The 2017 NFL Draft is in the rearview mirror and the 2017 Fantasy Football season is on the horizon. For all of the returning IDP people and for those of you perhaps interested in trying an IDP league for the first time in the 2017 Fantasy Football Season, Welcome and Welcome Back!

I’ll be going over who I think are the most relevant NFL rookies who play in the secondary, split between corners and safeties. In most leagues if you only have DB (CB, S) positions you’ll want to choose Safeties first (check your league’s scoring and 2016 scoring results). But if your league has implemented both Safety and Corner positions separately, chances are the scoring is pretty even across the board for DB’s. In the secondary rookies routinely make a Fantasy impact. Marcus Peters as a rookie in 2015 lead all Cornerbacks in scoring, and Ronald Darby finished in the Top 10. In 2016 Jalen Ramsey, Vernon Hargreaves III and Daryl Worley all finished in the Top 10 or just outside of the Top 10 in Cornerback scoring. This season should follow the same trend. Keep in mind I’m projecting who should start, but confirm if possible prior to your draft. Here are the 5 Corners most likely to make an impact this season.

Budda Baker (Arizona Cardinals) – Budda played safety at Washington, but should see time at both Free Safety and Slot Corner in Arizona (check your league to see if he has a CB designation). In high school in Washington he was a state champion in the 100 meters, he is an explosive tackler despite being a bit undersized at 5’10” and 195 lbs and excels in coverage. Arizona is a perfect landing spot in the draft for his skills, and he should be on the field the majority of the time. Baker has a skill set similar to Tyrann Mathieu’s, who is listed at corner, but also plays safety in some packages,. Even with the Antoine Bethea signing I’d look for Arizona to play three safeties the majority of the time with two linebackers on the field. The number one ingredient for a successful season for a rookie corner in Fantasy Football is playing time and a close second is opportunity. Baker should have plenty of both in this Arizona scheme. Adoree’ Jackson (Tennessee Titans) – Jackson is undersized at 186 lbs, but this past season at USC with 5 interceptions and 11 pass break ups it didn’t really matter. He won the Jim Thorpe award this past season, awarded to the top defensive back in college football. (But, keep in mind that the recent Thorpe award winners haven’t faired very well in the NFL.) However the reason I have him ranked here at # 2 on the list is his return ability and the possibility he may also be involved on offense for the Titans. He had several touchdowns during his college career as both a kick returner and a receiver, and his improvement at corner over the last year at USC gives me confidence he’ll stay on the field opposite Ryan Logan this year for the Titans defense. I may even snag Adoree’ in leagues where a CB is not mandatory. Marshon Lattimore (New Orleans Saints) – Lattimore was the first corner taken in this year’s draft, with the 11th pick. He should start day 1 for a Saints secondary that has struggled for several years. In his senior season at Ohio State his cover was targeted only 35 times, and he came out of these matchups with 14 passes defended and 4 interceptions. In addition he is a sure tackler. These traits should translate to fantasy success as he will see many more opportunities on the NFL field with teams that won’t be afraid to test him. Chidobe Awuzie (Dallas Cowboys) – Awuzie was picked in the second round by Dallas, who lost two corners and two safeties in free agency. Awuzie will have a great opportunity to start opposite Anthony Brown, a 6th round pick in the 2016 draft. Orlando Scandrick is likely to stay in the slot, if not traded, with Brown and Awuzie on the outside. I look for Awuzie to be tested early and often to start the season. In college at Colorado, he totaled only 3 interceptions during his career but consistently was near the team lead in tackles and created a high number of passes defended. Those skills should help him be a relevant Fantasy corner in his rookie season as well with the amount of opportunities he should see in Dallas. Kevin King (Green Bay Packers) – King, also from Washington, is a tall lanky corner at 6’3”. Size is something Green Bay lacked at the corner position, so King should see the field often to start his rookie season. King began his college career playing safety, but is not an aggressive tackler. His strengths are his length, anticipation and ball skills. He consistently finds the ball in the air and is adept at pass breakups and causing turnovers. He may end up playing a hybrid safety/corner role for Green Bay who already has Burnett and Dix. If Green Bay finds a way to utilize him, and they must have a plan with the 2nd round selection, King should be successful early in his NFL career.

My next article on the Top 5 Rookie Safeties for the 2017 Fantasy Season will be published on May 26th. Any questions just leave a comment. I’m here to try to help. I can’t wait for the upcoming Football season!

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(Click the RED link below to listen)

Major League Fantasy Baseball Radio Show: Join Corey D Roberts, and Kyle Amore live on Sunday May 7th, 2017 from 7-9pm EST for episode #86 of Major League Fantasy Baseball Radio. We are a live broadcast that will take callers at 323-870-4395. Press 1 to speak with the host. We will be previewing the coming week’s key matchups and discussing key fantasy information.

Our guest this week is Bryan Luhrs. Bryan is a writer with majorleaguefantasysports.com, and the owner of Real Deal Dynasty Sports.

You can find our shows on I-Tunes. Just search for Major League Fantasy Sports in the podcasts section. For Android users go to “Podcast Republic,” then download that app, and search for “Major League Fantasy Sports Show”

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(Click the RED link to listen)

Major League Fantasy Baseball Radio Show: Join guest host Andrea Lamont, and Kyle Amore live on Mo nday May 15th, 2017 from 7-9pm EST for episode #87 of Major League Fantasy Baseball Radio. We are a live broadcast that will take callers at 323-870-4395. Press 1 to speak with the host. We will be previewing the coming week’s key matchups and discussing key fantasy information.

Our guest this week is Lenny Melnick. Lenny is fantasy baseball pioneer, current FSWA Hall of Famer, and the host of his daily podcasts on lennymelnickfantasysports.com Mon-Fri at 9am EST. He also co-hosts a show every Sunday morning from 7-10am EST with Craig Mish on the fantasy sports station on Sirius.

You can find our shows on I-Tunes. Just search for Major League Fantasy Sports in the podcasts section. For Android users go to “Podcast Republic,” then download that app, and search for “Major League Fantasy Sports Show”

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