The question of Bradberry

[top dawg]

After reading Panthers Wire this morning , I am a little more frustrated with what to think of James Bradberry's future as a CB for the Panthers. I mean, he plays great sometimes, amid chunk plays. I hate to be a broken record of continued criticism about his lack of consistency, but it is what it is. I probably would have given up on him already---as far as being anything more than he has been---but unlike other players who have been the target of my criticism to the point of no return (who shall remain nameless), Bradberry actually plays like a top guy at his position for marked periods of time (however inconsistent). So, basically there's hope. Sure, there are questions regarding Bradberry's level of play and whether or not he is good enough. I mean, acquiring a guy who actually is a top corner---via draft in particular---is always the goal. But Bradberry isn't a dog by any means. He was graded as an "above average" corner by Pro Football Focus (mind you, not "elite," "high quality" or even "good").  He didn't even make PFF's top 25 list this past season, and let's not forget that in 2017 (#60), Bradberry was graded as  "poor," and rightfully so as far as I'm concerned. That being said, I think that the most practical question is, like the Panthers Wire article gets to in so many words, is "How much is Bradberry worth?"

I was skeptical of Bradberry in a thread (that I started) during the season, and my skepticism was based upon his lack of consistency. And, honestly, his game didn't really evolve from that perspective. 

 

"Bradberry has had his moments for sure, occasionally shutting down some of the league’s best wide receivers one on one. However, he has also given up a lot of chunk plays and ball skills aren’t the only area he needs to work on.

"According to an analysis by James Koh, Bradberry is only the 14th best cornerback in the league right now based on a combination of seven different Next Gen Stats. His 2018 numbers were all over the place.

"On the bright side, Bradberry only allowed a 48.6 percent catch rate, which was the third lowest in the league. He also only allowed an average of two yards of separation at target, which was better than any other cornerback in the NFL last year.

Now for the bad news: Bradberry gave up seven touchdowns in coverage, which was two more than any of the other 24 corners on the list. All those scores ballooned his passer rating against, which came out to 92.1, ranking him No. 19."

 

Now one would hope that Bradberry's fourth year will bring about that consistency whereby he is considered as a true top corner in the league, and in such a way that is supported by stats. Perhaps being allowed to press and be more physical---putting Bradberry in a better position to play to his strengths like Rivera said---and putting more of an emphasis on ball skills will be Bradberry's tipping point toward greatness. At least he will have that going for him, thus giving fans more hope. But the questions still remain as to whether or not we should try and extend him now and at what cost, or whether it would be more prudent, if not necessarily more practical, to wait and see what Bradberry does the coming season---much like we did with Funchess last season---and then decide how much he really is worth from there. Sure, it may be a risk, but it may be a risk worth taking. I would think that it would be practical to test the waters with a middling deal this summer---one fitting in with what he has actually earned---and roll the dice a little bit if Bradberry is unreceptive to a deal beneficial to both sides.  I am pretty much in lockstep with the guys at Panthers Wire when talking about a "mid-level" deal.

 

"Bradberry may or may not ever turn into a true star, but that kind of deal at least won’t be one the team comes to regret."

Of course they were discussing it in terms of seeing what he does this coming season, but I don't think it would hurt now. It basically just comes down to the money. If he doesn't improve---is what he is---then you make his eventual replacement a priority in the coming drafts. A modest deal for modest play, shouldn't hurt us that bad either way...hopefully. I guess, if we are proponents of trying to lock him up at CB2 money before camp, the other question that has some degree of cap implications is, "Are you willing to accept Bradberry as he is now, if that's as good as it gets?" 

[jb2288]

3 minutes ago, top dawg said:

 

"According to an analysis by James Koh, Bradberry is only the 14th best cornerback in the league right now based on a combination of seven different Next Gen Stats. His 2018 numbers were all over the place.

 

Man that's enough for me. You don't 'give up' on the 14th best corner in the league. Especially since you generally need 3 in the modern NFL

[Ship]

I think he's gonna look better this season. Playing press and with a better pass rush, I think he's gonna be top 10 (a reasonable jump from 14). I'd rather lock him up before the season at a reasonable rate than wait til the season plays out and have to pay him a premium/market competitive rate and then have to worry about Donte coming up behind him and improving.

Bradberry is either gonna be a stud CB1 or a high level CB2 after this year. I think that's worth locking up for sure.

I knew I loved Bradberry when he had Mike Thomas throwing a fit one game last year. The dude couldn't handle not getting a catch on him for most of the game and tried to push him after he finally got one.

[top dawg]

7 minutes ago, jb2288 said:

Man that's enough for me. You don't 'give up' on the 14th best corner in the league. Especially since you generally need 3 in the modern NFL

Perhaps, but do you pay him now, or later? Plus, you must remember that Next Gen stats aren't the only means of grading. Probably the number one analytics grading comes from PFF (to the dismay of some). 

[RumHam]

U pay him later

[jb2288]

Just now, top dawg said:

Perhaps, but do you pay him now, or later? Plus, you must remember that Next Gen stats aren't the only means of grading. Probably the number one analytics grading comes from PFF (to the dismay of some). 

I definitely think pay him now. If he was decent last year with the 27th best pass rush and we're expecting the pass rush to take a massive step forward this year, he could explode. I'd love if we extend him ASAP and then keep Shaq more on a see and evaluate thing through the season. 

[Ship]

If you pay him at all, you pay him now. Otherwise, it's just more expensive.

[Ricky Spanish]

I think Bradberry is different than Funchess. 

Bradberry has actually stepped up when thrown into the deep end on numerous occasions, whereas Funchess really never elevated his game. Bradberry's inconsistencies seem to fall more under scheme and situations he is put in, rather than lack of ability. 

He's a damn solid starting CB in the NFL, and it would be hard to replace his level of play on the open market and we'd most likely be worse without him. If he could actually get turnovers, he'd be a top corner in the league. but as of right now, he's solid, and should be paid like it. 

[CRA]

Bradberry IMO is the definition of the type player Hurney has always struggled with. 

[Captain Morgan]

Our pass rush sucked last year.  This year, James and DJax are going to look much better.  We've got 2 good ones.  Need to draft one more next year to give us the aforementioned 3 for the modern pass-happy NFL.

[top dawg]

6 minutes ago, Ship said:

If you pay him at all, you pay him now. Otherwise, it's just more expensive.

Is it? What's to say that his play in 2019 warrants more money than his play the last three years? 2019 could give more clarity, positive or negative, as to what he's really worth. If he is still playing at the same level, then he gets a commensurate contract in fitting with the salary cap. Of course, as you are perhaps suggesting, the market could go crazy (but I guess we could also make decisions based upon looming free agents).

[jb2288]

1 minute ago, Captain Morgan said:

Our pass rush sucked last year.  This year, James and DJax are going to look much better.  We've got 2 good ones.  Need to draft one more next year to give us the aforementioned 3 for the modern pass-happy NFL.

Don't sleep on Ross. We could actually be top 10 this year with our 3 starting CBs

[Seoul_Panther]

39 minutes ago, jb2288 said:

Man that's enough for me. You don't 'give up' on the 14th best corner in the league. Especially since you generally need 3 in the modern NFL

Exactly my thoughts. Among starting CBs-3 per team that’s 96 players. So this guy rated Bradbery 14th but he wasn’t considered even good? Something doesn’t add up there.

[top dawg]

5 minutes ago, Cracka McNasty said:

I think Bradberry is different than Funchess. 

Bradberry has actually stepped up when thrown into the deep end on numerous occasions, whereas Funchess really never elevated his game. Bradberry's inconsistencies seem to fall more under scheme and situations he is put in, rather than lack of ability. 

He's a damn solid starting CB in the NFL, and it would be hard to replace his level of play on the open market and we'd most likely be worse without him. If he could actually get turnovers, he'd be a top corner in the league. but as of right now, he's solid, and should be paid like it. 

I disagree about schemes somewhat. He has shown some outstanding ability in the past schemes. His biggest problem is consistency in my opinion, and I am personally not concerned with the interceptions as much as the TDs and chunk plays. Now I am not suggesting that he won't play better in other schemes, but what I will say is that in my opinion that's not really an excuse for his giving up big plays. Moreover, I don't know that his skills would be that hard to replace on the open market. I'd have to actually look at who is projected to be available before I agree with that claim.