clock menu more-arrow no yes mobile

Filed under:

No one wants to throw on Patrick Peterson

The Arizona Cardinals star cornerback was the most avoided corner in the NFL in 2016.

NFL: Arizona Cardinals at Los Angeles Rams Kelvin Kuo-USA TODAY Sports

There is nothing more respected in the NFL than complete avoidance.

That is what Patrick Peterson dealt with in 2016, as no cornerback in the NFL was avoided more in 2016 than Peterson.

This wasn't a surprise, the Arizona Cardinals took a chance with the cornerback opposite of Peterson and it showed up week in and week out, as teams flat out ignored Peterson on a per snap basis.

It is why a large segment of fans still wanted to see the Cardinals invest in a cornerback opposite Peterson. Every week, teams are going to test the young Justin Bethel and Brandon Williams, and in 2016 they were not up to the task.

It took Marcus Cooper on a cheap deal to be the guy to play opposite of Peterson and the NFL liked Cooper's work much more than the analytics did.

It will be much the same in 2017, hopefully Williams and Bethel are ready.