Interceptions are far from the best arbiter of defensive back excellence. There are cornerbacks who pick off all kinds of passes, and that tends to obscure the plays they allow. Dallas Cowboys cornerback Trevon Diggs was an optimal example in 2021. The second-year man from Alabama had 11 interceptions, one of the highest single-season totals in pro football history — but he also allowed 27 catches on 101 targets for 1,068 yards, 453 yards after the catch, five touchdowns, and an opponent passer rating of 70.8.
It could easily be argued that Diggs’ 2022 season, in which through the first four weeks he allowed 14 catches on 25 targets for 156 yards, 63 yards after the catch, one touchdown, two interceptions, and a 54.8 opponent passer rating, to be the better season overall — at least, to start.
That said, we like our cornerbacks to grab interceptions. And in Sunday’s early slate of games, there was an absolute festival of picks taken by rookie cornerbacks. Five first-year cornerbacks had thefts n those games, and perhaps even more interestingly, there were three first-round cornerbacks with their first career interceptions… and two third-day picks who had already picked off passes earlier in the season.
Let’s go through all five of these plays, and look at how they happened.
(All charting metrics courtesy of Pro Football Focus).
Derek Stingley Jr., Houston Texans
Stingley, taken with the third overall pick out of LSU, had the Texans hoping they’d get the 2019 version of the rookie (the one who looked like a top-five pick) as opposed to the 2020 and 2021 versions (the ones who were far more inconsistent).
So far, so great. Pickett came into this game allowing 19 catches on 30 targets for 240 yards, 59 yards after the catch, no touchdowns, three pass breakups, and an opponent passer rating of 88.2. Against the Jaguars in a 13-6 Texans win, Stingley prevented Trevor Lawrence from throwing a touchdown pass to receiver Zay Jones with this outstanding leaping interception. It was a bad decision by Lawrence, because Stingley had it read from the word “go.”
Career INT #1 for #Texans first round pick Derek Stingley. pic.twitter.com/yEb9AtUc0p
— Dov Kleiman (@NFL_DovKleiman) October 9, 2022
Ahmad "Sauce" Gardner, New York Jets
You kind of knew that interceptions were going to come for Gardner, the fourth overall pick out of Cincinnati. Gardner’s primary issue through the first four games of the season was targets — opponents, for the most part, were pretty happy to avoid him. Gardner had allowed nine catches on just 19 targets for 101 yards, 23 yards after the catch, one touchdown, no picks, four pass breakups, and an opponent passer rating of 81.3.
Gardner finally got his first career interception against the Miami Dolphins and third-string quarterback Skylar Thompson. With Tua Tagovailoa and Teddy Bridgewater out with head injuries, Thompson was Miami’s final answer, and Gardner blew up this pass to receiver River Cracraft with authority. It was one highlight in the Jets’ 40-17 win over their AFC East opponent.
Sauce Gardner first career INT 🔒
pic.twitter.com/8IkWAy02hV— PFF (@PFF) October 9, 2022
Kaiir Elam, Buffalo Bills
The Bills took Elam out of Florida with the 23rd overall pick to reinforce a secondary that looked a lot better before the season than it did in-season, when injuries started to take their toll. No matter who was around him in that defensive backfield, Elam had done a lot to the Bills’ second-ranked defense. The rookie had allowed seven catches on 10 targets for 50 yards, 29 yards after the catch, no touchdowns, one pass breakup, and an opponent passer rating of 81.3.
Against the Steelers in a 38-3 Bills demolition, Elam foiled fellow rookie Kenny Pickett on this deep attempt to Diontae Johnson in which Elam seemed to have a better idea of where the ball was going than Johnson did.
Rookie Kaiir Elam with his first career INT 💪 #BillsMafia | #RatedRookie pic.twitter.com/GkF3DEOq0v
— The Draft Network (@TheDraftNetwork) October 9, 2022
Jack Jones, New England Patriots
Now, onto the later-round picks, and if you’ve been reading our weekly “Secret Superstars” articles this season, you’ll know about both of these guys. The Patriots stole Jones out of Arizona State in the fourth round, and all Jones did through the first four weeks of the season was to allow six catches on 11 targets for 86 yards, 46 yards after the catch, no touchdown, one interception, and an opponent passer rating of 42.2.
If you want to know how Bill Belichick feels about the rookie, consider that Jones’ snap counts went from 11 to 22 to 26 to 72 in the first four weeks.
Against the Lions in a 29-0 Patriots win, Jones got his second pick in as many weeks, exploiting Jared Goff’s pass to tight end T.J. Hockenson, and jumping the route.
Jack Jones w/ ANOTHER ONE! 🏈 pic.twitter.com/F9fJIUcpVb
— Darius Butler (@DariusJButler) October 9, 2022
Last week, Jones made it clear to the Packers that if you throw too many out routes in his general direction, you would regret it.
Perhaps we should now add intermediate boundary fades to that list.
Tariq Woolen, Seattle Seahawks
Another Secret Superstar from last week, Woolen has taken his 6-foot-4 size and 4.26 40-yard dash speed, and he’s blown by all the small-school concerns and questions about his technique at the NFL level. The University of Texas at San Antonio alum has taken full advantage of his doctorate studies at the University of Richard Sherman (Sherman is helping Seattle’s cornerbacks as a consultant this season) when it comes to using one’s height/weight/speed traits to one’s best advantage in coverage.
Those concerns left Woolen on the boards until the fifth round (just as they did for Sherman back in 2011), and it could be said that Woolen is getting the hang of the NFL even faster than Sherman did. Coming into Sunday’s game against the Saints, which Seattle lost 39-32 because its run defense got throttled, Woolen had allowed nine catches on 17 targets for 138 yards, 45 yards after the catch, no touchdowns, two interceptions, and an opponent passer rating of 40.4.
So, this pick of Andy Dalton on an attempt to Tre’Quan Smith was Woolen’s third interception in as many games. It would appear at this point that if the ball is anywhere near Tariq Woolen, he’ll claim ownership.
TARIQ WOOLEN GETTING HIMSELF A PICK ON THE DAY AGAIN!
📺: #SEAvsNO on FOX pic.twitter.com/bWvFNEeJ4W
— Seattle Seahawks (@Seahawks) October 9, 2022
