New Orleans Saints

Saints Perspective: Top Free Agent Cornerbacks in 2017

Updated Mar. 4, 2020 4:39 p.m. ET

Fansided, Roy Anderson/FanSided via Who Dat Dish

Addressing the cornerback position in both the NFL Draft and in free agency is of utmost importance if the Saints are to better themselves as a defense and as a team in 2017. In this article, WhoDatDish looks at the top seven free agent cornerback fits for the Black and Gold.

New Orleans Saints

There are question marks aplenty for the New Orleans Saints cornerbacks in 2017. The squad was decimated by injury in 2016. That exposed a decided lack of depth in the corps.

Before the season started the Saints had lost Damian Swann and Kyle Wilson. Starters P.J. Williams and Delvin Breaux quickly followed, lost to injury in the first two weeks.

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The Saints brought in free agents Sterling Moore and B.W. Webb off the streets to shore things up. Both performed better than expected. Undrafted rookie free agent Ken Crawley looked decent and fellow UDFA De’Vante Harris showed some promise. But the Saints will need to bring in at least one solid player to give this squad a true leader and star.

To be clear, the onus isn’t entirely on the Saints cornerbacks. More pressure on opposing teams’ quarterbacks would make their jobs much easier and that will hopefully be addressed in free agency and the draft as well.

Here are the top free agent cornerbacks potentially on the market for the Saints to go after with part of their expected $30 million in cap space in 2017. Talent, age, and scheme fit were taken into account when choosing these players. Their PFF Rating is a subjective value assigned by Pro Football Focus.

A.J. Bouye, Houston Texans, Age 25, PFF Rating 90.9

PFF ranks Bouye as the number 3 cornerback in the NFL. That’s some rare air and he’ll be one of the most highly courted players in free agency at any position.

Out of the University of Central Florida, the Tucker, Georgia native was signed in 2013 by the Texans as an undrafted rookie free agent.

He’s had six career interceptions and is considered a premier lock-down corner. Do the Saints have a shot at him?

Well, Tucker is in the Atlanta metro area so no homeboy discount here. The Saints would have to enter into an expensive bidding war to attract Bouye’s services. With a premium placed on players like Bouye he would be pricey. Perhaps prohibitively so.

But going after a guy like Bouye would free up the Saints to pursue other areas in the draft with P.J. Williams and Delvin Breaux already in the fold to give the Saints the depth they need at corner.

At issue is whether or not Bouye would want to sign with a team whose odds of winning the Super Bowl in 2017 were just listed at 50-1. Many players of his talents are looking to get a ring quickly and the Saints may not be what he’s looking for despite his presence significantly improving those odds.

Morris Claiborne, Dallas Cowboys, Age 26, PFF Rating 84.7

Sep 25, 2016; Arlington, TX, USA; Dallas Cowboys cornerback Morris Claiborne (24) tackles Chicago Bears receiver Eddie Royal (19) in the air in the fourth quarter at AT&T Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matthew Emmons-USA TODAY Sports

The former LSU Tiger and Shreveport, Louisiana native has had an up and down career since the Cowboys used a number six pick in the 2012 NFL Draft on him.

In 2016 Claiborne finally had his breakout in Dallas and finished the year rated as the number 12 corner overall by PFF.

The problem with Claiborne, though, has been injuries and inconsistency. These are knocks the Saints are already dealing with in their current crew. Claiborne has only been healthy for a little over half of his professional career.

The good news is that makes him potentially cheaper and a huge bargain if the can stay healthy and live up to his potential. He would certainly seem to be worth the risk. No homeboy discount here either though as Shreveport is pretty evenly split between Cowboys and Saints fans due to its geography.

Logan Ryan, New England Patriots, Age 25, PFF Rating 84.5

The former Rutgers standout and New Jersey native has had a solid career for the reigning Super Bowl champs. But with the Patriots you always have to wonder if their numbers are a product of the system or of talent.

With Ryan it’s likely a mix. He’s got the raw skills to succeed at the NFL level and was used well in Matt Patricia’s defensive scheme in New England.

Given the Patriots’ track record in letting free agents go once they could get expensive, Logan Ryan might be the Saints’ best bet at bringing in a young player who checks off all the need boxes.

Trumaine Johnson, Los Angeles Rams, Age 27, PFF Rating 81.0

With 16 career interceptions, you’d expect the market to be wide open for Johnson. But a lackluster 2016 for a lackluster team could cause his market value to fall off considerably.

Odds are he’ll try to remain with the Rams being a native of Stockton, California. But money talks.

The Rams were pretty horrible in 2016 and the defense was put in a lot of bad situations by an offense that couldn’t stay on the field. But Johnson still has the ability and talent to be a star in the league.

However, the Rams will obviously have to go heavy on offense in the coming draft and holding on to defensive stars will be a priority. It will be interesting to see how much Johnson can leverage the situation but he’d be an excellent pick up for the Saints if the Rams are forced to spend elsewhere.

Prince Amukamara, Jacksonville Jaguars, Age 27, PFF Rating 76.6

Amukamara has had an up and down NFL career since entering the league with the New York Giants out of the University of Nebraska.

He’s still fast and has solid coverage skills. But he’ll expect something similar to what Jacksonville is likely to consider paying him, if he’s to sign with another team. That’s in the neighborhood of $3 million a year.

Certainly in the Saints affordability range and a player who could add valuable depth and experience. But is he an upgrade over anything the Saints can currently field?

If he can be had for value then the Saints should bring him in. But in free agency, there’s always the likelihood that there’s a team out there willing to overspend. The Saints need to avoid reaching for a player like Amukamara whose skill level may be near what they already have in Williams and Breaux.

Captain Munnerlyn, Minnesota Vikings, Age 28, PFF Rating 75.5

28 is getting up there for a position that relies heavily on speed and Munnerlyn isn’t getting any younger but he could bring a lot to the table.

The Mobile, Alabama native prepped at Murphy High School and played collegiately for Steve Spurrier at South Carolina. He was a 7th round draft pick by the Carolina Panthers in 2009 and has provided value far past what one would expect from a 7th rounder.

Like Nick Fairley who came to the Saints in order to be closer to home, Captain Munnerlyn could bring a similar value for the Black and Gold. Just a short couple of hours down the I-10 from friends and family.

Throughout his time in the NFL Munnerlyn has been a solid starter though never considered a lock-down corner or anybody’s number one. But for a good price, he could bring depth and veteran leadership to a unit in need of it.

If the Saints play their cards right they could have Munnerlyn along with a higher dollar cornerback target to secure the backfield for the next few years at least.

Dre Kirkpatrick, Cincinnati Bengals, Age 27, PFF Rating 74.7

Taken in the first round of the 2012 NFL Draft, Kirkpatrick has rarely lived up to that kind of level of play. Being part of a Nick Saban defense has a way of inflating draft value.

But at 6’2″, the rangy Kirkpatrick does have solid cover skills and turned in three interceptions for the Bengals in 2016.

In a recent interview with the Cincinnati Enquirer, when asked about the prospect of leaving the Bengals, Kirkpatrick stated, “At the end of the day, you’ve got to face reality. It’s a life-changing experience. You may move. I met my girlfriend in Cincinnati. Her whole family’s here. I’ve grown to call this home. I don’t even go home in the offseason. I stay here, so that’s the scary part about it.”

But Kirkpatrick pulled in $7 million in 2016 and finished the season ranked as the 53rd best corner in the league by PFF. That kind of money surely won’t be coming again in Cincy. Kirkpatrick is from Gadsden, Alabama which is in the middle of Titans and Falcons country. But he obviously isn’t concerned with home ties.

So, could he be lured away to New Orleans? I don’t know if etoufee and jambalaya are as enticing to someone like Kirkpatrick as Skyline Chili. But the Saints should do what they can to try to secure his services at a bargain price.

Roy Anderson is a WhoDatDish contributor and host of the daily New Orleans Saints podcast Locked on Saints available on Google Play, iTunes, Stitcher, Audioboom.com, and TuneIn