The 2023 All-NFC North Team: Slot Corner/Nickel

[swede700]

Finally able to get a few moments in while out of town...Ragnow was the big victor in the center battle, which should come as little surprise.  Up next, the starting slot corner. Since Byron Murphy was elected as a starting outside corner, he is not an option to start in the slot here, so I picked another likely Viking to be their option.

 

All-NFC North Team

Offense

QB (1): Kirk Cousins (Min)

RB (1): Aaron Jones (GB)

WR (3): Justin Jefferson (Min), Amon-Ra St. Brown (Det), DJ Moore (Chi)

TE (1):

LT: Christian Darrisaw (Min)

LG:

C : Frank Ragnow (Det)

RG: Nate Davis (Chi)

RT: Penei Sewell (Det)

Defense

DE/Edge (2): Danielle Hunter (Min), Aidan Hutchinson (Det)

DT (2): Kenny Clark (GB), Harrison Phillips (Min)

LB (2): Tremaine Edmunds (Chi), D'Vondre Campbell (GB)

S (2):

CB (2): Jaire Alexander (GB), Byron Murphy, Jr (Min)

Nickel:

Special Teams

K: Greg Joseph (Min)

P:

LS: Andrew DePaola (Min)

PR:

KR: Kene Nwangwu (Min)

[SteelKing728]

Eric Stokes is awful.

[Ozzy]

Who made this list?  Did Kyler Gordon even play the slot last year for the Bears?  I would guess Stevenson has more slot ability than Kyle Gordon and Gordon is better on the boundary in my opinion.

 

Jay Ward?  He is the starting slot for the Vikings?  I sure the hell hope not.  Blackmon has a better chance than he does and has more CB ability obviously, Ward was never a very good corner on LSU ever honestly.   Or if Evans is solid for the Vikings, Murphy will be the slot corner at times possibly if they can find another outside guy.  Ward I would be surprised but we will see.  Also if Bynum is replaced by Cine at safety he playing the slot could be an option.

 

Also doesn't Alexander for the Packers at time move around and play the slot depending on the other teams best WR?  Stokes can as well.

 

And again what the heck with the Lions, Gardner-Johnson played outside corner and safety, sure he could play the slot but freaking Moseley did it a lot more on the 49ers and is better than it, so he is the best slot corner in the division in my book who actually has done it and done well there.  Gardner-Johnson probably starts at outside corner for them since they have the young safety in Joseph and Walker coming back and drafting Brian Branch....  Damn they got way more DB depth than the Vikings do no doubt!

 

 

So my call Emmanuel Moseley and honestly his teammate Jerry Jacobs could be the 2nd best possibly in the division as a slot corner that is not an outside corner.

 

[JDBrocks]

Oh look, @Ozzy is talking about depth again in a poll specifically NOT about depth.

Read. I beg of you.

[Ozzy]

24 minutes ago, JDBrocks said:

Oh look, @Ozzy is talking about depth again in a poll specifically NOT about depth.

Read. I beg of you.

Say what you want man, pretty sure you were one of the many that were defending Chandon Sullivan before last season when I said the dude freaking sucked, and guess what he was quite bad last year.  The Vikings have a few guys who could maybe be slot corners but if many on this poll think Gardner-Johnson is best as a slot well, then clearly there is some misconceptions about what a slot corner actually is when the dude is a boundary CB or a Safety which is probably his better spot. Oh and if "Jay Ward" is the #1 slot CB on the Vikings, maybe it could happen but clearly there are others who are better and more experienced at it than he is.  

 

Keisean Nixon and Eric Stokes were both on this "slot corner/nickel" list, so clearly one is talking depth there a bit, why not with the Lions who have two very solid slot corners who have actually played slot corner a lot.

 

And yes the Lions secondary is in better shape than the Vikings and yeah it has to do with quality starters and depth, not sure how that is even a question.  

[JDBrocks]

29 minutes ago, Ozzy said:

Say what you want man, pretty sure you were one of the many that were defending Chandon Sullivan before last season when I said the dude freaking sucked, and guess what he was quite bad last year.  The Vikings have a few guys who could maybe be slot corners but if many on this poll think Gardner-Johnson is best as a slot well, then clearly there is some misconceptions about what a slot corner actually is when the dude is a boundary CB or a Safety which is probably his better spot. Oh and if "Jay Ward" is the #1 slot CB on the Vikings, maybe it could happen but clearly there are others who are better and more experienced at it than he is.  

 

Keisean Nixon and Eric Stokes were both on this "slot corner/nickel" list, so clearly one is talking depth there a bit, why not with the Lions who have two very solid slot corners who have actually played slot corner a lot.

 

And yes the Lions secondary is in better shape than the Vikings and yeah it has to do with quality starters and depth, not sure how that is even a question.  

I read the first sentence and stopped. You have an acute inability to stay on topic.

Start a thread about the Vikings having terrible depth if you want. Please stop turning these poll threads into a personal rant about positional depth in the division when they are literally and specifically about the opposite of that.

[Ozzy]

1 hour ago, JDBrocks said:

I read the first sentence and stopped. You have an acute inability to stay on topic.

Start a thread about the Vikings having terrible depth if you want. Please stop turning these poll threads into a personal rant about positional depth in the division when they are literally and specifically about the opposite of that.

Only way what I said is not a relevant discussion is if you do not know the players discussed, then yeah it means nothing.  Discussing who are the actual slot corners in the division and who are the best regardless, yeah that is relevant.  

 

You want to pretend the guys listed are the only five best slot corners in the division go ahead and do that.  Most likely two if not three of those five listed will not be slot corners next year.  

[JDBrocks]

There’s a category for other. Submit your vote.

[swede700]

Apparently @Ozzy also neglected to read this:  "Since Byron Murphy was elected as a starting outside corner, he is not an option to start in the slot here, so I picked another likely Viking to be their option."

I personally think Murphy will be the Vikings' primary slot, but he is also considered a starting outside corner here as well, so he's not available...and it's been surmised by several other sites that Jay Ward might end up as the nickel if Murphy is not there.

As far as Kyler Gordon, I honestly have no idea, but those that follow the Bears indicate that he is the likely starting slot corner as Stevenson is starting outside.  So, don't complain to me, complain to them...but I'm going to believe them over you.  

Nixon and Stokes were both listed not because of depth because they are competing to be the starting slot/nickel in camp and there is no clear person ahead at this point.  Some have said that Nixon is likely going to win the spot, but others have Stokes ahead as he was the original starting slot until another corner got injured and he moved outside...so I Iisted both. 

In the end, I make the options available based on the sites that actually follow the team, not national sites, not who started there last year, not my personal opinion (which I don't have on other teams), and not your personal opinion.  If you don't like the options, as JD indicated, there's an other option.  Use it.

[swede700]

Well, I guess we won't have to worry about Gardner-Johnson, his stay as the top starting slot/nickel in the NFC North is over...

 

[SemperFeist]

That’s too bad. Always hate seeing training camp injuries. 

[JDBrocks]

 

Might not be a bad one after all

[swede700]

5 minutes ago, JDBrocks said:

 

Might not be a bad one after all

Hopefully not, but it always seems that the non-contact injuries seem to be the worst ones.

Edited July 24, 2023 by swede700

[JDBrocks]

1 hour ago, JDBrocks said:

 

Might not be a bad one after all

 

 

[Ozzy]

6 hours ago, swede700 said:

Apparently @Ozzy also neglected to read this:  "Since Byron Murphy was elected as a starting outside corner, he is not an option to start in the slot here, so I picked another likely Viking to be their option."

I personally think Murphy will be the Vikings' primary slot, but he is also considered a starting outside corner here as well, so he's not available...and it's been surmised by several other sites that Jay Ward might end up as the nickel if Murphy is not there.

As far as Kyler Gordon, I honestly have no idea, but those that follow the Bears indicate that he is the likely starting slot corner as Stevenson is starting outside.  So, don't complain to me, complain to them...but I'm going to believe them over you.  

Nixon and Stokes were both listed not because of depth because they are competing to be the starting slot/nickel in camp and there is no clear person ahead at this point.  Some have said that Nixon is likely going to win the spot, but others have Stokes ahead as he was the original starting slot until another corner got injured and he moved outside...so I Iisted both. 

In the end, I make the options available based on the sites that actually follow the team, not national sites, not who started there last year, not my personal opinion (which I don't have on other teams), and not your personal opinion.  If you don't like the options, as JD indicated, there's an other option.  Use it.

What "other sites" had Jay Ward the starting slot corner?  I would be pretty shocked if Jay Ward is the starting slot corner when Mekhi Blackmon has more experience as an outside corner and a slot corner and was overall a better corner in every way.  Jay Ward is more of a coverage safety and that is probably where he ends up but if you are calling slot corners a third safety then Jay Ward is over Lewis Cine, that would really be sad.

 

And by the way when you say "nickel" what you are talking a third safety or a slot corner?  Because if you are calling slot corners/nickels a third safety curious that would not be Lewis Cine if he is any good.

 

As for Gordon, Stevenson was a slot/safety type for Georgia, played a little more outside for Miami but I would trust him more against quicker receivers and he is a little better tackler than Gordon who to me is better on the outside.  He has better change of direction than Gordon and again is a better tackler who is a bit more aggressive.

 

As for Gardner-Johnson, I would say he should be a safety first and 2nd would be a boundary corner.  They have Brian Branch who can play a little safety/slot potentially and did that a ton at Bama.  Not sure he has the quickness to stay with receivers though in the slot but is great as a tackler in the box as a drop down safety.  But they have Walker and Joseph who both could start at safety so they will have some issues playing them all but obviously depth is never a problem.    Honestly I would say Gardner-Johnson should be a boundary corner for them and Moseley be the slot or Jacobs like I said and both those two are better than any others arguably.

 

And I am aware as the "other" option, I said in my post who that other option was so obviously you did not read it.  

 

 

Just to me it is a totally jacked up list that did not include the two best pure slot corners in the division on the list, unless one is talking third safeties which apparently you might be.