Redskins' Cornerback Justin Tryon
There is more good news for the Washington Redskins’ defense folks. One of the team’s young cornerbacks has made a top ten list.
Since the death of the much loved safety, Sean Taylor in 2007, who anchored a secondary feared by wide receivers all over the league, Washington’s secondary has been maligned and “re-maligned.” Over the last two seasons, emphasis has frequently been placed on safeties being burned by the double move and cornerbacks dropping sure interceptions.
But, Bill Barnwell, of ESPN’s Football Outsiders has ranked the 2010 NFL Prospects and Redskins’ cornerback Justin Tryon made the list at number five. The list is a rating of players who have been in the NFL but are not yet starters.
To make the list, the players had to meet certain criterion which was:
• Be in the second, third or fourth year of their pro career
• Drafted in Rounds 3 to 7 or signed as an undrafted free agent
• Started fewer than five career games in the NFL
• Still on their rookie contract
Barnwell used statistics gathered by the ESPN-created DVOA (explained) as well as scouting reports and other statistics.
Tryon deserves to start in the NFL based on Barnwell’s statistics which , among other things, show that the former ASU Sun Devil allowed just 5.8 adjusted yards per attempt, apparently nearly a half-yard better than any other corner on the team.
The second-year corner has shown flashes of his talent since he was drafted in the fourth round in 2008 – both during practices and on game day.
It will be interesting to see whether or not Tryon works himself into a starting job this year. Last season he was behind DeAngelo Hall on the depth chart. Additional competition in 2010 comes in the form of Phillip Buchanon, who joined the team this off-season and could have value on special teams.
Defensive coordinator Jim Haslett might have a problem in a couple of months: deciding which, of a group of talented cornerbacks, he must choose to cover Cowboys’ wide receiver Miles Austin on September 12th.
Redskins fans can live with that.
