Cornerback

The NFL scouting combine starts Feb. 22. In advance of the annual meat market in Indianapolis, staff writer Matt Vensel will examine each position and give Ravens fans the 4-1-1. In this post he looks at cornerbacks . The top prospects: Tyrann "Honey Badger" Mathieu, who is still in Baton Rogue, got most of the attention in the LSU secondary, but Morris Claiborne is a complete corner with good size, speed and instincts. At 6 feet 2, Alabama's Dre Kirkpatrick is a big, physical cornerback.

Imposing cornerback Jimmy Smith capped a rough season in the best way possible, flashing his potential with two pivotal plays that preserved the Ravens' Super Bowl victory over the San Francisco 49ers. Following a regular season where he missed five games after undergoing sports hernia surgery, losing his nickel back job and being limited to 31 tackles and no interceptions, the 2011 first-round draft pick from Colorado registered an impressive performance in the final seconds of the fourth quarter.

The Ravens will hold their first full-team practice of training camp Thursday, July 26. Each day leading up to the official start of camp, The Sun will examine several key position battles that will be decided during preseason. CORNERBACK The competitors : Cary Williams and Jimmy Smith Breaking it down : Lardarius Webb played at a Pro Bowl level last season and was justly rewarded with a six-year, $50 million contract in April. He'll start on one side and likely draw the opposition's top receiver.

Sometimes, blogger Matt Vensel fires a few questions at rookie cornerback and returner Asa Jackson. The Ravens' fifth-round pick in April's draft, Jackson is a Sacramento native who played his college ball at Cal Poly. MV: A year ago, you were at Cal Poly trying to get with an NFL team. Now you're getting ready to play in the Super Bowl. When you first got the call from the Ravens, is this what you expected to happen at some point ? AJ: When I got that call, I couldn't have been asked to be put in a better situation, especially being a defensive player with all of the leaders on this team, just the mentality that this team has. I don't know if anyone expects to be playing in the Super Bowl in their rookie season, but greatness is something that is expected around here.

Each week, blogger Matt Vensel fires a few questions at rookie cornerback and kick returner Asa Jackson. The Ravens' fifth-round pick in April's draft, Jackson is a Sacramento native who played his college ball at Cal Poly. MV: You didn't end up playing against the Houston Texans last weekend because the team only dressed four cornerbacks. Was that the closest you think you have come to being active this season? AJ: Yeah, it was the closest it has been so far. I think all week I was expecting to play.

With the Ravens shorthanded at cornerback and safety, Danny Gorrer got a few reps as the third cornerback in Sunday night's 34-17 victory over the New York Jets, enjoying his longest stint of the season. When the defense went to its nickel package in the second half, Gorrer lined up against the outside receiver, and starter Lardarius Webb shifted to the slot receiver. “It was just an amazing feeling being out there with the guys, knowing that they trust me enough to get out there and play with them,” said Gorrer, who broke up one pass.

With the 169th pick in the NFL draft (fifth round), the Ravens selected Cal Poly cornerback Asa Jackson. The pick continues a Day Three trend of the Ravens selecting small-school players. In the fourth round, the Ravens took Delaware guard Gino Gradkowski and South Carolina State free safety Christian Thompson. Jackson, who is 5-foot-10 and 190 pounds, will join Baltimore's stable of young cornerbacks that includes Lardarius Webb, Jimmy Smith, and Cary Williams. He made eight interceptions during his Cal Poly career.

The Maryland football program has landed a commitment from one of its top targets in the 2013 recruiting cycle. Will Likely, ranked the No. 32 cornerback in the country by 247Sports.com, pledged to the Terps on Friday, according to InsideMDSports . The No. 32 cornerback in the nation according to 247Sports, Likely was also seriously recruited by LSU, Florida State, Wake Forest, Louisville and others. While it's unknown if the Seminoles or Tigers had tendered firm scholarship offers, there seems to be a consensus in Florida that Likely would have been a blue-chip national recruit were he a few inches taller . Likely, a 5-foot-7, 175-pound defensive back and wide receiver, is the fourth four-star prospect -- according to Rivals.com -- in Maryland's 2013 class.

Ravens cornerback Lardarius Webb was back in Baltimore on Friday to take a physical and officially sign his new five-year, $50 million extension. Webb, who was a restricted free agent, is now under contract through the 2017 season. The Ravens gave him a lucrative contract because they feel he can become one of the NFL's top cornerbacks. But according to stats from Pro Football Focus, Webb might already be there. As my colleague Jeff Zrebiec mentioned last week when he broke the news of Webb's extension , Webb did not allow a touchdown pass all season and quarterbacks had a rating of just 55.6 when throwing in Webb's direction, according to Pro Football Focus, an NFL statistics and analysis website.

...*TC The Baltimore Stallions, who have endured two season-ending injuries in their defensive backfield, most likely will be without cornerback Irv Smith when they resume their schedule against the visiting British Columbia Lions, at 7:30 p.m. on Oct. 21.A magnetic resonance imaging exam has revealed a torn rotator cuff muscle in Smith's left shoulder, an injury he suffered in the closing minutes of Baltimore's 29-27 victory over the Saskatchewan Roughriders...

While much of the focus in the offseason and preseason was on the negotiations for a long-term deal between the Ravens and quarterback Joe Flacco, cornerback Cary Williams also took a risk and declined a three-year, $15 million extension. But Williams said he never viewed his decision as a risk. “I just left it in God's hands,” he said after Friday's practice. “At the end of the day, I knew that God had brought me this far, and all of that hard work and preparation was going to come into play, and I just continued to keep my head down, continued to do what I'm normally doing, and I felt success would be there.

The New England Patriots' pass defense has been improving lately, and one of the reasons can be traced to the presence of cornerback Aqib Talib, who was acquired in a trade from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Nov. 1. Talib's personal numbers aren't eye-opening (just one interception and two pass breakups in the team's last eight contests), but the defense's statistics have been much better. After surrendering an average of 285.3 yards, a 66.1 completion percentage and 19 touchdowns in the first nine games, the Patriots have trimmed those numbers to a 253.4 average, a 57.3 percentage and 10 scores.

Reading the eyes of Denver Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning, Ravens cornerback Corey Graham broke on the football and undercut wide receiver Brandon Stokley to intercept the four-time NFL Most Valuable Player in overtime. The pivotal turnover set up rookie kicker Justin Tucker's game-winning 47-yard field goal as the Ravens advanced to the AFC title game following a 38-35 victory in which Graham haunted Manning. Graham also intercepted Manning during the first half, returning an interception 39 yards for a touchdown off a pass intended for wide receiver Eric Decker and deflected by nickel back Chykie Brown.

Dean Pees likes to joke that he has recently developed a routine before addressing the Ravens' injury-wracked cornerback group on the first full day of practice each week. "Every week, it's like I take attendance in our room to see who shows up," he cracked. Laughs aside, the defensive coordinator and secondary coach Teryl Austin have used glue, string and perhaps a little magic to cobble together a productive cornerback corps despite losing Lardarius Webb for the season in October and getting limited production from Jimmy Smith.

The New York Giants' secondary has been plagued by injuries that have sapped the unit of strong safety Kenny Phillips and cornerback Prince Amukamara for extended periods. But the secondary has been anchored by cornerback Corey Webster (the team leader in pass breakups with nine) and strong safety Stevie Brown (the team leader in interceptions with seven). However, the Ravens appeared to attack the Giants' defensive backfield by exposing Webster on Sunday. When New York went into single coverage, quarterback Joe Flacco usually went after Webster, completing five passes for 88 yards and a 6-yard touchdown to Torrey Smith, two for 45 yards to Anquan Boldin, one for 36 yards to Dennis Pitta, and one for 7 yards to Jacoby Jones.

The Maryland football program has landed a commitment from one of its top targets in the 2013 recruiting cycle. Will Likely, ranked the No. 32 cornerback in the country by 247Sports.com, pledged to the Terps on Friday, according to InsideMDSports . The No. 32 cornerback in the nation according to 247Sports, Likely was also seriously recruited by LSU, Florida State, Wake Forest, Louisville and others. While it's unknown if the Seminoles or Tigers had tendered firm scholarship offers, there seems to be a consensus in Florida that Likely would have been a blue-chip national recruit were he a few inches taller . Likely, a 5-foot-7, 175-pound defensive back and wide receiver, is the fourth four-star prospect -- according to Rivals.com -- in Maryland's 2013 class.

Barring injuries, the Ravens will not make any major roster moves until after the first week in June, according to Ozzie Newsome, the team's vice president of player personnel.Like most teams, the Ravens will begin hitting the free-agent market again June 1, when clubs can release players and not have to take the full acceleration of signing bonuses. The Ravens are expected to release veteran quarterback Vinny Testaverde after June 1, and he is the only starter likely to be waived.Newsome said the Ravens have the contract rights to 87 players, but only 81 will be invited to training camp in mid-July.

At 6 feet and 204 pounds, Victor Cruz is the second-shortest wide receiver on the New York Giants and the third-lightest. But Cruz's impact on the Giants offense figures to loom large for the Ravens and cornerback Corey Graham. When New York employs its three-receiver set, Cruz usually lines up in the slot, where he leads the NFL in productivity, according to Pro Football Focus. And if he lines up in the slot this Sunday, it will be up to Graham to match up against him. “Victor Cruz, he's great off the line” of scrimmage, Graham said prior to Wednesday's practice.

Chris Johnson wasn't happy about surrendering the 11-yard touchdown pass from rookie quarterback Kirk Cousins to wide receiver Pierre Garcon that helped the Washington Redskins tie the Ravens and then win, 31-28, in overtime last Sunday. At the same time, however, the cornerback said he had no regrets about trying to jump what he thought was an in route by Garcon. “As a vet, I gave up a play that I didn't want to give up. It stuck with me for a couple days,” Johnson said Wednesday.