On Wednesday afternoon, all of the charges being brought against free agent corner Darrelle Revis were dismissed. Revis had previously been accused of two counts of aggravated assault, one count of robbery, and one count of conspiracy, but it looks like he’s getting off on all charges. Should someone give the star corner a look or is he done?
Darrelle Revis Is Done
After a very productive career, Darrelle Revis is done. Being completely honest, even if the star corner hadn’t gotten into trouble with the law, he was probably going to be released anyway. He just producing the way he used to, and he was asking for too much money.
Deep Defensive Back Draft
If anyone was going to pay Revis for another run, it would be a team desperate for defensive back help, like the Tennessee Titans or the Oakland Raiders. And most years, it might be worth the risk to give someone with Revis’ pedigree a small contract just to bolster the secondary. However, that isn’t the case for this off-season.
This draft is absolutely loaded with defensive backs. Just based on film and the combine, it looks like you can get day one starters in the defensive backfield as late as the third round. 15 of the top 50 draft prospects in this year’s draft are defensive backs, and it’s hard to imagine a scenario where 15 corners and safeties go in the first round and a half. Why spend money on an aging corner with little time left when you can draft someone with nothing but upside?
Declining Play
Between 2008 and 2011, it’s hard to think of a corner better than Darrelle Revis. He intercepted 15 passes when teams dared throw at him, and he helped the New York Jets reach the AFC Championship twice. However, since that 2011 season, he’s been declining.
He’s only had one season with more than two interceptions over that span, and according to Pro Football Focus, his ability as a cover man has gotten worse every single year.
- 2011- 92.4
- 2012- 89.8
- 2013- 89.1
- 2014- 87.7
- 2015- 78.4
- 2016- 72.1
72.1 might look like a decent grade, but that’s actually only the 66th best in the entire NFL. The Oakland Raiders had one of the worst pass defenses in football, yet both starters, Sean Smith (83.4) and David Amerson (73.3), had higher grades.
The harsh reality is that time waits for no man. Revis is 31 years old, and he’ll be 32 when the season starts. As players get older, they lose the athletic traits that made them elite players in their 20’s. Some guys, like Charles Woodson and Rod Woodson, can play forever, but not everyone can.
Corners have the hardest job in football. On a long enough route, a snail eventually gets open. If the corner doesn’t have the speed or reflexes that he did when he was younger, he won’t be able to hang with younger, more athletic receivers. Not to mention, older players get hurt more often and take longer to recover.
Darrelle Revis had a very good career. He was among the NFL’s best corners for about half a decade, but his time has come. Time waits for no man, and it might be time for the shutdown corner to call it quits.
