Commanders experimenting with new cornerback rotation at OTAs

While several NFL teams start mandatory minicamp this week, the Washington Commanders are ensconced in their third week of organized team activities, which will span June 6-8 before minicamp gets underway from June 14-16.

The takeaways from the first two rounds OTAs have been overwhelmingly positive. Jahan Dotson is one of the top performers and building chemistry with Carson Wentz, Cole Holcomb is all the rage playing the middle linebacker role and OL newcomers Andrew Norwell and Trai Turner already look comfortable in the offense.

In terms of surprise storylines, James Smith-Williams, Darrick Forrest, Cole Turner and John Bates have all enjoyed strong starts. Perhaps the biggest surprise of the second week, though, was the reshuffled cornerback rotation.

According to reports, Benjamin St-Juste worked in the slot at Wednesday’s practice after playing exclusively on the outside as a rookie.

The Commanders have experimented second-year cornerback Benjamin St-Juste in the slot at OTAs.

This is a sneaky significant development, as St-Juste played just seven snaps in the slot at Minnesota compared to 740 on the perimeter. Before a series of concussions derailed St-Juste’s rookie campaign, the third-round pick worked out wide while Kendall Fuller started the year as the primary slot defender.

After a mid-season tweak, Fuller kicked back outside and was one of the best cornerbacks in coverage the rest of the way. According to PFF, Fuller’s 81.5 defensive grade trailed only Jalen Ramsey and AJ Terrell for the best at the position.

With William Jackson III having no prior experience in the slot — he was one of the best press cornerbacks in the NFL before last season — moving St-Juste inside would seemingly give Washington the most flexibility with its secondary.

Of course, St-Juste doesn’t have the prototypical build of a slot corner. At 6-foot-3, the former Golden Gopher is almost oversized for the position. Per Ron Rivera, this so-called experiment is all about winning unexpected matchups.

"” . . . There are some things that you can do with a big corner in the slot when they put a big receiver in the slot, so those are some things we have to look at,” Rivera told reporters. “Because, again, it’s going to be about matching, and you want to make sure you have the right body type on the right type of a player that’s in there. So that’s kind of what the thought is there. He will play on the outside as well, but we have to be able to say, ‘Hey, we can put a big guy there.’”"

Additionally, Rivera raved about Fuller’s fit along the boundary. The third-year head coach likened the 27-year-old’s vision to one of the best cornerbacks he’s had the pleasure of coaching. You probably remember him, Commanders fans.

"“I think playing on the outside for (Kendall) fits him because he plays with vision, and he understands that a lot better than a lot of other corners I’ve seen. The only other guy that I ever really saw that really understood playing with vision was Josh Norman. I think he did it very well. I watch Kendall, and Kendall does that very well.”"

That quote says it all. While Fuller and Jackson III are Rivera’s preferred outside options, St-Juste hasn’t lost the trust of the coaching staff. The second-year player will still play out wide, but Rivera, who champions versatility in his players, wants to see if he can hold his own in the slot during games. With a glaring lack of depth at the position, this reshuffling is undoubtedly in the team’s best interest.