Penn State roster reset: Cornerback
If you don't mind indulging me on a personal journey, I'd like to discuss the Penn State cornerback room with you. The rotation at cornerback was one of the most frustrating positions to understand and evaluate under new defensive coordinator Manny Diaz. While the top of the depth chart was straightforward, how they classified the two positions was less so. The team did not play field and boundary designations, leaving left and right as the likely classification for each position. But throughout last season, I approached the secondary with an unsettled apprehension of uncertainty thanks to what felt like an indecipherable puzzle of who lined up where and by what criteria. That's because players would not line up on a strict side, either. The problem with left and right is that they are arbitrary to what perspective you view things from. Are we basing right and left off of the defensive view? If so, that didn't fit either. Was it from the quarterback's left or right? Not consistently. Trusty shortcuts like PFF's snaps alignment tool were also producing mixed results.