Should Baltimore Ravens draft CB Cory Trice?

The Baltimore Ravens have a huge need at cornerback. A name in the NFL draft that is starting to attract attention is Purdue cornerback Cory Trice. What does Cory Trice bring to the NFL, and would he fit the Baltimore Ravens?

Baltimore Ravens Draft Profile: Purdue Cornerback Cory Trice

Cory Trice was a fifth-year senior for the Boilermakers and wound up starting for the majority of four seasons. He was thrown into the mix in the middle of his sophomore season in 2019 after playing safety as a freshman.

He had a season-ending knee injury cut his 2021 season short, so he went back to Purdue for his fifth year. That was his best year as he allowed 21 catches on 44 targets, and was matched up against the best in the Big 10.

This past season helped his draft stock immensley, and he went to the NFL combine and performed there, to once again move up draft boards.

Cory Trice is going to attract all NFL teams as a cornerback with that height, weight, and arm length in his profile. The 40-yard dash is about average for cornerbacks, but when you adjust that for his size, you have to be impressed with his overall athletic ability.

What Cory Trice brings to the NFL

The obvious impact is shown from his athletic profile. He uses his arm length to his favor as well. He is a press cornerback who can turn and redirect routes. It makes it tough to complete passes in the quick game on him because he can crash on passes quickly, and at his size, and burst, he takes up a lot of area on the field.

He has pretty solid change of direction in the short area game, which is why he is able to get his hands on a lot of slant routes and curls.

Trice plays the ball well down the field, and his length and recovery speed can be shown at times. However, he is a primary zone cornerback and his biggest questions come when he has to turn his hips completely and follow wideouts deep down the field.

His feet get clunky, and he has to slow his pace to turn all the way around. His hip fluidity shows on the quick comeback routes, but he is much better off in a zone where he does not have to carry wide outs deeper. This also allows him to get more aggressive with comebacks routes, and can turn his weakness into a strength.

NFL Comparison for Purdue CB Cory Trice

The best NFL comparison for Cory Trice is Benjamin St-Juste of the Washington Commanders. Below, you can see how the two compare.

The two have very similar profiles coming into the NFL. Both came from the Big 10 with that size, length, and athletic ability. However, both of them had the same issue which comes from their ability to turn and run with wideouts down the field or play against quicker wideouts who can burn them on double moves.

The Commanders actually moved St-Juste into the slot. It allowed him to use his length and ability to crash on the football in those short spaces to his advantage. Still, there are much fewer chances where he is one-on-one in man coverage carrying a wideout down the field in the slot.

If Trice wanted to move into the slot, he would have to improve on his run defense. Still, the Commanders got some of the best play out of St-Juste because of the move, and the same could happen for Cory Trice.

Should Baltimore Ravens draft Cory Trice?

The Baltimore Ravens had a lot of success last season when they moved Kyle Hamilton into the slot. It was the same idea that his length and short area quickness could cover that area, and he did not get burnt in man coverage often.

The Ravens will be moving Hamilton to the starting strong safety role and would like to add another big body slot. They have Ar'Darius Washington and Pepe Williams, but those are small slot cornerbacks. It would be nice to have Trice.

While they work him in with slot snaps, they also could need him on the outside. If he can improve in man coverage, his size would be valued against someone like Tee Higgins.

The question will be when Trice gets drafted. He was probably a day three pick coming into the season, but now he may go in round three. If he gets to round four, the Ravens would be all over Cory Trice.