2019 NFL Draft: Byron Murphy has a case as draft’s top cornerback

Former Washington cornerback Byron Murphy might not have the highest upside, but he could step in and start immediately in the NFL.

Washington’s Byron Murphy has long been considered one of the consensus top three cornerbacks in the 2019 NFL Draft class, accompanied by LSU’s Greedy Williams and Georgia’s Deandre Baker.

In his first year as a starter for Washington, Murphy put together a terrific redshirt sophomore season in Seattle, helping to lead the Huskies to a PAC-12 championship and a berth in the Rose Bowl. Murphy was an All PAC-12 and All-American performer in 2018.

He picked off six passes in 20 career games at Washington, flashing his potential as a ball-hawking corner. He has his flaws, but there’s a lot to like about Murphy as an NFL prospect. Placed in the right system, it’s not hard to see him making an immediate impact at the next level as a rookie.

Strengths 

With only one season of starting under his belt, Murphy is still a little bit raw with the technical aspects of playing cornerback. That only makes how prolific of a season he had in 2018 that much more impressive in my mind.

Murphy flashed impressive instincts. He has the potential to be a ball-hawking safety with his innate ability to play the ball in the air. A lot of corners have good ball skills. A lot of corners have good instincts to read the play ahead of time. Not many can do both. Murphy can.

His football I.Q. is high; he reads the quarterbacks eyes and isn’t afraid to gamble by jumping routes to try and come up with a takeaway. His best fit is playing in a zone defensive scheme that will allow him to sit back and rely on his instincts to make plays for the defense.

That doesn’t mean he’s relegated to only a zone scheme. He’s show plenty of promise in man coverage, and has the speed and play recognition to stick with receivers in one-on-one situations down the field.

Murphy’s best fit in the NFL might be as a slot corner. I think he might actually fit nicely as a hybrid slot corner/safety, which could take advantage of his versatility and put him in situations where he could feast. He’s shown a willingness and a knack for jumping in and making plays against the run, too, something he would be tasked with doing more of as a nickel.

He might not have Derwin James/Minkah Fitzpatrick upside from last year, but watching him on film it’s hard not to draw those comparisons.

Weaknesses 

Murphy lacks the ideal size at 5-foot-11 and 190 pounds, and while he is quick enough, he doesn’t have the elite speed to make up for the size disadvantage he will be at against bigger receivers. While working out of the slot is probably his best fit, he could find himself in mismatch situations with NFL teams consistently moving toward bigger slot receivers.

Murphy has trouble at times in press-coverage as he isn’t as physical at the line-of-scrimmage as he probably needs to be. He can get out-leveraged off the line, which causes him to immediately have to play from behind as the receiver runs free.

His ball-hawking ability sometimes comes at a price. He sometimes gets greedy and jumps routes, hoping to go for the home run play instead of settling for just trying to break up the pass or make the tackle.

Draft Expectations 

I think Murphy is probably the safest cornerback prospect in this class, but I still would be surprised if LSU’s Greedy Williams isn’t the first corner off the board this year. This isn’t a particularly strong crop of corners, so projecting where the top players might go is difficult.

It wouldn’t be a surprise to see teams reach for the likes of Williams and Murphy, if for no other reason than it’s a position of need and they aren’t enamored with any of the players down the draft board.

Both the Steelers and Seahawks at No. 21 and 22 could be intriguing fits for Murphy with their need for a corner. I imagine Seattle will be looking at various trade down scenarios, though, in order to increase their limited draft capital. The Raiders have two picks late in the first round at No. 24 and 27, and they could use one of those picks on some much needed secondary help.

I don’t think Murphy will fall further than the Chiefs at No. 29. That feels like his absolute floor.