The Dallas Cowboys really wanted a cornerback 2021 NFL Draft. When they both missed Patrick Sartain II and Jesse Horn in the first round, they decided to roll the dice on Kentucky’s risk/reward corner, Kelvin Joseph. From a sporting point of view, Joseph was an interesting choice. He had a 4.34 pace and was moved to deal with trick receivers. He also brought the ability to show off and playmaking to the position so one could explain why he was chosen so early on.
However, the downside was that Joseph had limited college experience. He fell out of favor during his only year at LSU And he was suspended for the bowl game. He then missed the entire 2019 season as he sat in the transfer gate before joining Kentucky in 2020. Ultimately, he entered the NFL with just 20 college games under his belt, so he was expected to endure some growing pains early in life. Professional life.
Fast forward two years and Joseph’s progress is not where we hoped he would be. He’s only had six games where he hit more than 20 defensive snaps and all of those instances were either in upset wins where coaches could experiment, or where they had a legitimate need after the downfalls of Anthony Brown and Jordan Lewis. Even with the team desperate for his services, he’s still benched after showing himself plenty of responsibility during the Cowboys’ 40-34 overtime loss to Jacksonville last year. Joseph scored just two more defensive points over the team’s last five games last year.
With things not going according to plan, the Cowboys had to make other arrangements at the cornerback. Fortunately, they seemed to land last year’s fifth round pick from Fresno State, Da Ron Bland. The rookie played in all 17 games last year, and he’s already outlasted the Cowboys’ second-day picks (Joseph Winshun Wright) of 2021 despite playing one season less.
Total defensive shots…
Daron Bland in one season = 596
Calvin Joseph and Nahshon Wright in two seasons = 549Total objections…
DaRon Bland in one season = 5
Calvin Joseph and Nahshon Wright in two seasons = 1– Dan Rogers (@DannyPhantom24) May 26, 2023
The Cowboys also traded for the services of veteran cornerback Stephon Gilmore for at least the 2023 season. The starting cornerback group now consists of Diggs, Gilmore, and Bland.
With the starters already determined, the Cowboys just need to know their depth. Will Joseph continue to be a part of that? He’s only in the middle of a rookie deal, so there’s still plenty of time for the team to get some kind of value from this pick. It was recently reported that the team has been experimenting with playing Joseph in the slot and working it safe. Could an attitude switch be in his future?
Cowboys CB Kelvin Joseph saw action in a nickel spot. He broke up one pass intended for WR KaVontae Turpin during the team’s second 7-on-7 run. He would have had a hit the next play but was laid off here in the spring, showing interest in Mike McCarthy’s pocketbook. pic.twitter.com/m0foda8UtG
– Michael Gilken (GehlkenNFL) May 25, 2023
The news of him working in the role is interesting as some fans are once again starting to get a little excited about what he’s up to. He was a four-star safety recruit coming out of high school, with great speed and gruff to cover plenty of ground in center field. Plus, he doesn’t have the size and physicality to press well and use the boundaries to his advantage, so we can understand why the Cowboys would want to take him out on the outside.
However, there are also a few reasons why this idea might not be a good idea. When you look at his tape from last year, there isn’t a whole lot we’ve seen that warrants moving him to safety. Here are my notes from the 2022 season.
- Happy feet, restless, good work reflects
- Not physical off the snap and doesn’t block receivers well
- Manual checks all over the way
- Struggles to communicate not where it’s supposed to be often
- He has the athleticism to change direction, but his mental processing lags and he is always a step behind
- Terrible hack, lazy effort at times
- Lots of good reps as he smothers WR, but one mental gag and he’s toast, he’s a big play waiting to happen
Breaking down his strengths and weaknesses, it’s hard to see that moving indoors would make much sense. Playing in the slot requires more mental processing because he will be closer to the line of scrimmage and will need to be quick to react to running plays. He would also need to be a good opening player, which he isn’t. Playing it safe will give him a little extra processing time, but it also means he needs to have high level communication and good recovery ability, which again are not his strengths.
We may recall that the Cowboys tinkered with where they would play Anthony Brown during his third season after he struggled on the outside during his second year in the league. They moved him into a slot and it turned out to be a great move as the Browns finished the year with a tight target percentage of 34.5%, good for fourth-best in the league, one point ahead of Jalen Ramsey. Such a move hid his weaknesses such as his gravitas at the top of the tracks, and he exploited his strengths such as closing speed and energetic passing ability. This allowed them to take advantage of his sport. Joseph has the same strengths and weaknesses.
Ultimately, The Cowboys brought Brown back out of necessity and it’s been a roller coaster ride ever since, but it shouldn’t be forgotten that he was a good cornerback when he was packaged with Byron Jones and Chidobe Awuzie.
Of course, just because Brown has success in the slot doesn’t mean Joseph will. To Brown’s credit he had good field awareness and is a much smarter handler than Joseph. While it’s interesting to see what Joseph can do as a nickel angler, we shouldn’t hold our breath that this experiment will yield positive results.
It’s also worth noting that the Cowboys have an abundance of slot corners in Bland, Lewis, and even Israel Mokwamo. They also have strong safety talent in Jayron Kearse, Malik Hooker, and Donovan Wilson as those three are usually on the field quite a bit. To think that Joseph would play well enough in the slot to displace these other defensive backs for some reps seems a little optimistic. Ultimately, this may be the coaching staff’s way of giving him one last chance to see if he can provide value for this Cowboys defense.