The Denver Broncos are stacked with talent at cornerback.
Pat Surtain and Riley Moss are the team’s outside starters with Ja’Quan McMillian playing in the slot and up-and-coming youngster Kris Abrams-Draine providing depth. This spring, Denver used its first-round draft pick to add yet another cornerback, selecting Jahdae Barron out of Texas.
With PS2 and Moss in the two outside spots, where does Barron fit in?
“I remember us doing Malcolm Jenkins out of Ohio State, and he was a corner there,” coach Sean Payton said earlier this month. “He played outside boundary corner. Our vision was nickel for him in Year 1 with safety flex. Our vision I think with Jahdae is nickel with corner flex. So it’s pretty valuable if you can play outside, you can play inside.
“He’s very smart. As the game went on [in Arizona], he really got involved and made some really good plays. The vision for him is he has that ability to play inside, but also flex outside. His size is plenty big enough, and his speed and physicality. Those are all things that help him at that position.”
McMillian has been the team’s starting nickelback in preseason with Barron rotating him behind him. Payton was recently asked when the cornerback depth chart will be finalized.
“We have time, but by the time we get ready to play Tennessee, we’ll have a lineup, and nickel and penny,” Payton said. “We’ll have roles for these guys and how we see us wanting to play them.”
The nickelback is a fifth defensive back behind two safeties and two outside cornerbacks. McMillian has filled that role in recent seasons as the team’s slot cornerback. A “penny” lineup features just one linebacker and five DBs. Even if he does end up behind McMillian on the initial depth chart, Barron will have opportunities to get on the field.
“He’s been doing a great job,” defensive coordinator Vance Joseph said of Barron last week. “He’s a rookie, so he’s getting a bunch of looks he hadn’t seen. He’s making a lot of mistakes, but he’s correcting them quickly. Watching him play Saturday night, we saw the explosiveness, his strength at the point of attack. He can cover, he’s smart, and he can rush. Thus far, really good.”
It sounds like Barron will play primarily as a nickelback to begin his career, but he has the positional flexibility to also flex outside. Barron is set to make his (regular season) NFL debut when the Broncos host the Titans at Empower Field at Mile High on Sunday, Sept. 7 (view Denver’s full schedule).
Social: Follow Broncos Wire on Facebook and Twitter/X! Did you know: These 25 celebrities are Broncos fans.
This article originally appeared on Broncos Wire: Denver Broncos: Jahdae Barron will be a nickelback this season
