The New England Patriots swapped cornerbacks in and out of the top defense during minicamp. J.C. Jackson spent time with Jalen Mills, Jonathan Jones and Myles Bryant, among others. That’s typical for New England, which generally seems more concerned with teaching every player the playbook and the fundamentals — rather than establishing a pecking order on the depth chart.
At least, that’s in the spring. It’s different in the summer.
When training camp arrives, the Patriots will prioritize projected starters. New England will begin to establish its top group of cornerbacks (and starters at every position). With Stephon Gilmore, who skipped minicamp over a contract dispute, potentially set to sit out the start of training camp if he doesn’t get a new deal, the team will be putting increased pressure on Jackson. He was the team’s top cornerback when Gilmore suffered a quad injury during the final five games of last season.
It was one thing for Jackson to have emerged as one of the league’s premier No. 2 cornerbacks. It’s another thing for him to take over as CB1. In his first three seasons, Jackson has quickly proven himself as one of New England’s must trustworthy defenders in coverage. But that was against the second-best option in each offense. His PFF grade (69.5) shows that he was a solid cornerback, but he was far from the best. Gilmore, meanwhile, was the best cornerback in the NFL in 2019 when he won Defensive Player of the Year. In 2020, he was still among the top five. And that’s roughly what New England will need from its top cornerback.
If Gilmore intends to hold out, the Patriots will look to Jackson. To this point, he has yet to demonstrate he’s a true shutdown cornerback against the best receivers in the NFL. That’s what training camp will be for. He’ll match up against the Patriots’ top targets with an underlying question: Can he replace Gilmore if New England needs to part ways with the perennial Pro Bowl cornerback?
