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 was a very good cornerback prospect coming out – as bad as his run defense was – and while there are areas where he can continue to improve in coverage as well, he would have been an immediate #1 corner for most teams in the NFL, including the Jaguars, had he not suffered injuries to his groin and shoulder that cost him most of his rookie year. On tape in college, he certainly showed the upside to be one of the best cornerbacks in the NFL with time.
And that’s why the Panthers traded for him.
(Top Photo Via James Gilbert/Getty Images)
