Top 12 Cornerbacks of All Time

Who are the best cornerbacks of all time? That is a loaded question and depends on the criteria you measure them by. There have been countless cornerbacks throughout the history of the National Football League that have played the game at such a high level that the results of a big game, the outcome of a season, or even a rule have been changed as a result of their actions. With the 2023 Class, the Pro Football Hall of Fame has enshrined 23 cornerbacks among the legends housed there. This article \will look at the top CBs in several areas to recognize the best at the position.

The “Stoppers”

Our first group of cornerbacks were the ones that loved to tackle. These fellas would stick their shoulder pads into a ball carrier or a receiver, often with bone-jarring hits as they flew from their secondary positions to save field position.

This former Michigan Heisman winner may have saved his best football for the NFL as he played 18 productive seasons as a member of both the Raiders and Packers organizations. Woodson was a good balance of tangibles, recording 43 tackles for loss, 15.5 sacks, and 63 interceptions during his career.

This former Tampa Bay Buc loved to lay the lumber on a ball carrier, making himhe epitome of a Pro Corner stopping the man with the ball. Ronde ended up recording 969 solo tackles as part of 1153 combined stops, with 80 of those causing a loss of yardage for the offense.

---

The “Returners and Burners”

This next group of corners excelled at getting their hands on the ball and becoming a game-changer once they did. They flipped the field and even scored some points.

They did give him the nickname “Prime Time” for a good reason. When Sanders grabbed an errant pass, or often a good one too, he instantly changed the direction of a game. Deion’s 1187 interception return yards on 48 picks produced eight touchdowns for his teams.

This star cornerback of the Detroit Lions in the 1960s and 70s era had 1077 return yards off of interceptions, with 56 picks in only 140 games.

---

The “Ball-Hawks”

Our next category of great cornerbacks includes the guys on the secondary boundaries who had a nose for the ball and were the top corners in keeping the ball away from the offenses they opposed. 

This aggressive corner recorded 199 passes defended during his 16 seasons as an NFL player. The man was in demand as four franchises hired him for his pass-defense abilities, including the Cincinnati Bengals, Houston Texans, Arizona Cardinals, and Tennessee Titans.

Lucky Number 13 of the Cincinnati Bengals had to wait until 2023 to posthumously enter into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, but there is no doubt he deserves to be there. Riley hauled in 65 passes from the NFL quarterbacks he was defending against. This is enormous, considering that the NFL was a run-heavy league during his playing time. He had a career-high nine picks during the 1976 season and led the NFL with eight during his final year of playing in 1983.

Younger fans may remember Dick as one of the top defensive coordinators in the League, but long before that, he donned the jersey of the Detroit Lions and haunted quarterbacks with his nose for the ball. His 62 interceptions over 14 years and only 185 games give this corner an average of 1 picked pass every three games. Signal callers had a hard time throwing away from him because on the other side of Lion’s defense was another corner who liked to get his hands on the ball…

Lane started his NFL career in 1952 with the Los Angeles Rams and, as a rookie, stole 14 passes in just 12 games! The Night Train bettered his Lions secondary mate LeBeau by posting 68 career interceptions in just 157 games. If you add in the eleven fumbles, he recovered this turnover machine and got his team the ball early every other game. Talk about a lethal tandem of outside DBs for the Lions!

While playing for Washington and Denver over his productive 15-year career, Champ was at the best of both worlds in this category of ball-hawking. Mr. Bailey had 52 interceptions and defended a flat 200 passes thrown his way. It’s no wonder why he has a bust in Canton, made three Al-Pro teams, and played in twelve Pro Bowls.

---

The Guys with the Hardware

Another way to look at the success of a corner is by the accolades and trophies he has.

There is no “I” in “team,” but Adderley was a future Hall of Fame rock star at corner for the Lombardi-era Packers and later the Cowboys. He played on five NFL Championship teams and three additional Super Bowl Championships while making First Team All-Pro five times and anchoring the secondary on the Hall of Fame All-1960s decade team. It is hard to leave him off of any list.

Rod Woodson was not a cornerback for his entire career; he did play safety in the latter years; however, his 71 career interceptions, five First-team All-Pro selections, and 11 Pro Bowls (7 of them while in Pittsburgh as a cornerback) more than qualify him for this list.

This legendary DB also has his bust in Canton and earned 5 First-Team All-Por honors. His career in Denver and Oakland garnered Willie a Super Bowl ring and AFL Championship, with 9 Pro Bowl appearances.

Good things come by the dozen, and these are twelve of the top corners in pro football history, not compared to each other but presented to you by the work they did on the field on Sunday afternoons. No one rose to the top the same as another, but they are genuinely the greatest cornerbacks of all time. Being the best at the position of cornerback is in the eye of the beholder, and how the stats are examined compared to that team’s needs at the time. You are invited to try using the vast information housed here at Pro-Football-Reference to find the legends of the gridiron.

---

FAQs

---

Join our Sports Reference Community

Of Statheads:

Subscribe to Stathead, the most powerful research tools in sports, and find any player, team, season, game, and any play. With over 80 different search tools for baseball, basketball, football, and hockey, you’ve got infinite answers at your finger tips.

With Our Email Newsletters:

Sign up for our newsletter and get curated stats, recaps, and more from the Pro Football Reference to your inbox every morning. No commitment, unsubscribe at any time.

On Social Media:

Stay connected with Pro Football Reference on social media! Bringing you stats, trivia, and more on all our channels daily.

Twitter – Instagram – Facebook – TikTok – YouTube – Reddit – LinkedIn

Follow the rest of the Sports Reference sites on social here.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, March 1st, 2023 at 3:53 pm and is filed under Top Lists. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.