AFC East's Best and Worst Tackling Cornerbacks

A cornerback's job isn't coverage alone. If that were the case, perhaps New York Jets cornerback Antonio Cromartie would still be considered one of the best in the game.

But in 2011, Cromartie's tackling woes weren't the worst seen in the AFC East.

In fact, Sam Monson of Pro Football Focus broke down the tackling performances of every cornerback in the league and ranked them all in terms of how many missed tackles each had against the number of tackles they attempted.

There were a few names that should be immediately recognizable to fans of AFC East teams.

Worst of the Worst: Jets CB Kyle Wilson, Dolphins CB Sean Smith

In missing eight of his 48 attempts, Wilson came out missing one in every six tackles he attempted. He gave up 75 YAC (four yards-per-catch average) according to PFF, which isn't too bad.

Wilson was largely seen as a disappointment in his rookie year but performed better on the whole in 2011. If he can get his tackling figured out, he should only continue to improve.

Smith, on the other hand, missed 11 of 62 attempts for a missed tackle ratio of 6.2. He gave up 203 YAC according to PFF (six yards-per-catch average), which is concerning when you put the two pieces of information together—not only was he failing to tackle, but those missed tackles were costly to his team.

The Dolphins will be looking for help in the secondary in April's draft.

Best of the Best: Patriots CB Kyle Arrington

Arrington was a magnet for balls all year long, intercepting seven passes and leading the league in that category.

He also did a great job in clean-up duty when it came to tackling, missing just three tackles of his 74 attempts for a ratio of one missed tackle every 24.7 attempts. He ranked as PFF's fifth-best tackling cornerback.

It's rather surprising, considering his diminutive stature at just 5'10" and 196 pounds.

He also didn't give up a great deal of YAC, at just under four yards-per-catch average (195 yards on 49 receptions, per PFF). The Patriots will still be searching for more answers in the secondary this offseason, having allowed more than eight yards per attempt as a team in 2011.

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