Antoine Winfield is 34 years old and will be entering his 13th season when the NFL returns from the lockout. But Sam Monson of Pro Football Focus points out that despite his age the Vikings cornerback is still a very good player.
In fact, Monson writes that Winfield was one of the best corners in the NFL last season. This isn't to say Winfield is a shut down corner. The veteran spends much of his time playing in the slot in the nickel defense. But Monson's statistical analysis shows that Winfield's all-around game was one of the best in 2010.
Among the items Monson points out:
- Winfield led the NFL in cornerback stops (a tackle that constituted an offensive failure on the play) with 42, a ratio that betters plenty of linebackers.
- Winfield's 32 blitzes, including 17 in the Vikings' late-season victory in Philadelphia, resulted in seven pressures and two sacks.
- Winfield was one of only two cornerbacks to play more than 1,000 snaps without being penalized. Charles Woodson led the league, being called for 12 penalties despite being thrown at only 78 times (not all of the penalties were in coverage, but the more times a corner is attacked, the greater the chance he'll be beaten and give up a penalty rather than the big play.
- The longest reception Wifnield was beaten for last season was only 27 yards. He also didn't allow a touchdown reception all season, and while this next number is skewed slightly by the time he spends in the slot (slot corners allow a noticeably lower YPC figure than corners playing the edge), he allowed only 7.8 yards per reception last season. Only Asante Samuel, who allowed a ridiculous 7.4 yards per reception, bettered that mark.
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