It’s 5 o’clock somewhere…
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Mention a first-round cornerback on the Commanders roster and I believe most fans will immediately think of Emmanuel Forbes, selected 16th overall in the 2023 draft.
Few people, I would guess, would be thinking of the 30th overall pick of the 2020 draft, Noah Igbinoghene, who signed with the Commanders this season for a touch over $1.1m (with $200,000 guaranteed).
Igbinoghene, who was born in Alabama, is of Nigerian descent, and lived in Nigeria for part of his life. Both of his parents were Olympic athletes in track and field, and Noah himself He was a multiple state champion in track and field, claiming eight Alabama High School Athletic Association titles between the long jump and triple jump.
Igbinoghene attended Auburn University, where he played on a football scholarship from 2017 to 2019. As a true freshman, he was a backup wide receiver, playing mostly on special teams. He converted to CB as a sophomore, and played well. Among his accomplishments that year was a 96-yard kickoff return for a touchdown against Arkansas. Incredibly, he also had a 96-yard kickoff return for a touchdown the following season against Minnesota in the Outback Bowl game.
Noah declared for the NFL draft after his junior year, and was picked near the end of the first round by the Miami Dolphins, the last of 3 first-round picks they had in 2022 (the first two were Tua Tagovailoa and current starting RT Austin Jackson).
It’s probably fair to say that the Dolphins never got what they hoped for when they drafted the raw but athletic CB out of Auburn.
Traded to Dallas
Prior to the start of the 2023 season (Igbinoghene’s 4th year in the NFL), the Dolphins traded him to the Cowboys in an end-of-camp player swap (the Dolphins got Kelvin Joseph, who didn’t last the season with Miami. Interestingly, Joseph signed a future contract with the Chiefs in January ‘24, so was technically part of the team that won the super bowl on Feburay 11th).
Four months before Igbinoghene was traded away to Dallas, Miami fans were openly wondering if the CB, whose 5th year option had not been exercised, was a “bust”:
No matter how much film study or background work you do, the draft will always be an inexact science.
Sometimes players elevate their game when they get to the NFL and other times they fall off a cliff. Each of these players has either struggled to replicate their college success or hasn’t taken off like some evaluators thought they could.
Noah Igbinoghene
When you talk about Chris Grier’s draft mistakes, Igbo tends to be at the forefront of the conversation. It’s hard to fault Grier for the pick though. When you turn on Noah Igbinoghene’s college tape, there is a ton to like.
Igbinoghene showed some real potential to be a lockdown-type of corner in the NFL. He’s always been a high-level athlete (the son of two Olympians) with good movement skills.
He has historically struggled with playing the ball once it’s in the air- the more instinctual aspect of the position. This was true in college and it has remained an issue at the NFL level. The fact that Igbinoghene made the switch to corner after his freshman season at Auburn could have something to do with that, but he’s had three seasons in the NFL to perfect his craft.
Verdict: Will go down as a Dolphins’ draft bust
Never say never, but last season was probably his best opportunity to solidify some kind of future with the organization. The Dolphins had injuries to all of their starting corners at one point or another last season. Igbo had a nice moment icing the victory against Pittsburgh but failed to even dress for some of these contests.
With the addition of Jalen Ramsey, the emergence of Kader Kohou, and the return of Nik Needham/Xavien Howard, what is Igbinoghene’s best-case scenario? He makes the team as a 5th corner and contributes on special teams… maybe?
Don’t get me wrong, he’s still young (just 23) and has some intriguing skills to build around. Some team out there will take a shot on him in hopes that he can develop into something more, I’m just not sure it will be the Miami Dolphins at this point.
As a Cowboy, Igbinoghene ended up playing just 118 snaps (mostly special teams) in just 5 games in 2023; he was inactive for the other 12.
Overall, the story of Noah Igbinoghene isn’t one to inspire great confidence at this point. He’s failed with two teams, yet he is just 25 years old.
It’s not all darkness and gloom
There was some optimism when Igninoghene was traded from Miami to Dallas, and the fact that Quinn & Whitt brought Noah along to Washington indicates that such optimism may not have been unwarranted, despite his lack of playing time in 2023. Consider these remarks from September last year, when the trade happened:
The Dolphins weren’t trying to get rid of Igbinoghene, Miami coach Mike McDaniel said.
“That was something that we definitely weren’t chasing; we were approached with — there was some interest there,” McDaniel said. “Really, regardless, it wasn’t planned. It wasn’t a situation where we were really exploring the idea of not having him on the roster. But when given the opportunity and our specific team with our specific needs, we thought it was both a win for us.
“I’m so happy for and really proud of Noah because everybody wants to be a first-round draft pick. As a 20-year-old, that sounds cool, but there’s a burden with that. What you’ve seen is a guy grow as a player and as a person. I think being able to be 23 years old and go to a place with a fresh start, specifically with a guy that I’ve worked with in (Dallas defensive coordinator) Dan Quinn and just knowing his coaching mentality, I think it’s a good fit for them. I think it’s a good fit for us. That’s how deals are done.”
The Dolphins got cornerback Kelvin Joseph for Igbinoghene.
Miami general manager Chris Grier said he was looking for a cornerback more adept at playing in the slot.
“We’ve been kind of looking for another nickel player,” Grier said. “And so I did some searching around, talked to Dallas, and then they called and they asked about Noah because they need some help on the outside, I assume.
“It was tough. Noah has worked hard here since he’s been here. He’s had ups and downs, but he’s a competitive kid. I’m so proud of him. He won us a game last year with a big pick on Sunday night to end the game. And making the transition from receiver to corner is not an easy thing for a kid. He was so young, I think 20 years old when he got here, so I’m happy for him. We were both a little sad leaving, but I’m very happy for the opportunity for him because they really wanted him, so I’m excited for him.”
“I liked him coming out,” McCarthy said about Igbinoghene. “I do recall his kickoff-return ability, too. You know, vertical speed. He’s more outside than inside, and that was part of the reason why we had the interest. You see him lining up against top receivers. I was impressed with his video, so I think he’s a really good addition for us.”
Igbinoghene said he thought the Dallas defense would be a better fit for him.
“When I first moved to corner in college, it was a press corner, man system,” Igbinoghene said. “They do a lot of that here, so I get to really go back to what I was doing. … It’s an aggressive defense, and I get to really show what I can do when it comes to that aspect of the game.”
Two things leap out at me today:
- His defensive coordinator and DB coach in Dallas last year are now the head coach and defensive coordinator in Washington this year. They know Igbinoghene very well.
- The Commanders wanted Noah badly enough to guarantee $200,000 of his 2024 salary. It’s little enough by NFL standards, but an indication that the coaching staff wanted him in camp.
Okay…three things leap out…
3. I’m intrigued by the pair of 96-yard kickoff returns that Igbinoghene had at Auburn. I’m wondering if Noah could offer some genuine value as a kickoff return man under the new NFL rules for 2024.
In the kickoff returner mix for the Commanders today (and it will change as they experiment):
RB Austin Ekeler
RB Brian Robinson Jr.
WR Olamide Zaccheaus
WR Jamison Crowder
WR Dax Milne
WR Davion Davis
WR Kazmeir Allen
WR Damiere Byrd
CB Noah Igbinoghene
CB A.J. Woods
DB Mike…— Nicki Jhabvala (@NickiJhabvala) June 11, 2024
The competition at cornerback in Washington
For all that we, as fans, bemoan the weakness at offensive tackle, the story at cornerback is really no better. Putting aside 2nd round pick Mikey Sainristil, who appears destined to be the ‘starting’ slot defender, the depth chart for boundary cornerbacks is…well…not awe-inspiring.
There appear to be three roster locks for boundary corner:
- Michael Davis
- Benjamin St-Juste
- Emmanuel Forbes
There are questions surrounding all three players, and, in particular, Forbes’ own trajectory as a rookie was not really more impressive than that of Igbinoghene.
In training camp, Noah Igbinoghene will likely be competing for a role as a backup corner on the Commanders 2024 roster. I’m not sure that anyone in his cohort really has a more impressive resume than he does:
- James Pierre
- Noah Igbinoghene
- Christian Holmes
- Kyu Blu Kelly
- Tariq Castro-Fields
- Nick Whiteside
It seems almost certain that one of these 6 players (possibly two) will make the 2024 Washington roster.
- James Pierre, having played 66 games with the Steelers over 4 seasons, has the most NFL experience of the group. On paper, Pierre probably looks like the best bet to make the initial roster as the 5th CB.
- The other four — Holmes, Kelly, Castro-Fields, Whiteside — were all in training camp and under contract with the Commanders last season, but that was with Ron Rivera and Jack Del Rio.
- Igninoghene, however, is the only one of these players to have played for Quinn and Whitt, and he also signed the most attractive contract of the group.