One of the most shocking developments from the 2018 season for the Raiders was the improvement of former first-round pick Gareon Conley. For the first half of the season, Conley hardly played, and it was believed across the league that he was available at the trade deadline.
But in the second half of the season, something clicked for Conley. He was finally healthy and quickly turned into one of the best cornerbacks in the entire NFL. His best performances came against the likes of Antonio Brown and Tyreek Hill, who each had their worst performances of the season with Conley in coverage.
According to Pro Football Focus, only two cornerbacks in the league (Stephon Gilmore and Marlon Humphrey) had a higher forced incompletion rate than Conley.
If Conley can continue on this career arc, it won’t be long before he is considered one of the best cornerbacks in the entire league. He has already proven that he can make plays on the ball, but now it’s up to him to show that he can stay healthy for an entire season. If that happens, the sky is the limit for the third-year cornerback from Ohio State.
