As the 2025 NFL Draft approaches, the cornerback position stands out as one that will heavily influence Round 1 and beyond. Who will draft Travis Hunter, Will Johnson, and Jahdae Barron, and who are the sleepers further down the board?
This CB class stacks up differently for every evaluator, and there are a vast variety of projections. Below, you’ll find our current top 10 CB rankings for the 2025 NFL Draft.
10) Maxwell Hairston, Kentucky
There’ll always be a place for elite speed on NFL defenses, and Maxwell Hairston brings that to the table. Hairston ran a 4.29 40-yard dash, pacing all players at the NFL Combine, and that closing speed shows up on tape, both in vertical trail and on click-and-close reps.
Hairston has the twitched-up foot speed and quickness to match in off-man and press, and his route recognition shows up as a strength in Cover 2 zone as well. There, he can use his diagnosis and torrid attacking range to hawk in front of passes.
At just 5’11”, 183 pounds, with 31″ arms, Hairston is slight and not overly long, and that build impacts his consistency in run support. He can also struggle with physicality at the line. But when he has cushion to work with, his speed and playmaking ability can be lethal.
9) Denzel Burke, Ohio State
Denzel Burke’s journey as an NFL Draft prospect has been a tumultuous one. He broke out as a freshman at Ohio State in 2021 and was included in way-too-early mocks from that point on. Since then, his stock has fizzled a bit, but he’s still an intriguing Day 2 option.
At 5’11”, 186 pounds, with 31 3/8″ arms, Burke’s size isn’t a separating factor, nor is his long speed. However, he counteracts that middling size profile with a terse upfield burst, solid recalibration quickness, fluidity, and the ball skills you’d expect from a former WR.
Burke may never become a high-end NFL starter without quantifiably elite traits, but he has the quickness and physicality to play man coverage, and he can vary his footwork and technique in zone and off-man. Ultimately, he’s a high-floor player with turnover potential.
8) Darien Porter, Iowa State
Every cycle, there’s a high-upside dart throw at CB on Day 2. Darien Porter best fits that description in the 2025 NFL Draft. A former WR recruit and special teams ace, Porter logged a career-high three INTs in 2024, playing his most consistent defensive role yet.
Porter has since ascended up boards, and an NFL Combine performance that included a 4.3 40-yard dash, a 10’11” broad jump, and a 6.71 three-cone at 6’3″, with 33″ arms, compounded his momentum. For zone-heavy teams, the skill set is irresistible.
On tape, Porter’s elite long speed and explosiveness are wholly evident, as is his spatial IQ in zone and playmaking radius. He’s not overly fluid on transitions, and his run support take-on technique can improve, but Porter can be a quality zone-scheme starter in time.
7) Benjamin Morrison, Notre Dame
In the preseason, Benjamin Morrison was a heavily-anticipated Round 1 talent and some evaluators had him in the same range as Will Johnson. An injury-riddled 2024 campaign deflated his stock, but if his hip can get back to 100%, he still offers exciting upside.
In his first two seasons, Morrison was a gnat in man coverage and an absolute ball-hawk, with nine INTs and 14 PBUs total. Banking on a full recovery, he has the short-area quickness and burst of a waterbug and the chippy competitive mentality to give WRs headaches.
With sub-31″ arms, Morrison’s size and length may cause pause for some teams, especially with his recent injury issues. Nevertheless, Morrison has the suffocating skill set and playmaking gene to win reps, particularly for teams that employ a lot of press-man.
6) Azareye’h Thomas, Florida State
Azareye’h Thomas’ production dipped in 2024 after a stellar 2023 campaign, but his evaluation is a sure case of “trust the tape.” Thomas wasn’t as productive because opposing offenses often played with positive game scripts, but his film is lights-out.
The biggest hole to poke in Thomas’ profile is his vertical speed, but aside from that, his game is very complete. At around 6’2″, 197 pounds, with 32 1/2″, he’s a swarming press-man defender with superb quickness, fluidity, reaction speed, and controlling physicality.
As a prospect, Thomas bears some similarity to Martin Emerson Jr. — a press-man savant and catch-point playmaker who functioned as a lockdown CB in his first two years with the Browns. With dual-sided coverage and support appeal, Thomas can be an impact starter.
5) Shavon Revel, East Carolina
At times, it feels as though Shavon Revel has fallen under the radar as other CB prospects rise. Revel hasn’t seen the field since a torn ACL sidelined him after three games in 2024, but he remains a viable first-round prospect and one of the class’ highest-ceiling CBs.
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While Revel wasn’t able to test, he boasts a documented 4.4 40-yard dash and an 11′ broad jump from ECU’s camp last spring, and at 6’2″, 196 pounds, with near-33″ arms, his combination of length, explosiveness, speed, and agility amounts to unmatched potential.
Revel’s tape isn’t quite as clean as Quinyon Mitchell’s — a small-school prospect who went Round 1 last cycle. Revel needs to cut down on lapses in blind spot awareness and extraneous physicality. But he’s disciplined in man, sharp in zone, and a dynamic disruptor.
4) Trey Amos, Ole Miss
An early starter in his career at Louisiana, it took time for Trey Amos to fully adjust to Power Four pace and physicality. Once he did, however, he became a potential first-round prospect. Amos was dominant in 2024, accruing three INTs, 13 PBUs, and four TFLs.
Amos isn’t always included in the top group of CBs, but he grades in the same cluster as Johnson and Barron on my board. At around 6’1″, 195 pounds, with 32″ arms, he has an ideal build, which he pairs with easy fluidity, crisp agility, and gap-erasing burst and speed.
As enticing as Amos’ talent is, his operational game is even more so. He’s an elite route processor in zone who can peel off and make plays in man. His athletic makeup compares favorably to A.J. Terrell, and if he can improve his sink on comebacks, the sky is the limit.
3) Jahdae Barron, Texas
Jahdae Barron is the “every-man” of the 2025 NFL Draft CB class. He was originally recruited as a cornerback, then transitioned to safety early in his Texas career, then transitioned back to CB in 2024, and won the Jim Thorpe Award with five INTs, 11 PBUs, and three TFLs.
Barron can play safety, nickel, or boundary CB, and his versatility is no accident. It’s a product of his energized athleticism, smooth fluidity, swivel flexibility, elite processing ability, and unhinged two-phase proactivity. Simply put, you want him on your team.
With sub-30″ arms, some teams may be weary about taking Barron. He also has relatively little press-man experience, and those features add a layer of uncertainty for him. But in zone-heavy schemes, Barron can be a dynamic Swiss army knife and a core player.
2) Will Johnson, Michigan
The non-Travis Hunter CB1 discussion is closer than it was expected to be, but even after an injury-shortened 2024 campaign, Will Johnson is still at the top of the pure CB board. Particularly for off-man and zone-heavy teams, his high-end ability commands attention.
It’s a misnomer to call Johnson long; despite his 6’2″ frame, his arms are only 30 1/8.” But his size can be difficult for WRs to work around at the catch point, and with his build, he brings rare corrective quickness, short-area malleability, spatial feel, and closing burst.
Johnson wins with that seamless coverage mobility, and he weaponizes it with instant reaction-to-stimulus, zone discipline, and tempo freedom. To top it off, he’s an instinctive turnover-generating threat, with the ball skills to make risk-taking QBs pay.
1) Travis Hunter, Colorado
Everything you’ve heard about Travis Hunter has validated his standing as a top prospect in the 2025 NFL Draft, and we’re here to cosign that stance. Hunter is WR1 or CB1 at whichever position he plays — but at CB, his generational playmaking ability is alluring.
An argument could be made that Hunter’s preferred brand of physicality — deconstruction over obstruction — can be more easily applied at WR. But there’s no replicating the way Hunter moves. He’s at the peak of explosiveness and fluidity, which sets a rare foundation.
Hunter is best in zone coverage, where he can use his elite route recognition, sink, and closing speed to snare ill-fated throws before they reach their targets. But he can also match in man with his quickness and effectively erase one side of the field while giving WRs catch-point claustrophobia.