Analyzing Trevon Diggs' Packers debut: Solid start for new cornerback

4 days ago 2

Veteran cornerback Trevon Diggs played his first snaps as a Green Bay Packer on Sunday, and his performance was one of the only things worth watching in a game which had the vibe of a preseason affair.

"There was a lot of good things that he did. It's just about getting him up to speed so Hafley doesn't feel like there are things we cannot call," coach Matt LaFleur said Tuesday.

LaFleur said Diggs has been putting in "extra time" with Derrick Ansley and the defensive backs coaches to make sure he has the playbook digested before Saturday's playoff game in Chicago.

After watching each of his 33 snaps against the Minnesota Vikings, here is how the veteran cornerback looked in his Green Bay debut:

In terms of plays where the ball was thrown in his vicinity, there were only two passes aimed in his general direction, and PFF only marked one of them down as a true target on him.

On Diggs’ first coverage snap of the game, he dropped deep on the outside of what looked like a Cover-3 defense, and JJ McCarthy completed an intermediate pass to Justin Jefferson, with Diggs probably the closest defender.

However, there was a chasm of space between the second and third level of the defense to drop the ball into, and it would be harsh to describe it as a reception given up by Diggs, which it seems PFF did not do.

Could he have sensed Jefferson entering a large pocket of space and driven to the ball earlier? Sure. The completion is not really his fault though and was not treated as such.

The only target credited to Diggs was a slant route by Jefferson, which McCarthy sailed nowhere near his intended receiver. The corner defended it well though, as he was in good position with inside leverage, making it difficult for Jefferson to cross his face.

Diggs reacted quickly enough and gave the receiver a bump before he could gather any speed. If the ball had been on target, there is a small chance pass interference could have been called, but it looked more like a smart play from the corner.

As has been the case throughout his career, Diggs looked very comfortable in zone coverage throughout the contest.

There was a nice rep where Diggs got his hands on Jordan Addison early as he tried to run a go route, slowing and disrupting his ability to get downfield quickly.

Diggs then did a good job of playing half way between the go route – with Kitan Oladapo over the top helping to discourage McCarthy from throwing it – and a flat route, not allowing the QB to trust either throw.

His ability to read route combinations and collaborate with teammates to get receivers picked up was evident throughout. Early in the game, he communicated with Oladapo in Cover-3 to pass off the shorter route to him and pick up the deeper one.

He perfectly played a deep corner route by Addison, keeping outside leverage and forcing the receiver to run right into where he was stationed in his zone.

Diggs’ feel for zone coverage was helpful in the red zone, as he did well to bracket Jefferson, sitting on the outside/corner route with a single-high safety nearby to cover any in-breaking route, which is what the receiver ended up doing. The two Packers had him covered easily.

Later, Diggs was initially lined up against Addison in the red zone but passed him off early on as he made an in cut, spotted Jalen Nailor running a corner route and seamlessly got in position to shut that option down for the quarterback.

Having a veteran presence like Diggs could certainly be useful for Jeff Hafley’s defense, and even in his first game he could be seen directing traffic and helping out teammates. Early in Sunday’s contest he noticed a tight end leaking behind the linebackers and got their attention, allowing them to go cover the route.

In terms of his usage, Diggs pretty much exclusively lined up at right cornerback. He was dropping deep a fair bit and even rotated with a safety and rolled back to play the deep half in Cover-2 opposite Evan Williams on one snap.

Diggs did not get left in man coverage often, but there was one big hiccup when he did, as he was spun around and beat deep on a double move by Addison.

The corner turned his hips early to open up as if Addison was running a go route, then the receiver cut towards the sideline to the corner, getting Diggs to twist around, then took the route vertical again, and Diggs completely lost him.

At one point Addison was looking at the back of Diggs’ helmet, and the corner also stumbled as he got run by. Luckily for him, McCarthy was under pressure and did not have time to let any of this develop and throw the ball deep.

Diggs seems a bit unsure in man coverage at times and reactive to their cuts, rather than having the ability to anticipate. He covered Addison fine on a whip route on another rep, but man coverage has been an issue throughout his career and will be something to watch moving forward.

As a tackler and run defender, Diggs was willing enough to get off a wide receiver block and help gang tackle the running back on one play and made an open field tackle later to possibly prevent a touchdown.

There was one impressive play where he worked through multiple bits of eye candy and motion pre snap, then triggered to the running back who had caught a pass out of the backfield and tackled him for a minimal gain.

He was not noticeably eager to get involved in the run game unless the play came to him, but he did his job when required.

It was a positive debut for Diggs, with his zone coverage ability and veteran savvy on display. He has his flaws, and those will undoubtedly crop up at times, but whether he is just in Green Bay for one more game or stays beyond this season, he showed the value he can provide.

This article originally appeared on Packers Wire: Analyzing Trevon Diggs' Packers debut: Solid start for new cornerback

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