One more day away and we’ll close out the remaining defensive position. I look forward to sharing my safety list. At cornerback, there are so many great options and its always nice to put a current active Bronco on an all-time top five list. Let’s get these cornerbacks ranked!
Crazily enough, we all agree on who should be in the top five but do not agree at all how the ranking shakes out below Champ Bailey. I went with CHJ, but Pat Surtain is closing like a freight train and will likely challenge Champ for the top spot if he continues on his current career trajectory. Talib and Wright were obvious choices to close things out for me.
- Champ Bailey
- Chris Harris Jr.
- Pat Surtain II
- Aqib Talib
- Louis Wright
Here’s where our Mile High Report staff landed on the top five for cornerback:
Scotty Payne: The Broncos have a long history of having elite cornerbacks. Champ Bailey was the best, Surtain is the current best and Talib/Harris were part of the No Fly Zone and the SB 50 winning defense/team.
- Champ Bailey
- Pat Surtain II
- Louis Wright
- Chris Harris Jr
- Aqib Talib
Chris Hart: Sorting through Denver’s best defensive backs at cornerback and safety were pretty hard. The franchise has been fortunate to have so many great players at both positions. For cornerback, I am putting Champ Bailey first. He is probably my all-time favorite Bronco, a Hall of Famer, and was an incredible player for the team. Louis Wright was a four-time All-Pro and five-time Pro-Bowler with a knack for big plays and interceptions during the Orange Crush era of Broncos defenders.
In recent history, Chris Harris Jr. and Aqib Talib played a huge part in Denver’s No-Fly Zone that culminated in a Super Bowl 50 title. Last but not least, Patrick Surtain II is quickly writing his legendary story into the Broncos’ record books.
- Champ Bailey
- Louis Wright
- Chris Harris Jr.
- Aqib Talib
- Patrick Surtain II
Joe Mahoney: Here is my Top 5:
- Champ Bailey
- Pat Surtain II
- Louis Wright
- Chris Harris Jr
- Aqib Talib
Sadaraine: Man, we’ve had some talent at corner over the years. The top 3 on my list could be swapped around. They were all amazing players. I fondly remember debates with the Jet’s fan’s community about CHJ and how hard I had to work to convince them how good he was. Pat Surtain II definitely belongs on this list and is very likely to climb it over the next handful of years.
- Champ Bailey
- Aqib Talib
- Louis Wright
- Chris Harris, Jr.
- Pat Surtain II
Ross Allen: It would be hard to put Champ Bailey anywhere else but the top spot given his incredible, consistent, and long-lived career. And Bailey was also the name on my first Broncos jersey. Chris Harris Jr. might be one of the best slot CBs of all time as well. He was incredible during that Super Bowl run, as well as the years surrounding it. And outside of his ball-hawking abilities, he was fantastic as an open-field tackler. Something that is hard to find in most cornerbacks.
- Champ Bailey
- Chris Harris Jr.
- Pat Surtain II
- Louis Wright
- Aqib Talib
Ian St. Clair: As others have noted, the Broncos have been blessed with some of the best cornerbacks to ever play the game. Bailey goes without saying, but so is Wright. He was the first shutdown corner in the NFL and should be in the Hall of Fame. Surtain is headed there, and Harris and Talib helped lock down the No Fly Zone.
- Champ Bailey
- Louis Wright
- Pat Surtain II
- Chris Harris Jr.
- Aqib Talib
The Broncos have had some outstanding cornerbacks over its long history. However, it seems like we came to a general consensus on who should be in that top five list. Do you agree? Share yours in the comments below.
