the defensive backs in the AFC West
June 19, 2009 11:00 AMPosted by ESPN.com’s Bill Williamson
Our periodic AFC West position rankings continue with the best defensive backs in the AFC West, in my opinion:1. Nnamdi Asomugha, Oakland: Nnamdi has become, I believe, the best cornerback in the NFL. He is the definition of a shut-down cornerback.
2. Champ Bailey, Denver: Bailey is going to turn 31 Monday, and he is coming off an injury-filled season. Still, he is brilliant. This is a first-ballot Hall of Famer who is still a top player.
3. Quentin Jammer, San Diego: There is a pretty big drop off from No. 2 to No. 3, but Jammer is a good player. He had a nice season in 2008.
4. Antonio Cromartie, San Diego: Cromartie probably won’t be No. 4 on this list next year. He’ll either bounce back from a poor 2008 or he’ll continue to slip. Yet, the team thinks he will improve because he played with a hip injury nearly all of last season.
5. Brian Dawkins, Denver: Dawkins may be much lower on this list next year if his play drops at the age of 35. But he still brings plenty of panache to Denver.
6. Eric Weddle, San Diego: Weddle is a fine player, who made a ton of tackles for the Chargers last season. Expect continued improvement.
7. Antoine Cason, San Diego: If Cromartie slips, Cason can take his job. The sky is the limit for this second-year player.
8. Jarrad Page, Kansas City: Page is a solid safety, who has play-making ability.
9. Brandon Flowers, Kansas City: Flowers made nice strides as a rookie last season. He has a chance to be a fine player.
10. Andre Goodman, Denver: Denver signed Goodman as a free agent this offseason. He is a solid pro.
11. Chris Johnson, Oakland: Johnson took over for the cut DeAngelo Hall in the middle of the season and was much better than the high-priced Hall.
12. Brandon Carr, Kansas City: Like Flowers, Carr looked promising as a rookie cornerback last season. He has nice potential.
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Wow. Surprised Pollard is not on here and even more surprised that Page is ranked higher than Flowers and Carr. Watch out for Leggett… See Ya!!
yashi;138445 wrote:jlamerson is going to like this.If I may open with a rant:
How does Page get listed in the top 12 of anything, except missed tackles, by anyone?! He is the definition of a soft FS. He can’t tackle, and he tries for the INT instead of providing coverage. He’s never going to be the hard-hitting FS we need to run the 3-4. And he’ll never have the coverage abilities to be anything but a liability in coverage. Was he a decent value for a 7th round pick? Sure. Is he the worst starting FS in the NFL? Yeah, by my count. Did he do anything in 2007 and 2008 except help us lose games? No, by my count.
And Flowers, Pollard, and Carr should all be in front of Weddle, Page, Goodman, and Johnson. Weddle’s been the definition of inconsistency. Who wouldn’t rather have Flowers and Carr over Goodman or Johnson?
what if espn did the same thing with the other positions here is how mine would look
qb’s
1.phillip rivers (for now) san diego
2.matt superbowl cassell (soon to be #1) chiefs
3.kyle orton (almost laughable)denver
4.jamarcus russell(big time bust)oaklandrb’s
1.ladanian tomlinson(retire already)san diego
2.larry johnson(due for comeback player of the year)chiefs
3.justin fargas(only good once in a while)chokeland
4.kolby smith chiefswr’s
1.branden marshall(soon to be a bear)denver
2.dwayne bowe(needs to step it up)chiefs
3.chris chambers(injury prone)chargers
4.mark bradley(he is going to have a huge year)chiefsi could keep going but i think we fare pretty well in all four of these key positions
slc chief;138460 wrote:what if espn did the same thing with the other positions here is how mine would lookqb’s
1.phillip rivers (for now) san diego
2.matt superbowl cassell (soon to be #1) chiefs
3.kyle orton (almost laughable)denver
4.jamarcus russell(big time bust)oaklandrb’s
1.ladanian tomlinson(retire already)san diego
2.larry johnson(due for comeback player of the year)chiefs
3.justin fargas(only good once in a while)chokeland
4.kolby smith chiefswr’s
1.branden marshall(soon to be a bear)denver
2.dwayne bowe(needs to step it up)chiefs
3.chris chambers(injury prone)chargers
4.mark bradley(he is going to have a huge year)chiefsi could keep going but i think we fare pretty well in all four of these key positions
This is fun. My rankings for all positions (rookies excluded).
QBs:
1. Phillip Rivers (Chargers)
2. Matt Cassell (Chiefs)
3. Jamarcus Russell (Raiders)
4. Kyle Orton (Broncos)I don’t like Russell, but he’s better than Orton. Mark me, Orton is going to get his WRs killed this year. He was bailed out in Chicago with a great defense, good HC, good running game, and a great scapegoat in Rex Grossman. He is going to flop and flop badly in Denver.
RBs:
1. LaDanian Tomlinson (Chargers)
2. Larry Johnson (Chiefs)
3. Darren Sproles (Chargers)
4. Darren McFadden (Raiders)No way Kolby Smith is the 4th best RB. Charles is better than him. McFadden and Bush are better. LaMont Jordan is better. Sproles is a great scatback on turf. And McFadden has a ton of talent and is stuck in a miserable three-headed running game in Oakland.
WRs:
1. Dwayne Bowe (Chiefs)
2. Branden Marshall (Broncos)
3. Eddie Royal (Broncos)
4. Chris Chambers (Chargers)Bowe’s health and attitude make him more valuable than Marshall. People are wayyy to hard on Bowe. He’s a thousand yard WR with Samie Parker on the opposite side and Damon Huard at QB. What do they expect? And Royal is better than Bradley. He’s healthier, with better hands, and is better after the catch.
OL:
1. Marcus McNeill (Chargers)
2. Brian Waters (Chiefs)
3. Ryan Clady (Broncos)
4. Branden Albert (Chiefs)McNeill only gets the nod over Waters because of age. And Clady only gets the nod over Albert because Albert needs to show can be great in something other than the pistol.
TE:
1. Antonio Gates (Chargers)
2. Zach Miller (Raiders)
3. Daniel Graham (Broncos)
4. Tony Scheffler (Broncos)Gates is the best TE in the AFC. Zach Miller is a bright spot for the Raiders. And the Broncos TEs are both pretty good. The Chiefs TEs need to show something before they get ranked top-anything.
DL:
1. Jamal Williams (Chargers)
2. Derrick Burgess (Raiders)
3. Luis Castillo (Chargers)
4. Tommy Kelly (Raiders)I hate to do this to the Chiefs, and I like our rookies, but Dorsey, Tank, and Edwards aren’t top-4. And the Broncos DL stinks. The DLs of the AFC West are pretty bad on the whole.
LB:
1. Shawne Merriman (Chargers)
2. DJ Williams (Broncos)
3. Mike Vrabel (Chiefs)
4. Kirk Morrison (Raiders)Merriman is conditionaly no. 1 assuming he stays healthy. Vrabel would be higher if he were a little bit younger.
jmlamerson;138455 wrote:If I may open with a rant:How does Page get listed in the top 12 of anything, except missed tackles, by anyone?! He is the definition of a soft FS. He can’t tackle, and he tries for the INT instead of providing coverage. He’s never going to be the hard-hitting FS we need to run the 3-4. And he’ll never have the coverage abilities to be anything but a liability in coverage. Was he a decent value for a 7th round pick? Sure. Is he the worst starting FS in the NFL? Yeah, by my count. Did he do anything in 2007 and 2008 except help us lose games? No, by my count.
And Flowers, Pollard, and Carr should all be in front of Weddle, Page, Goodman, and Johnson. Weddle’s been the definition of inconsistency. Who wouldn’t rather have Flowers and Carr over Goodman or Johnson?
My thoughts Exactly…except i dont think Page is the worst safety in the league by any means lol, he certainly isnt top 12 of anything…
jmlamerson;138474 wrote:You are right. Page isn’t the worst safety in the league. He’s just the worst starting FS in the league.I just wish the guy would get out of the way of his own teammates so they could make a play. He’s all about himself – always making a play for the ball and missing the tackle. Terrible team player – terrible FS. We would be richer without him.
jmlamerson;138455 wrote:If I may open with a rant:How does Page get listed in the top 12 of anything, except missed tackles, by anyone?! He is the definition of a soft FS. He can’t tackle, and he tries for the INT instead of providing coverage. He’s never going to be the hard-hitting FS we need to run the 3-4. And he’ll never have the coverage abilities to be anything but a liability in coverage. Was he a decent value for a 7th round pick? Sure. Is he the worst starting FS in the NFL? Yeah, by my count. Did he do anything in 2007 and 2008 except help us lose games? No, by my count.
And Flowers, Pollard, and Carr should all be in front of Weddle, Page, Goodman, and Johnson. Weddle’s been the definition of inconsistency. Who wouldn’t rather have Flowers and Carr over Goodman or Johnson?
Do you ever appreciate when the Chiefs get praise at any position?
Bike;138475 wrote:I just wish the guy would get out of the way of his own teammates so they could make a play. He’s all about himself – always making a play for the ball and missing the tackle. Terrible team player – terrible FS. We would be richer without him.Apparently the coaches don’t agree with your assessment of his play or he wouldn’t be doing the job. He is being paid to do it, this isn’t High School Prep or college Ball .
jmlamerson;138474 wrote:You are right. Page isn’t the worst safety in the league. He’s just the worst starting FS in the league.Not even close to the worst starting FS in the league. I could argue that at times he has been brilliant. You could come right back and tell me about blown coverages like when he bit on play action for a go ahead Charger touchdown last year. All in all, he’s inconsistent, but I do like his play in the Red Zone, usually. I know you have never been a Page fan JM, but lets face it, a FS is the center fielder, they dont play the run or blitz near as much as the strong safety and we have not had the front seven to allow any of our DB’s to be outstanding, ESPECIALLY a FS. The coaches seem to love Page. Bob Gretz said that Mike Brown would have took Pollard’s spot, not Page’s. Do I agree with that? NO. BUT, I think he’s better than you do. As far as rankings go, Page makes picks and that alone can get you some cred. He has 10 in 3 years and he’s only 24 years old. Alot of upside JM, you cant deny that. ONE MORE THING… He has closed out 3 Choakland Gaider games with picks, you know that counts for somethin J!
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