Run Defense
There’s really no way of getting around this – CJ Henderson is not a very good tackler. He does a really poor job of setting his feet:
He doesn’t square his shoulders effectively:
And he needs to be far better at judging when is a sensible time to leave his feet:
He doesn’t completely lack willingness, as he does make some nice plays from time to time:
And certainly showed willingness when used on blitzes from the secondary:
But there were definitely times on tape where he wasn’t exactly champing at the bit to get engaged on the play:
At the end of the day, cornerbacks don’t need to be great tacklers for them to be successful, but they need to be better than Henderson has been – to not be a vulnerability against the run. It won’t take much coaching to get Henderson better as a tackler, but he will need to show the willingness and coachability needed to make such improvements; without them, he will always be a frustrating player to watch against the run, however good he is in coverage.
Henderson really is a very good cornerback prospect – as bad as his run defense is – and while there are areas where he can continue to improve in coverage as well, he should be an immediate #1 corner for most teams in the NFL, including the Panthers, and has the upside to be one of the best cornerbacks in the NFL with time. He might not be a top-10 players in most draft classes, but in a class as weak at the very top as this one, he should be a legitimate option for the Panthers at 7, as well as good value at any point after that, should they trade down.
Best-Case NFL Comparison: Brent Grimes
(Top Photo Via Kim Klement/USA Today Sports)
