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Buffalo Bills: Ronald Darby already one of the best

By Kevin Parvizi

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Although the New York Giants had success against the Buffalo Bills normally stingy defense yesterday, the star cornerback duo of Ronald Darby and Stephon Gilmore clearly wasn’t at fault for the 24-10 loss. In fact, Darby and Gilmore were two of the best players this week, as they almost completely shut down whoever lined up across from them, most namely Odell Beckham Jr. (aka the NFL’s best receiver in 2014).

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Just as Beckham Jr. quickly established himself as an elite talent at the wide receiver position last season, Darby and Kansas City Chiefs rookie corner Marcus Peters have also immediately become star players. Peters has a sexy pick-six on his resume and started the season in a more explosive manner, but it’s been Darby who has looked like the class of the rookie corners. Heck, he’s looked like the best rookie at any position so far this season.

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Yesterday, Darby took his game to another level, because I’ve never seen a single player defend Beckham Jr. like he did. We’ve seen ODB burn standout corners, as he had success against Richard Sherman when the Giants faced the Seattle Seahawks last season. However, Beckham Jr. could get absolutely no separation against either Darby or Gilmore, and Darby was especially could at preventing OBJ from getting inside.

See, Beckham is most lethal when he’s able to get a cushion of space, and we saw an example of that in Week 2 with his long catch-and-run TD against the Atlanta Falcons. Darby never allowed OBJ to make those moves inside, and that allowed him to have a perfect day in coverage.

When a corner performs like that on the outside, it’s safe to say that he’s one step closer to earning that coveted “shutdown corner” title. But Darby has been more than just a corner capable of succeeding on an island, because nobody has made more plays on the ball than he has so far this season. He already has double-digit passes defended, and his 11 PDs are tops in the league, ahead of playmakers like Josh Norman, Peters, Gilmore, Tyrann Mathieu, and Vontae Davis.

That’s impressive company, and Norman, who already has four picks (partially thanks to Jameis Winston), is the only player in the NFL with more interceptions than Darby. He’s tied with a pack of many with two picks, and that’s no easy task when you are busy shutting down tough matchups.

In fact, here’s the list of star receivers he’s shut down this season: Beckham, T.Y. Hilton (he did leave with an injury, though), Julian Edelman, and Rishard Matthews.

OK, Matthews isn’t a star, but Darby put on a clinic in coverage against every versatile, talented receiver the Miami Dolphins threw at him.

Just four cornerbacks (Mathieu, Prince Amukamara, Rashean Mathis, and Adam Jones) have more tackles that prevented a receiver from gaining a first down on passing play than Ronald Darby, as per Pro-Football Reference. He shuts down star receivers, he picks off passes, he defends more passes than everyone else, and he can stop receivers from doing much damage after the catch. So, basically, he brings the total package at the cornerback position to the Bills defense.

Sep 20, 2015; Orchard Park, NY, USA; New England Patriots running back Dion Lewis (33) runs for a touchdown as Buffalo Bills cornerback Ronald Darby (28) defends during the first half at Ralph Wilson Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Hoffman-USA TODAY Sports

If the Bills safeties and linebackers can do a better job of shoring up the team’s coverage over the middle of the field, then you can only imagine just how scary this defense can be. They have Ryan leading the charge, they have a star-studded defensive line, and they have arguably the NFL’s second-best cornerback duo behind the Denver Broncos seemingly impenetrable tandem of Chris Harris Jr. and Aqib Talib.

In holding OBJ to a meager five receptions for 38 yards despite the fact that Eli Manning targeted his clear No. 1 weapon 12 times, Gilmore and Darby showed that the Buffalo Bills might have a nearly unbeatable cornerback duo of their own.

Darby’s work has been especially impressive, because you rarely see a rookie corner who was profiled as a raw, tools-y prospect with 4.38 wheels and a 41.5-inch vertical come in and dominate. The fine folks have NFL.com worried that Darby would be “Susceptible to inside releases”, but that clearly hasn’t been the case thus far; he constantly pinned Beckham to the sideline, giving the explosive, fluid mover no room to work with. Darby was also game against two of the NFL’s quickest receivers (Edelman and Matthews), so the fact that he’s turned a weakness into a strength after just four games is huge.

There’s this idea that calling a player a star after just four career games is premature, and while it’s fair to ask me to tone down my expectations for Darby going forward, I can’t help but wonder what’s next. Darby has shown no signs that this is a fluke, nor has he shown signs of slowing down. In fact, it seems like he’s getting better every week, culminating in yesterday’s master-class of a game against OBJ.

Yes, the Bills lost, but Darby was brilliant, and it seemed like every single catch of Beckham’s was a contested one. And when Beckham did catch the ball, Darby was quick to make the tackle, such as on a third-and-long play early in the game when the Giants were backed up in their own territory.

Darby already looks like one of the game’s best corners, and Ryan has to feel pleased knowing that he has three star corners on his squad in Darby, Gilmore, and Corey Graham.

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