The top cornerbacks in the 2025 NFL Draft, ranked

Ranking the top CBs in the 2025 NFL Draft with help from our experts.

The top cornerbacks in the 2025 NFL Draft class have star potential, while the next couple of tiers show the promise of players who will receive multiple contracts at the next level. This is a class that has the potential to be special when we look back on it a couple of years from now.

Normally you’d see a list of the ten best players at a position, but there were so many CBs receiving multiple votes, we’ve put numbers 11 to 20 in the list (but without blurbs). This is a deep cornerback class where we could see around 13-15 plays as soon as Year 1.

20. Tommi Hill, Nebraska
19. Nohl Williams, California
18. Jabbar Muhammad, Oregon
17. Zy Alexander, LSU
16. Bihal Kone, Western Michigan
15. Zah Frazier, UTSA
14. Cobee Bryant, Kansas
13. Quincy Riley, Louisville
12. Dorian Strong, Virginia Tech
11. Jacob Parrish, Kansas State

10. Denzel Burke, Ohio State

Burke blended in on a national championship defense. He’s a four-year senior who never really took his game to the next level, despite playing starter-level snaps in each season. This past year, Burke allowed 63 percent of his targets to be completed at nine yards per target. Each of those numbers are subpar.

Burke has a quick first step, and puts himself in relatively good position on most of his targets, but I tend to steer clear of cornerbacks who struggle to play the ball in the air. That’s Burke.

9. Darien Porter, Iowa State

Porter is the wild card of this cornerback class.

Why didn’t Porter play more?
Why does a player who has been at a school for six seasons still make elementary mistakes
Why would one of the best athletes in the draft, regardless of position, come off the field after making an interception?

There are more questions than answers for one of the most intriguing prospects in the class, which is why he’s ninth.

It feels weird to say a sixth-year player needs coaching. It’s more plausible that Porter is who he is at this point. Then again, Porter was a wide receiver at Iowa State prior to 2022. But oh man those highs are hiiigh. Most humans cannot do the athletic feats Porter is capable of. It’s no surprise that he was in the 89th percentile or better in four different categories at the NFL Combine.

There are “safer” players in the class with far less projection. However, it’s easy to see why a team would roll the dice on a player who is oozing with the kind of athleticism Porter is.

8. Azareye’h Thomas, Florida State

Thomas was as high as sixth and as low as 10 in our rankings. He slots in right on the average. Thomas checking in at eighth on the list is a testament to the depth of this cornerback class.

Let’s get to why he deserves to be a tier or two below the best of the best. Thomas tackles like a former Florida State DB from the late ‘80s. Thomas lunges headfirst into ball-carriers like he’s belly flopping into a swimming pool. There will also be a play or two a game where Thomas short circuits and decides to guard the wrong wide receiver. It’s bizarre.

I’d turn a blind eye to that, too, if I had a 6’1-1/2” cornerback who had bigger hands than 49ers All-Pro linebacker Fred Warner and changes directions like a Porsche maneuvering through rush hour traffic.

On a goal line fade against Miami last season, Thomas put himself in a position to get two hands on the ball. There was a play against Duke where Thomas pressed a Blue Devils receiver a few yards out of bounds.

Thomas didn’t run at Florida State’s Pro Day. He’s the kind of prospect teams generally gamble on late in the first round. Not being able to confirm his athleticism may prevent Thomas from being selected in the top 50.

There are no examples of opposing wide receivers pulling away from Thomas when they have a step on him. Any questions about his athleticism are answered within seconds of watching Thomas play. If you can teach him how to tackle, you’re dealing with a luxury sports car.

7. Trey Amos, Mississippi

One of our voters places Amos in his top four, but he barely made the top 10 for another voter. Most of his votes came at seven.

Ole Miss put Amos in a position to fail all season, and he responded to the challenge time and time again. There isn’t much to dislike about Amos’s game.

He was predominantly in press coverage, so you get to see everything from recovery speed playing the ball in the air. You can tell that Amos wants to be challenged. He did not shy away from trash talking after he made a play or letting you know once he did.

Amos is the “Steady Eddie” of this class. You know what you’re getting, he has a clear role in which he excels in, and if an NFL team uses him the same way the Rebels did, Amos will make this CB7 ranking look silly.

6. Benjamin Morrison, Notre Dame

Morrison was going in the top 20 of some mock drafts before suffering a hip injury. He’ll work out for pro scouts in Arizona a week before the draft.

It’ll be interesting to see how he tests, as Morrison was as lockdown of a cornerback as you could be. His role resembled Amos’s, as Notre Dame was comfortable leaving Morrison to fend for himself.

Morrison allowed a 39 percent completion percentage on 26 targets in 2024 and a 34 percent completion percentage on 41 targets in 2023, with three interceptions. It gets better.

As a true freshman, Morrison gave up a 31 percent completion percentage on 45 targets, but had six interceptions. During his career, Morrison broke up 30 passes compared to allowing four touchdowns. I understand the injury, but if you’ve watched college football over the years, you know Morrison has been as consistent as any player playing his position. That’s unlikely to change in the NFL.

5. Maxwell Hairston, Kentucky

Hairston is small, but tested absurdly well, and he moves as expected when you watch him. He trusts his speed and doesn’t give ground on underneath routes. The 4.28 40 shows up on double moves or when it’s time to turn and run. Hairston is more than a speedster playing cornerback, but you wonder how he’ll fare against better competition, or when matched up against 6’2” wideouts over 215 pounds that can out-muscle Hairston.

I’m a little lower on Hairston than most, but understand why NFL teams could find him and his coverage skills enticing. Hairston did secure one third-place vote in our rankings, but also came in eighth on one ballot.

4. Shavon Revel Jr., East Carolina

If Revel weren’t coming off an ACL injury, this is the player teams select in the first round every year.

His height-weight-speed are all elite. Check all those three boxes. Against Appalachian State, Revel Jr. had a pick-six that would be the top highlight for 99 percent of players. There are plays where he doesn’t let the wide receiver off the line of scrimmage.

At his best, Revel Jr. is in the face of the wide receiver. Regardless of who the receiver is, I’ll take my chances that Revel will not just win, but find a way to get his hands on the pass.

He wasn’t as comfortable playing off-coverage, which should come with more reps if needed. Then again, Revel Jr. looks like a top-15 when he’s in press coverage. Pro tip: Let him press, and be rewarded with a star.

3. Jahdae Barron, Texas

Barron tied with Shavon Revel for the most third-place votes, but he edged out his colleague with more fourth-place votes.

Barron is 5’10-3/4” and 194 pounds, both putting him below the 40th percentile. Barron’s 29 -/8” arms are in the third percentile, which might scare teams off. But he ran a 4.39 40-yard dash, which will make you forget all about his measurables.

Barron has played starter snaps in each of the past three years. This past season, he had four interceptions, seven pass breakups, and limited opposing wideouts to a 38 passer rating.

Barron was a slot cornerback in 2023 and moved out wide last season, where he played 500 of his 739 snaps. If you’re going to take a cornerback this early, he not only needs to possess blue chip athleticism, but he better have high-end film. Barron does.

We throw around cliches during draft season like “instincts,” but Barron lives around the ball. He’s a lot more physical than you’d expect, and can bait quarterbacks into mistakes. The fifth-year senior would be a plug-and-play starter.

2. Will Johnson, Michigan

Johnson was our unanimous selection as the second-best cornerback in the draft.

Johnson is the out of sight out of mind prospect of this class. He doesn’t lose in coverage. And when he does, the odds of you completing that 30-yard pass outside the numbers again are slim. Teams tried, and failed. Johnson proved for three years that throwing at him is a foolish thing to do.

During his career, Johnson gave up one touchdown on 100 targets in college. Teams tried to get cute and run double moves at him after failing at everything else. There are no sustainable ways to beat Johnson. I’ve never watched him and thought, “His speed will hurt him at the next level.”

Johnson is one of the best prospects in this class, regardless of position.

1. Travis Hunter, Colorado

Hunter was our unanimous choice for the top cornerback in the draft. He’s easily the most unique player in the draft. Hunter has the highest floor and ceiling of any player at any position in the draft, comfortably making him the best player in the draft.

Hunter only weighed 188 pounds, but his play strength resembles someone 10-15 pounds heavier. But if you’re going to be the top dog, you better have a transcendent trait.

If we were talking about wide receivers, I’d say Hunter had the ball skills of a Hall of Famer. I know we’re not supposed to compare players to Hall of Famers, but the way Hunter tracks, high points, and catches the ball reminds me of Larry Fitzgerald. Yeah, no pressure.

Now imagine the defensive version of that. Hunter found ways to get involved in the play. He’s a gambler, but that generally leads to positive outcomes for the defense. In 80 targets, Hunter allowed a completion percentage of 46 percent. He had four interceptions in 2024, but he could’ve doubled that with how often Hunter found a way to get his hands on the ball.

He’s a superstar.