2025 NFL cornerback rankings ahead of Week 2

• Josh Jobe steps up against the 49ers in Week 1: The Seahawks cornerback was targeted five times, allowing just one catch for 1 yard, forcing an incompletion and recording his second career interception.

• Will Johnson hits the ground running: In one of the strongest rookie cornerback debuts in recent memory, Johnson was tested early and responded with poise. He allowed four catches on seven targets for just 32 yards while forcing three incompletions.

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If quarterback is the most important position on the football field, then limiting the effectiveness of that player is the most important thing a defense can do.

A team can do this in two ways: It can pressure the passer to disrupt his timing, rhythm and accuracy, or it can shut down the opposing receivers.

Each week, after every NFL game is graded and reviewed, PFF will check in on the top cornerbacks of the 2025 season. These rankings will drastically change over the first month, as one interception, one missed tackle or one deep completion can dramatically alter a player's grade when the sample size is small. But as snap counts rise, the grades will stabilize and we'll get a clearer picture of the league's best cornerbacks. 

Last year, these rankings utilized PFF All-Coverage charting and data to rank the cornerbacks while providing insights into PFF coverage grades and our Successful Coverage Over Expected (SCOE) metric, which measures how well each coverage defender performed above expected on non-targeted coverage snaps.

We grade every coverage defender’s ability to prevent separation, whether they are targeted on the play or not. These rankings utilize play-level normalization and expectation adjustments. After all, matching up with a receiver is more difficult than covering a running back, and playing man coverage is typically more difficult than matching in a zone.

Here are the top 32 cornerbacks in PFF’s advanced coverage grade after Week 1 for the 2025 season.

Rank	2024 Rank	Player	Team	Pos Grade Rate	EPA/ Target	PFF Cov Grade	Adv. Cov. Grade
1	92	Josh Jobe	SEA	83.87%	-0.631	90.2	2.601
2	–	Will Johnson	ARZ	87.88%	0.381	90.3	2.537
3	33	Cooper DeJean	PHI	81.25%	-1.334	74.5	2.386
4	1	Trent McDuffie	KC	83.33%	-0.007	69.0	2.254
5	–	Chidobe Awuzie	BLT	85.37%	-0.231	74.0	2.035
6	96	Max Melton	ARZ	79.07%	0.177	72.6	1.957
7	19	Jamel Dean	TB	76.74%	-0.207	59.2	1.918
8	70	DJ Turner II	CIN	79.31%	-1.336	69.6	1.833
9	32	Carrington Valentine	GB	76.47%	0.093	71.7	1.724
10	51	Marshon Lattimore	WAS	86.49%	-0.396	68.2	1.721
11	22	Tyson Campbell	JAX	89.47%	-0.708	67.2	1.690
12	2	Pat Surtain II	DEN	74.19%	-1.014	71.0	1.679
13	44	Kool-Aid McKinstry	NO	86.21%	0.761	63.8	1.572
14	–	Jacob Parrish	TB	85.29%	0.561	75.7	1.545
15	45	Tarheeb Still	LAC	78.95%	1.495	70.7	1.445
16	65	Mike Sainristil	WAS	78.38%	-1.024	61.2	1.402
17	43	Riley Moss	DEN	75.76%	-0.377	77.4	1.401
18	102	Donte Jackson	LAC	76.67%	-0.362	78.0	1.358
19	6	Garrett Williams	ARZ	85.00%	0.152	64.9	1.318
20	31	Zyon McCollum	TB	82.22%	-0.114	72.8	1.255
21	7	Jourdan Lewis	JAX	83.33%	-0.525	64.5	1.111
22	53	Keisean Nixon	GB	82.35%	0.402	65.2	1.080
23	93	Charvarius Ward	IND	83.33%	0.092	76.6	1.073
24	21	Carlton Davis III	NE	77.14%	-0.619	56.3	0.973
25	54	Andru Phillips	NYG	66.67%	0.015	54.1	0.845
26	16	A.J. Terrell	ATL	75.00%	-0.237	64.4	0.829
27	9	Sauce Gardner	NYJ	95.83%	-0.429	90.5	0.811
28	4	Marlon Humphrey	BLT	72.73%	0.330	52.7	0.702
29	–	Kyu Blu Kelly	LV	81.82%	0.957	67.6	0.654
30	94	Paulson Adebo	NYG	71.43%	-0.037	54.6	0.532
31	–	Trey Amos	WAS	77.78%	0.368	57.8	0.446
32	35	Kamari Lassiter	HST	74.19%	0.449	57.8	0.434

Best overall coverage defender: Josh Jobe, Seattle Seahawks

An undrafted Alabama product in 2022, Josh Jobe saw limited action as a rookie before stepping into a more meaningful role in 2023. After signing with Seattle in 2024, he was thrust into a starting role by Week 7. Before Sunday, Jobe had never earned a PFF coverage grade above 75.5 in a single game and had graded above 60.0 just four times in his career.

Against the 49ers in Week 1, Jobe delivered a breakout performance. He was targeted five times, allowing just one catch for 1 yard, forcing an incompletion and recording his second career interception. He locked down his receiver on 71.4% of targets — fifth-best among corners — and posted an 83.9% positive grade rate, which would rank first for the entire 2024 season. His 90.2 coverage grade trailed only two players in Week 1, a stellar debut for a player who finished 92nd in PFF’s end-of-season cornerback rankings last year.

Highest PFF graded coverage defender: Sauce Gardner, New York Jets

Gardner opened the season with a dominant performance in coverage. Targeted four times, he forced two incompletions and nearly added a third, only to see a deflection off Jonnu Smith’s arms fall into the hands of DK Metcalf for a fluke reception after Gardner broke up the initial pass.

According to PFF’s All-Coverage data, Gardner posted a 92.3% lockdown rate — best in the NFL by more than 13% — and a 95.8% positive grade rate, second-best of the week. The only thing keeping his advanced coverage grade from ranking even higher is a quirk in the formula that adjusts for informative snap counts. And because the Steelers ran so many screen passes, Gardner’s advanced coverage grade takes a hit for week 1.

Most forced incompletions: Jamel Dean, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

It was a busy day for Jamel Dean, who saw 10 targets in coverage, tied for the most among cornerbacks in Week 1. He made the most of it, forcing four incompletions for a stellar 40% forced incompletion rate. Dean allowed five catches for just 51 yards and three first downs, limiting damage despite the heavy workload.

One of the NFL’s most consistent corners since entering the league in 2019, Dean’s high target volume is something to monitor moving forward, especially if opponents continue to challenge him at this rate.

Most pass stops: Javon Bullard, Green Bay Packers; Tarheeb Still, Los Angeles Chargers; Roger McCreary, Tennessee Titans; Chidobe Awuzie, Baltimore Ravens

Pass stops are often one of the more hotly contested metrics early in the season, and 2025 is no different—with four players tied at the top through Week 1 with three stops each (defined as tackles that result in a short gain or prevent a conversion on third or fourth down).

Some corners rack up stops through sheer volume — players such as Javon Bullard, who led the NFL with 11 targets in Week 1. Others make the most of limited chances, as Roger McCreary and Cam Still did with fewer looks in their direction. As with last year, a clear leader likely won’t emerge until deeper into the season.

Lowest EPA per target allowed: Nahshon Wright, Chicago Bears

A pick-six is one of the quickest ways to slash your EPA allowed, and that’s exactly what Wright delivered on Monday Night Football against his former team. Wright was targeted four times, allowing just one catch for 28 yards. The highlight, of course, was his interception returned for a touchdown, capping off a statement performance in his 2025 debut.

Top-Ranked Rookie in Advanced Coverage Grade: Will Johnson, Arizona Cardinals

In one of the strongest rookie cornerback debuts in recent memory, Johnson was tested early and responded with poise. He allowed four catches on seven targets for just 32 yards while forcing three incompletions. Johnson consistently blanketed receivers, posting a 62.5% lockdown rate and an elite 87.9% positive grade rate in coverage.

He finished second among all cornerbacks in both PFF grade and advanced coverage grade in Week 1—an encouraging start that suggests he and fellow standout Garrett Williams could soon form one of the NFL’s top cornerback duos.