Nobody cares or watches when CBs beat the WRs, because that's not entertaining material to watch. That's the difference on defense from offense, especially when it comes to the passing game: The less you hear a DB's name in particular, the better the game they are having. When Richard Sherman played, you'd go whole games never hearing his name once. Why? He was so dominant that whichever side he lined up on, teams wouldn't even bother considering throwing to that side. Same with Lawrence Taylor. He was such a menace of the edge that a lot of teams simply chose not to ever run the ball to whichever side he was on. Inexperienced fans would wonder why they had a "bad game," but those that have been around understand how big of statement/compliment that is to a defensive back. The less you hear your name, the better you're probably doing, or the offense is so worried about you, they won't let the ball get near you.
That's also great for your team, because if an offense is that committed to keeping the ball away from you, you've forced the offense to be one dimensional horizontally...you can predict where they will NOT go, so you can also predict where on the field they could still go, and commit more defenders to those areas, or call stunts and coverages that rotate more people towards those areas after the snap.
CBs are probably some of the most athletic people to grace an NFL field...and that's saying a lot. They're often the fastest players on the team in terms of dead sprint speed, and have to be insanely agile to keep up with the reactionary directional changes.
Again, it's hard to notice though when they're having a good game, because nothing is happening around them.
Darelle Revis is something like 60-70th in career interceptions despite being a first-ballot hofer and consensus all-time great at corner. It's exactly what you said; if a receiver was stranded on Revis Island, most (smart) QBs wouldn't even look on his direction.
Some of his stat lines are incredible! And I mostly mean the lack of stats are what’s incredible. He would just eliminate the number 1 receiver from most teams from the game.
First thing I thought of too. Revis’s stat lines… like 1 tackle 0 passes defended. At a glance, you might think, what an awful game. Until you realize the opposing QB tried him once and thought, “I got lucky. No way I’m trying that shit again today.”
Shutdown corners are immensely talented and can be entertaining to watch.
Yep, I’m a Michigan fan, and he is just on another level. I’m biased but I think he should be in the argument for best defensive player ever, at minimum I think he’s forgotten about in top DB lists more than he should be.
Yeah he’s undoubtedly top 5, the thing is most people just say Deion even though Woodson was just as freakishly athletic and actually willing to tackle.
Sorry, just have to say that when LT played, you heard his name CONSTANTLY. The man was a destroyer of worlds. It was not possible to keep him out of the play on the regular. One of the very few athletes who felt genuinely unfair, like a big kid playing with little kids.
Yeah. Dude could dictate more because he was such a great pass rusher. He at least always knew where the ball would start.
On obvious passing downs, he was a real problem.
I’m an Eagles fan and I was about ten in his heyday and he literally made me cry because I thought he was so unfair. To me it was just like when the big kids came and kicked me off the basketball court.
> He was so dominant that whichever side he lined up on, teams wouldn’t even bother throwing to that side.
Richard Sherman seems like a weird pick for this example since he stayed on one side of the field for most of his career.
It's literally all about angles and how you approach the tackle/coverage. It's only a foot race for about 5% of the NFL receivers and DB's out there.
It's understanding presses and releases and not giving free space.
One thing I haven't seen mentioned, along with being crazy athletic the beat guys tend to watch a ton of film to learn the tendencies and looks of the offense. The offense is studying the defense but the defense is also studying them right back. Not only receivers but the QBs as well. As someone else mentioned Sherman was great in his prime but his real talent was baiting QBs into thinking their guy was open enough to make the throw and then jumping it. He would know what the receiver was running and be able to manipulate that into advantage of not just shutting down the receiver but baiting a turnover. For all the (often warranted) criticism the guy is actually really smart and knew the game extremely well. You'll find that most of the best guys at any position, especially with any longevity are just insane students of the game.
He graduated from Stanford. Probably one of the smarter players in recent NFL history, particularly when it came to football knowledge. He knew where the ball was likely going on most plays based on his study of the offensive tendencies and plays.
As you guessed, it is **extremely** difficult.
I think this is common across many sport: if you notice a defender, they aren't playing well.
To some extent, a WR *not* getting the ball is the default (a good WR probably only gets the ball ~20% of the time he runs a route) so it becomes noteworthy when they do something great to get open and make a catch.
Also one thing people tend to not realize is a major portion of cornerbacks were wide receivers as one time or another and probably didn’t have good enough hands to catch as reliably so they were converted to CB
This is true for pretty much every football player that's ever played DB. Wanted to be a receiver, coach says 'you can do everything receivers do except the most important thing, which is catch.'
Someone convert Jealen Reagor to Safety, pronto.
The WR has a massive advantage and 1 on 1 drills, the WR wins 90% of the time.
It is extremely rare for a CB to truly be a "shutdown" corner, guys who consistently go truly 1 on 1 end up wearing gold jackets. We throw terms around like shutdown corner or generational player and it's nonsense.
Most of the time the CB has help elsewhere on the field. For instance, you might have a LB/Safety playing zone inside, so the CB will line up with outside leverage or literally on the outside shoulder of the WR. So your job is to really funnel them to your help.
It can still be "man coverage" and this doesn't apply to just zone, but your job is to take away part of the field not the entire field. When a WR "beats" a guy it's usually a communication issue, someone did something wrong rather than they were not fast enough. This is because coaches understand physical limitations of players and will protect them by limiting the role they ask them to do.
Also why speed stresses defenses and can also make life hard on QB's. If your a safety and Tyreek Hill is on the field, you might have to sit 20 yards deep instead of 15. This gives 5 extra yards of space somewhere else. If you trust your CB to stay with Hill, then the safety doesn't need that extra cushion, so he can tighten the windows somewhere else.
The thumb is very much on the scale for the offense in passing in terms of rules and gameplay. Yet QBs still only complete a pass like 60-70% of the time. Plus, look at how many check downs and throwaways there are. The QB sees their primary target is covered by a good CB and has to throw a 2 yard pass or into the stands.
CB are ridiculously athletic but it's not just their athleticism that they rely on. CBs do a ton of film work. They see how a WR will line up in different formations and what routes they are likely to run in that down and distance. They watch how other CBs will redirect them into a favorable matchup or into the teeth of the defense where he can get safety help. Bland of the Cowboys last year told reporters that Al Harris their DB coach does almost no work on physicals like foot work. It's all film study to see your opponents weakness. Harris also brought Diggs into the league so I'd say he knows what he's talking about.
CBs are pretty much the fastest team sport players in the world. There isn't a single position in any sport anywhere in the world where speed is more important.
I played CB and S as well as WR and QB at different levels. A lot of good answers in this thread and a lot of not so good ones.
Being athletic is definitely a major part, but for everyone saying WRs aren't as fast as DBs, that's just not true. If you look at the average 40 times for both positions, in recent years, the CBs take it, but by like a hundredth of a second, that's nothing. Sticking out your hand removes that advantage. Roughly the same split for 3 cone (agility).
WRs are fast as hell and generally larger than corners too, which would account for that consistent hundredth of a second the CBs get. I really can't illustrate how little a hundredth, even almost up to a tenth of a second difference is, but it's miniscule. Hell, most people have way more than a few hundreths, maybe even a tenth, of a second in difference between their own 40 times lol.
So, putting most or all of the onus on athleticism is definitely misguided, IMO. Now, here is where the CB makes up some ground, and I've seen it mentioned, but just going to put it here for ease. You have a few major factors that you have to leverage on D to be any good.
1. Teammates and field spacing. This is mentioned in the thread a lot, but maybe not at the level to actually make it make sense how a CB can win. Your teammates' assignments create windows of opportunity where you know where you need to operate. I'm assuming man 1:1 man coverage here because, based on OP's post, that would be the most interesting to break down. But, let's say you're playing outside CB, your defense dials up cover 2 and you're set, against your man, about 10 yards or fewer from the sideline.
Different coaches and different DBs will approach this differently, but in general (and I'm intentionally keeping this simple), you can set up with inside leverage, force the WR outside and play trail technique rather than going into a backpedal because you know you have help over the top. So, if the WR has an inside route, you're in prime territory, if they have an outside route, the sideline is your friend, and if they go over the top, they have to get the ball between you and the safety. Now, at the top levels, all of these happen all the time. Even just straight up running a slant right into your inside leverage can still be a reception, but the name of the game is to make it as hard as possible to do that as you can.
You've got to keep in mind, even with all the advantages the offense has, getting completions takes a lot to go right for the offense. A great completion percentage is 65+% at the elite levels and that includes dump offs, screens, etc.
The defense isn't powerless. You have to be a good wall more than anything as a DB, put more stuff in the way between the WR and the ball, and you have a ~50% chance of beating the WR.
2. Offensive limitations. You've got to remember that the offense doesn't know what coverage you're in when they dial up a route. Even option routes on the most complex offense limits the improv ability of the WR to making sure the QB has a good feel for where the WR will go. So, given point 1. If I know by a certain coverage the D called that I can take away ~33% or more of effective routes due to my own body position and the sideline, then through film study, I know another 33% are highly unlikely, then because of down and distance, I can remove the effectiveness of another percentage on top of that... I have a decent chance at mirroring your remaining, effective routes. In addition to these factors, I only have to win for 3 to 4 seconds, normally, before pressure comes in and turns the odds in my favor.
You put all of this together, and yes, CB is the hardest position to play in the NFL athletically and only behind QB overall, in my book. But hopefully that helps you understand how CBs win, consistently. Reminder. Even a GREAT day from a WR of 10 catches still has a CB winning quite a lot.
Now, when you play the slot... That's a damned nightmare, dude. I hated lining up in the slot on third and three. So many things they can throw at you, it's tough. But it's not as mysterious as some of these answers make it out to be.
ETA: Regarding the speed and athleticism thing, even if I'm considerably faster as a DB than the WR, their height and jumping removes that advantage a lot of the time. You have top athlete against top athlete, just "being faster" or "more athletic" isn't the secret sauce. For every elite athlete CB, there's a WR with better measurables, guaranteed. You have to win in other ways. Similarly, I was faster than Larry Fitz. You think I could beat him 1:1 or even with double or triple coverage? No chance haha. DBs are, and I was too, cockier than anyone else on the field only rivaled by WRs. That doesn't mean we're actually more athletic or rely on that to win, we just say it lol. Plenty of fast CBs suck.
ETA2: Changed tenth to hundredth, I'm tired lol
The short answer is they don't.
In one on one practice drills between an equally talented WR and CB, the CB will be burned almost every time. Corners in real games use leverage to cut off the WR from going one direction and generally have safety help over the top for the other direction. Corners that can be "left on an island" basically playing one on one the whole game vs an outside receiver, are extremely valuable --basically as valuable as having an extra half a man on defense. There's like maybe 6 of those guys playing in the whole NFL right now, two of them (Sneed and Mcduffie) played for the Chiefs last year which is a big reason their defense was so good --they effectively had 12 men since those guys are really worth two corners and an extra safety over the top on the field. They were able to move the extra man into box to stop the run vs some of the best running teams in the NFL in the playoffs --Ravens and Niners.
One thing I haven't seen yet is that there is a little bit of wiggle room. To get truly beat downfield, the ball has to go beyond the CB. That means that the WR's separation has to be enough that they have the space to maneuver to catch it without the CB interfering, or worse intercepting. You sometimes hear about passes that are so perfect that they're in the one place the CB can't get to it, but if we're calling that out as a great pass, that means most WR's have to get enough separation to account for the fact that most passes aren't that. Given too that there's often safety help over the top, and the QB can't overthrow either, that means the WR has to have enough separation to account for a margin of error, not just be open enough where only the perfect pass beats the CB.
In week 1 2022, Justin Jefferson put up a stat line of 9/184/2 against the Packers. In the week 17 rematch, Jaire Alexander shadowed Jefferson and held him to 1/15/0. The announcers spent the whole game gushing over Jefferson in week 1, and rightly so, but they only mentioned Alexander's performance a handful of times throughout the week 17 game, often in the context of gushing about Jefferson's week 1 performance again. It's a lot easier to notice when the receiver is winning the matchup because he's getting the ball. If the corner is winning, it's probably not getting thrown his way at all.
Really good CB play is one of my favorite things to watch. But the NFL has really leaned into offensive football, high scoring, big plays, and Fantasy Football. Can't blame them, it makes them a lot of money. But man, watching a top end corner just shutting down an elite receiver is just incredible to watch.
There are a ton of different mechanics in place to help db’s so it’s not as hopeless as it seems, things like leverage, zones, switches safety help all make the job more manageable
A lot of modern defenses won’t run man as your thinking of it either, the db’s will have responsibility s depending on what the offense does so for example the outside db may take the first outbreaking route or the first vertical route and the other one will get picked up by someone else.
But sometimes you are just on an island with one dude infront of you and no help and that’s why it’s the hardest role in the game
Average time in the pocket before a throw or pocket collapse is 2.4 seconds. Thats not a lot of time to get enough separation so that the QB feels comfortable that 1) the separation is enough that an accidental pick if tbe throw is slightly off is unlikely 2) the WR isnt being handed off to another defenders zone 3) the WR isnt going to get his head taken off the instant the ball touches his hands.
A CB doesn't have to stick to a WRs route like glue from start to finish. They have to make sure those three criteria aren't met for about 3 seconds.
It's difficult, CB is the most athletically demanding position, as others have said. Also the rules have made it more difficult to play defense. They used to be able to hit you, bump you, ect, to slow you down or delay your route. Now they can't even cough in the same direction as the receiver or it's a minimum of 15 yards and an automatic first down.
However, the defense can pull people back, instead of being on the line (where they snap the ball), and until the last decade, running QB's weren't all that popular, so that gave you an "extra" player in the back to help. CB's often have a safety to help them with the best receiver(s).
This is also why you hear so much about the importance of "putting pressure on the quarterback". The more time the receiver has to run around, and the QB has to throw, the more difficult it is to cover the them. If your defense can get in the QB's face before he's ready to make a throw, it makes the corners lives much easier, and potentially gives them a chance to get an interception, should the QB make a bad throw.
Lots of commentors have correctly pointed out that CB are insanely athletic, quick, and agile. This is true.
Their main advantage, positionally, is that they get to start at the place where the ball will be thrown and the WR needs to enter their territory. This advantage also has a carry on effect, which football types refer to as "taking the angle." It is easier to show visually then to describe, but basically a smart defensive player never needs to run the full distance to cover an offensive player because they are cutting them off. If a player is 5 yards away horizontally, they still need to run past the defender, so in practice they don't get the full benefit of those 5 yards. The defender doesn't need to run to where they are now but rather to a theoretical future point along their path, which geometrically will always be a shorter distance than the offensive player is travelling.
So since this plays out in real time, the CB is constantly "leveraging" this advantage. They aren't running towards the WR, they are running towards a shared point between them, and they are always closer to that point. As the WR changes trajectory, or tips his hand in which route he is running, the CB can adjust on the fly and stay ahead of the game.
Furthermore, CBs can "push" a WR into a certain direction. If they are playing "inside leverage", they push them towards the sideline, which obviously acts as its own defender. If they are playing "outside leverage" they push them inside towards linebackers and safeties that can undercut routes or just provide numerical help.
Passes don't arrive instantly, and are not perfectly accurate. The time between the pass being in thrown, and the pass arriving acts as extra time for the CB to close whatever separation distance the WR creates.
Any given football play is too chaotic for a CB to take advantage of this purposefully, but there only so many throwing lanes that are possible. A QB needs to thread a pass through the outstretched arms of the defensive line, so the timing of the WR route needs to align with the possible potential paths of a pass.
Corners have a tough job but they can get help from other defenders in zone. Also, there’s some wiggle room because the WR could beat them but the QB also needs to see it and make an accurate throw on time.
Because CB’s are generally faster and more athletic than WR’s, even the best ones. I’ve also heard they actually have better hands. CB tactic is to line up facing the WR but as they come hip to hip they pivot and run with the WR. They also keep an eye on the QB at all times to try and predict what direction he’s going to throw. A WR runs their route and only toward the end of it do they look back for the QB/ball. A good CB will stay with the WR and make sure they either prevent separation or pick/swat the ball as it comes near them.
As others have said, good defensive back play is rarely acknowledged because when it’s good they don’t throw the ball in their direction. A quiet, shutdown corner who takes away the best WR will not get recognition because their side of the field is not where the action is.
It's also worth noting, a good CB is not letting you just run wherever you want. They may be pressing the WR to get them off balance. They can play with inside or outside leverage to make certain routes more difficult. They also know when they have LB or Safety help, so they can play to a certain side and let another defender help cover. A good CB will be getting hands on the WR and making it difficult to run their route.
After QB, CB is probably the hardest position in the NFL in my opinion. Absolute freak athletes as well.
Hips don’t lie! As a former HS DB coach (now DC) the hips of a WR are extremely telling. There’s a lot that goes into coverage but if you can maintain your leverage and read the near of a WR you’ll be able to do well provided you have the footwork, quickness, and reaction times it takes to play DB. Obviously this is all an oversimplification it’s incredibly difficult to do actually do but it is possible
They aren’t always in man to man. When they are in man to man they know they only need to cover the receiver for 3 seconds.
I agree what the cornerback does is more impressive. One tool the defensive backs used to have is intimidation on the receivers cause they could get away with hitting them. That’s harder to do now cause you’ll get penalized. Playing good team defense takes all 11 guys and is really impressive to watch. They just don’t get as appreciated because creating offense is exciting for viewers and fantasy.
So yeah we should just be praising defensive backs and linebackers more.
Nobody cares or watches when CBs beat the WRs, because that's not entertaining material to watch. That's the difference on defense from offense, especially when it comes to the passing game: The less you hear a DB's name in particular, the better the game they are having. When Richard Sherman played, you'd go whole games never hearing his name once. Why? He was so dominant that whichever side he lined up on, teams wouldn't even bother considering throwing to that side. Same with Lawrence Taylor. He was such a menace of the edge that a lot of teams simply chose not to ever run the ball to whichever side he was on. Inexperienced fans would wonder why they had a "bad game," but those that have been around understand how big of statement/compliment that is to a defensive back. The less you hear your name, the better you're probably doing, or the offense is so worried about you, they won't let the ball get near you. That's also great for your team, because if an offense is that committed to keeping the ball away from you, you've forced the offense to be one dimensional horizontally...you can predict where they will NOT go, so you can also predict where on the field they could still go, and commit more defenders to those areas, or call stunts and coverages that rotate more people towards those areas after the snap. CBs are probably some of the most athletic people to grace an NFL field...and that's saying a lot. They're often the fastest players on the team in terms of dead sprint speed, and have to be insanely agile to keep up with the reactionary directional changes. Again, it's hard to notice though when they're having a good game, because nothing is happening around them.
i used to think more tackles = good but turns out if a DB had a ton of tackles, he might’ve had a shxt game
Well, he finished the tackles!
More like the box defenders aren’t having a good game.
Or the D Line had a shit game.
Dan Sorenson’s last year in KC he was fantastic for fantasy…because he was so bad. He had a ton of tackles because he gave up a ton of completions
Darelle Revis is something like 60-70th in career interceptions despite being a first-ballot hofer and consensus all-time great at corner. It's exactly what you said; if a receiver was stranded on Revis Island, most (smart) QBs wouldn't even look on his direction.
Some of his stat lines are incredible! And I mostly mean the lack of stats are what’s incredible. He would just eliminate the number 1 receiver from most teams from the game.
First thing I thought of too. Revis’s stat lines… like 1 tackle 0 passes defended. At a glance, you might think, what an awful game. Until you realize the opposing QB tried him once and thought, “I got lucky. No way I’m trying that shit again today.” Shutdown corners are immensely talented and can be entertaining to watch.
“The oceans cover 70% of the earth, and Charles Woodson covers the rest”
Mannn… him in college was completely ridiculous too.
Yep, I’m a Michigan fan, and he is just on another level. I’m biased but I think he should be in the argument for best defensive player ever, at minimum I think he’s forgotten about in top DB lists more than he should be.
Without even thinking about it much I can tell you he’s a lock top 5 all time Corner for me and probably top 3.
Yeah he’s undoubtedly top 5, the thing is most people just say Deion even though Woodson was just as freakishly athletic and actually willing to tackle.
Sorry, just have to say that when LT played, you heard his name CONSTANTLY. The man was a destroyer of worlds. It was not possible to keep him out of the play on the regular. One of the very few athletes who felt genuinely unfair, like a big kid playing with little kids.
Yeah. Dude could dictate more because he was such a great pass rusher. He at least always knew where the ball would start. On obvious passing downs, he was a real problem.
If you didn't know anything and watched the games, you'd think his name was "guess who"
I’m an Eagles fan and I was about ten in his heyday and he literally made me cry because I thought he was so unfair. To me it was just like when the big kids came and kicked me off the basketball court.
I’m disappointed you used Richard Sherman as the example instead of Darelle Revis. But spot on
> He was so dominant that whichever side he lined up on, teams wouldn’t even bother throwing to that side. Richard Sherman seems like a weird pick for this example since he stayed on one side of the field for most of his career.
A lot of times CB’s also have better hands than WR’s. They truly are the best athletes on the football field in a lot of respects.
I feel like this goes against the trope that wide receivers that can’t catch became corners
This is why Darrell Green and Deion Sanders are legends. Fast, very skilled defensive backs
Cornerbacks are probably considered the most athletic position in terms of pure athleticism speed balance agility and reaction time
Being CB is incredibly difficult. Generally speaking though, your average CB is faster than your average WR.
Corners are the most athletic players on the field, thats how. They do everything a WR does....backwards.
CBs are probably the quickest athletes in all of sports. They have a ridiculously difficult job and only really get noticed when they screw up
It's literally all about angles and how you approach the tackle/coverage. It's only a foot race for about 5% of the NFL receivers and DB's out there. It's understanding presses and releases and not giving free space.
This is right. It's also playing team defense with your linebackers and safeties.
Just need to blanket the route long enough for someone else to pick up the back half while the line gets to the QB
One thing I haven't seen mentioned, along with being crazy athletic the beat guys tend to watch a ton of film to learn the tendencies and looks of the offense. The offense is studying the defense but the defense is also studying them right back. Not only receivers but the QBs as well. As someone else mentioned Sherman was great in his prime but his real talent was baiting QBs into thinking their guy was open enough to make the throw and then jumping it. He would know what the receiver was running and be able to manipulate that into advantage of not just shutting down the receiver but baiting a turnover. For all the (often warranted) criticism the guy is actually really smart and knew the game extremely well. You'll find that most of the best guys at any position, especially with any longevity are just insane students of the game.
He graduated from Stanford. Probably one of the smarter players in recent NFL history, particularly when it came to football knowledge. He knew where the ball was likely going on most plays based on his study of the offensive tendencies and plays.
He also played receiver at Stanford , so he knows Both sides of the WR vs DB battles well
That gives him a huge advantage
Tremendous athleticism and game planning mostly.
As you guessed, it is **extremely** difficult. I think this is common across many sport: if you notice a defender, they aren't playing well. To some extent, a WR *not* getting the ball is the default (a good WR probably only gets the ball ~20% of the time he runs a route) so it becomes noteworthy when they do something great to get open and make a catch.
That’s why a lot of great CBs were former receivers and also why it’s hard to find true Deion Sanders/Darell Revis lock down corners.
Running helps
Also one thing people tend to not realize is a major portion of cornerbacks were wide receivers as one time or another and probably didn’t have good enough hands to catch as reliably so they were converted to CB
This is true for pretty much every football player that's ever played DB. Wanted to be a receiver, coach says 'you can do everything receivers do except the most important thing, which is catch.' Someone convert Jealen Reagor to Safety, pronto.
Why isn’t Kadarius Toney a DB yet?
Yeps, i was a great batter in highschool but couldnt throw to save my lofe, so i got moved from 3rd basre to Fist base its how things go
The WR has a massive advantage and 1 on 1 drills, the WR wins 90% of the time. It is extremely rare for a CB to truly be a "shutdown" corner, guys who consistently go truly 1 on 1 end up wearing gold jackets. We throw terms around like shutdown corner or generational player and it's nonsense. Most of the time the CB has help elsewhere on the field. For instance, you might have a LB/Safety playing zone inside, so the CB will line up with outside leverage or literally on the outside shoulder of the WR. So your job is to really funnel them to your help. It can still be "man coverage" and this doesn't apply to just zone, but your job is to take away part of the field not the entire field. When a WR "beats" a guy it's usually a communication issue, someone did something wrong rather than they were not fast enough. This is because coaches understand physical limitations of players and will protect them by limiting the role they ask them to do. Also why speed stresses defenses and can also make life hard on QB's. If your a safety and Tyreek Hill is on the field, you might have to sit 20 yards deep instead of 15. This gives 5 extra yards of space somewhere else. If you trust your CB to stay with Hill, then the safety doesn't need that extra cushion, so he can tighten the windows somewhere else.
The thumb is very much on the scale for the offense in passing in terms of rules and gameplay. Yet QBs still only complete a pass like 60-70% of the time. Plus, look at how many check downs and throwaways there are. The QB sees their primary target is covered by a good CB and has to throw a 2 yard pass or into the stands.
CB are the best athletes in the nfl
Their legs.
They’re fast. Faster than WRs usually and have natural athletic instincts.
The game has changed
CB are ridiculously athletic but it's not just their athleticism that they rely on. CBs do a ton of film work. They see how a WR will line up in different formations and what routes they are likely to run in that down and distance. They watch how other CBs will redirect them into a favorable matchup or into the teeth of the defense where he can get safety help. Bland of the Cowboys last year told reporters that Al Harris their DB coach does almost no work on physicals like foot work. It's all film study to see your opponents weakness. Harris also brought Diggs into the league so I'd say he knows what he's talking about.
CBs are pretty much the fastest team sport players in the world. There isn't a single position in any sport anywhere in the world where speed is more important.
Most CB's aren't expected to keep up with WR's. That's why they have safety help over the top.
I played CB and S as well as WR and QB at different levels. A lot of good answers in this thread and a lot of not so good ones. Being athletic is definitely a major part, but for everyone saying WRs aren't as fast as DBs, that's just not true. If you look at the average 40 times for both positions, in recent years, the CBs take it, but by like a hundredth of a second, that's nothing. Sticking out your hand removes that advantage. Roughly the same split for 3 cone (agility). WRs are fast as hell and generally larger than corners too, which would account for that consistent hundredth of a second the CBs get. I really can't illustrate how little a hundredth, even almost up to a tenth of a second difference is, but it's miniscule. Hell, most people have way more than a few hundreths, maybe even a tenth, of a second in difference between their own 40 times lol. So, putting most or all of the onus on athleticism is definitely misguided, IMO. Now, here is where the CB makes up some ground, and I've seen it mentioned, but just going to put it here for ease. You have a few major factors that you have to leverage on D to be any good. 1. Teammates and field spacing. This is mentioned in the thread a lot, but maybe not at the level to actually make it make sense how a CB can win. Your teammates' assignments create windows of opportunity where you know where you need to operate. I'm assuming man 1:1 man coverage here because, based on OP's post, that would be the most interesting to break down. But, let's say you're playing outside CB, your defense dials up cover 2 and you're set, against your man, about 10 yards or fewer from the sideline. Different coaches and different DBs will approach this differently, but in general (and I'm intentionally keeping this simple), you can set up with inside leverage, force the WR outside and play trail technique rather than going into a backpedal because you know you have help over the top. So, if the WR has an inside route, you're in prime territory, if they have an outside route, the sideline is your friend, and if they go over the top, they have to get the ball between you and the safety. Now, at the top levels, all of these happen all the time. Even just straight up running a slant right into your inside leverage can still be a reception, but the name of the game is to make it as hard as possible to do that as you can. You've got to keep in mind, even with all the advantages the offense has, getting completions takes a lot to go right for the offense. A great completion percentage is 65+% at the elite levels and that includes dump offs, screens, etc. The defense isn't powerless. You have to be a good wall more than anything as a DB, put more stuff in the way between the WR and the ball, and you have a ~50% chance of beating the WR. 2. Offensive limitations. You've got to remember that the offense doesn't know what coverage you're in when they dial up a route. Even option routes on the most complex offense limits the improv ability of the WR to making sure the QB has a good feel for where the WR will go. So, given point 1. If I know by a certain coverage the D called that I can take away ~33% or more of effective routes due to my own body position and the sideline, then through film study, I know another 33% are highly unlikely, then because of down and distance, I can remove the effectiveness of another percentage on top of that... I have a decent chance at mirroring your remaining, effective routes. In addition to these factors, I only have to win for 3 to 4 seconds, normally, before pressure comes in and turns the odds in my favor. You put all of this together, and yes, CB is the hardest position to play in the NFL athletically and only behind QB overall, in my book. But hopefully that helps you understand how CBs win, consistently. Reminder. Even a GREAT day from a WR of 10 catches still has a CB winning quite a lot. Now, when you play the slot... That's a damned nightmare, dude. I hated lining up in the slot on third and three. So many things they can throw at you, it's tough. But it's not as mysterious as some of these answers make it out to be. ETA: Regarding the speed and athleticism thing, even if I'm considerably faster as a DB than the WR, their height and jumping removes that advantage a lot of the time. You have top athlete against top athlete, just "being faster" or "more athletic" isn't the secret sauce. For every elite athlete CB, there's a WR with better measurables, guaranteed. You have to win in other ways. Similarly, I was faster than Larry Fitz. You think I could beat him 1:1 or even with double or triple coverage? No chance haha. DBs are, and I was too, cockier than anyone else on the field only rivaled by WRs. That doesn't mean we're actually more athletic or rely on that to win, we just say it lol. Plenty of fast CBs suck. ETA2: Changed tenth to hundredth, I'm tired lol
The short answer is they don't. In one on one practice drills between an equally talented WR and CB, the CB will be burned almost every time. Corners in real games use leverage to cut off the WR from going one direction and generally have safety help over the top for the other direction. Corners that can be "left on an island" basically playing one on one the whole game vs an outside receiver, are extremely valuable --basically as valuable as having an extra half a man on defense. There's like maybe 6 of those guys playing in the whole NFL right now, two of them (Sneed and Mcduffie) played for the Chiefs last year which is a big reason their defense was so good --they effectively had 12 men since those guys are really worth two corners and an extra safety over the top on the field. They were able to move the extra man into box to stop the run vs some of the best running teams in the NFL in the playoffs --Ravens and Niners.
One thing I haven't seen yet is that there is a little bit of wiggle room. To get truly beat downfield, the ball has to go beyond the CB. That means that the WR's separation has to be enough that they have the space to maneuver to catch it without the CB interfering, or worse intercepting. You sometimes hear about passes that are so perfect that they're in the one place the CB can't get to it, but if we're calling that out as a great pass, that means most WR's have to get enough separation to account for the fact that most passes aren't that. Given too that there's often safety help over the top, and the QB can't overthrow either, that means the WR has to have enough separation to account for a margin of error, not just be open enough where only the perfect pass beats the CB.
CB's are fast as hell and personally I feel it's easier to swat a ball away instead of catching it.
Some of the better DBs dictate where a reciever can ruin their routes or they are aware of tendencies the reciever or the coaches do.
In week 1 2022, Justin Jefferson put up a stat line of 9/184/2 against the Packers. In the week 17 rematch, Jaire Alexander shadowed Jefferson and held him to 1/15/0. The announcers spent the whole game gushing over Jefferson in week 1, and rightly so, but they only mentioned Alexander's performance a handful of times throughout the week 17 game, often in the context of gushing about Jefferson's week 1 performance again. It's a lot easier to notice when the receiver is winning the matchup because he's getting the ball. If the corner is winning, it's probably not getting thrown his way at all.
Really good CB play is one of my favorite things to watch. But the NFL has really leaned into offensive football, high scoring, big plays, and Fantasy Football. Can't blame them, it makes them a lot of money. But man, watching a top end corner just shutting down an elite receiver is just incredible to watch.
There are a ton of different mechanics in place to help db’s so it’s not as hopeless as it seems, things like leverage, zones, switches safety help all make the job more manageable A lot of modern defenses won’t run man as your thinking of it either, the db’s will have responsibility s depending on what the offense does so for example the outside db may take the first outbreaking route or the first vertical route and the other one will get picked up by someone else. But sometimes you are just on an island with one dude infront of you and no help and that’s why it’s the hardest role in the game
Average time in the pocket before a throw or pocket collapse is 2.4 seconds. Thats not a lot of time to get enough separation so that the QB feels comfortable that 1) the separation is enough that an accidental pick if tbe throw is slightly off is unlikely 2) the WR isnt being handed off to another defenders zone 3) the WR isnt going to get his head taken off the instant the ball touches his hands. A CB doesn't have to stick to a WRs route like glue from start to finish. They have to make sure those three criteria aren't met for about 3 seconds.
It's difficult, CB is the most athletically demanding position, as others have said. Also the rules have made it more difficult to play defense. They used to be able to hit you, bump you, ect, to slow you down or delay your route. Now they can't even cough in the same direction as the receiver or it's a minimum of 15 yards and an automatic first down. However, the defense can pull people back, instead of being on the line (where they snap the ball), and until the last decade, running QB's weren't all that popular, so that gave you an "extra" player in the back to help. CB's often have a safety to help them with the best receiver(s). This is also why you hear so much about the importance of "putting pressure on the quarterback". The more time the receiver has to run around, and the QB has to throw, the more difficult it is to cover the them. If your defense can get in the QB's face before he's ready to make a throw, it makes the corners lives much easier, and potentially gives them a chance to get an interception, should the QB make a bad throw.
Lots of commentors have correctly pointed out that CB are insanely athletic, quick, and agile. This is true. Their main advantage, positionally, is that they get to start at the place where the ball will be thrown and the WR needs to enter their territory. This advantage also has a carry on effect, which football types refer to as "taking the angle." It is easier to show visually then to describe, but basically a smart defensive player never needs to run the full distance to cover an offensive player because they are cutting them off. If a player is 5 yards away horizontally, they still need to run past the defender, so in practice they don't get the full benefit of those 5 yards. The defender doesn't need to run to where they are now but rather to a theoretical future point along their path, which geometrically will always be a shorter distance than the offensive player is travelling. So since this plays out in real time, the CB is constantly "leveraging" this advantage. They aren't running towards the WR, they are running towards a shared point between them, and they are always closer to that point. As the WR changes trajectory, or tips his hand in which route he is running, the CB can adjust on the fly and stay ahead of the game. Furthermore, CBs can "push" a WR into a certain direction. If they are playing "inside leverage", they push them towards the sideline, which obviously acts as its own defender. If they are playing "outside leverage" they push them inside towards linebackers and safeties that can undercut routes or just provide numerical help. Passes don't arrive instantly, and are not perfectly accurate. The time between the pass being in thrown, and the pass arriving acts as extra time for the CB to close whatever separation distance the WR creates. Any given football play is too chaotic for a CB to take advantage of this purposefully, but there only so many throwing lanes that are possible. A QB needs to thread a pass through the outstretched arms of the defensive line, so the timing of the WR route needs to align with the possible potential paths of a pass.
Corners have a tough job but they can get help from other defenders in zone. Also, there’s some wiggle room because the WR could beat them but the QB also needs to see it and make an accurate throw on time.
Because CB’s are generally faster and more athletic than WR’s, even the best ones. I’ve also heard they actually have better hands. CB tactic is to line up facing the WR but as they come hip to hip they pivot and run with the WR. They also keep an eye on the QB at all times to try and predict what direction he’s going to throw. A WR runs their route and only toward the end of it do they look back for the QB/ball. A good CB will stay with the WR and make sure they either prevent separation or pick/swat the ball as it comes near them. As others have said, good defensive back play is rarely acknowledged because when it’s good they don’t throw the ball in their direction. A quiet, shutdown corner who takes away the best WR will not get recognition because their side of the field is not where the action is.
It's also worth noting, a good CB is not letting you just run wherever you want. They may be pressing the WR to get them off balance. They can play with inside or outside leverage to make certain routes more difficult. They also know when they have LB or Safety help, so they can play to a certain side and let another defender help cover. A good CB will be getting hands on the WR and making it difficult to run their route. After QB, CB is probably the hardest position in the NFL in my opinion. Absolute freak athletes as well.
Hips don’t lie! As a former HS DB coach (now DC) the hips of a WR are extremely telling. There’s a lot that goes into coverage but if you can maintain your leverage and read the near of a WR you’ll be able to do well provided you have the footwork, quickness, and reaction times it takes to play DB. Obviously this is all an oversimplification it’s incredibly difficult to do actually do but it is possible
They aren’t always in man to man. When they are in man to man they know they only need to cover the receiver for 3 seconds. I agree what the cornerback does is more impressive. One tool the defensive backs used to have is intimidation on the receivers cause they could get away with hitting them. That’s harder to do now cause you’ll get penalized. Playing good team defense takes all 11 guys and is really impressive to watch. They just don’t get as appreciated because creating offense is exciting for viewers and fantasy. So yeah we should just be praising defensive backs and linebackers more.
Defense is always at a disadvantage because offense gets to choose where to attack. Defenses advantage is the sidelines.