It comes down to roster construction. Currently, going into training camp we have:
- Diggs: Pro bowler and lock to start on a rookie contract
- Gilmore: Pro bowler and lock to start on a team-friendly contract
- Bland: PFF graded him 71.9 with 5 interceptions on roughly 50% of snaps last season. Should improve as a 2nd-year player.
- Lewis: Solid slot corner that while can play outside, can be targeted because of height. 5m per season contract is cheap for the talent, but expensive if he's not locked into a starting role and he's got some health concerns with the foot
- Scott: A 6th-rounder rookie. Has been an OTA highlight running at times running with the starters, but obviously a 6th rounder has work to do to even play a rotational role on defense as a rookie and you can't really project that in June
- Wright: A former 3rd-round pick and ST player going into his 3rd year. He's improved and wasn't horrible as an outside corner late last season but further progress is needed to feel comfortable with him elevating to a regular rotational role
- Joseph: A former 2nd-round pick and good ST player also going into his 3rd year. The athletic ability and potential are there but he's been disappointing. He's been playing in the slot this pre-season and you'd like to see him succeed, but like Wright, he's running out of time and needs to show significant progress as he's been well off NFL standard.
- Mukuamu: A utility safety/ nickel corner and I think looked very good last season. IMO he's deserving of a coverage role on defense, but with the talent we have in the secondary it's probably a niche one covering bigger slot corners and TE's
- Goodwin: A special teams player and "in case of emergency" CB
It's possible we carry seven but to me, it's more probable that it's whittled down to six. Outside the top three, Lewis easily stands out to me as the only other option that has shown NFL level play as a corner, and his 5m dollar contract is a good price for what he's demonstrated in the past. The problem is that Lewis is injured, he's earning a bit more than you want to pay a backup, and he doesn't offer much on special teams (we have better return guys). Because of this, I think there are
two semi-realistic scenarios where Lewis does not make the roster:
- Scenario 1: Either Scott or Wright ball out in training camp and show enough that the coaching staff/front office feel sufficiently satisfied that they can cover outside corner (should an injury strike). In this scenario, I think Bland would then start as our slot corner, and if/when injury occurs, one of Wright/Scott plays on the outside, with Gilmore shifting to our primary slot corner. Not ideal but viable IMO. It's more of an it will do type solution.
- Scenario 2: The penny finally drops for Joseph and he balls out in training camp winning the backup role as a slot corner. I think that Joseph's cheaper contract, the two years left on it, and his special teams versatility mean that if it's close he gets the nod. There's a big leap required based on his past NFL performances, but I do think the coaching staff will be looking for him to convince them he can do the job. Because, If Joseph is viable, it gives a lot more flexibility in building the roster than carrying Lewis/Goodwin.
I still think Lewis is favorite to make the roster and he might even start ahead of Bland. Equally, I don't think it's that far-fetched that one of the above two scenarios occur and we are looking to trade or just cut Lewis as we lock in a 53 man roster.
