Cam Smith, Darius Rush and an SEC cornerback history lesson
The South Carolina Gamecocks have two starting cornerbacks in the NFL draft class of 2023. Both Cam Smith and Darius Rush are worthy Day 2 prospects, with Smith potentially a late first-rounder.
Smith is the more accomplished and heralded prospect. He earned some All-SEC honors and was a fixture on preseason watch lists and first-round mock draft projections. Rush didn’t garner such widespread acclaim or respect amongst college football observers or draft analysts, not after switching from wide receiver after he arrived in Columbia.
Yet there is a growing consensus that Rush might be the better NFL player than his more renowned running mate. It’s far from a consensus, but Rush is starting to climb up in mock draft projections while Smith fades back a bit.
It’s not the first time we’ve seen an SEC school have two cornerbacks in the same draft where the lesser-accomplished college player might be the better NFL prospect. It happened a decade ago at Mississippi State with Johnthan Banks and Darius Slay.
Like Smith, Banks was an accomplished collegiate cornerback with a lot of polish to his game. Back in 2012, he was a fixture on preseason watch lists for awards and first-round projections for the draft the following spring. Slay, meanwhile, was seen as something of an upstart, a more athletic but raw prospect who didn’t consistently live up to his potential in Starkville.
In the 2013 NFL draft, Slay wound up being selected first on his athletic promise and scheme-diverse skills. He was the No. 36 overall pick, taken by the Detroit Lions. Banks slid to No. 43 overall and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers after being pigeonholed as a more athletically limited, zone-only cornerback.
As NFL rookies, the collegiate pecking order prevailed. Banks started all 16 games, picked off three passes and played well enough to be looked at as a capable, if limited, long-term starter. Slay played his way out of the lineup with frequent blown assignments and lapses in coverage.
The key was the patience the Lions showed in their investment. They knew Slay wasn’t quite ready for primetime as a prospect. Despite his rocky rookie campaign, they didn’t throw out the baby with the dirty bathwater. They leaned on veteran Rashean Mathis to help bring Slay along, and it finally clicked. Boy howdy did it click!
Slay emerged as one of the NFL’s best cover corners and defensive playmakers over the last decade. He’s earned Pro Bowl nods in five of the last six seasons and continues to excel at 32 years old for the Eagles.
Meanwhile, Banks quickly faded. Being more NFL-ready to start the career didn’t equate to longevity. The Buccaneers bailed on him after he played his way in and out of the lineup beyond his second year. Banks bounced around several teams, even spending some time as Slay’s backup in Detroit, before washing out of the NFL by the end of 2017.
Flash forward to 2023. Smith is widely tagged as a fit strictly for zone-oriented coverage schemes, a label that proved true with Banks. Rush is rising in part because of his projectable ability in either man or zone schemes. Broader appeal creates rising stock, just as it did for Slay.
It’s not a perfectly analogous situation. Smith is a much better athlete than Banks was based on Combine testing, not to mention the eye test. While Rush’s stock is rising, it would be a stunner to see him selected ahead of Smith, whereas Slay going ahead of Banks was pretty widely expected back in 2013.
But don’t be surprised if Rush winds up being the better NFL player of the Gamecocks duo. The Bulldogs from a decade ago provide a very realistic historical precedent.
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