Las Vegas Raiders: Three Cornerbacks worth targeting in the First Round

C.J Henderson – Florida

When it comes to pure man to man coverage, C.J. Henderson is next best after Jeffrey Okudah. Henderson is a tremendous athlete that absolutely blew up the combine running 4.3 with a 37.5 vertical and a 127″ broad jump. Add that to the fact that he is 6’1 and 204lbs, and you have the makings of a #1 cornerback.

On the field, Henderson can mirror and match, which is of a premium in the league. With the speed to stay with receivers on vertical routes and the fluid hips to break on intermediate to short routes, he has the full package in terms of man coverage.

Now the issue, especially from his 2019 tape, come in run support. And it isn’t necessarily that Henderson is incapable of tackling, he certainly has play strength as shown by his 20 reps on the bench at the combine. The effort is the issue for him, his performance against Miami in game one of the season was one of the saddest efforts you’ll ever see.

Obviously, coverage is the number one trait for a cornerback, but if you’re not willing to tackle, you will get exposed in the NFL.

So is Henderson going to show more consistent effort once he’s a professional?

He did have an ankle injury in 2019, so maybe that explains his effort level at times, but that is still a concern. His 2018 tape was no doubt top-10 worthy, so the talent is evident. And it wasn’t like he completely fell off in 2019, it is just wasn’t the year many expected.

The Raiders are certainly in need of someone with Henderson’s skill set, so it wouldn’t be surprising if he is high on their draft board. However, if they really want him, the ideal spot to draft Henderson is at 12. And that’s even assuming he falls that far. The Raiders also are in desperate need of a receiver, so if they are really high on Henderson, they’ll have a decision to make with their first pick.