In the 2019 NFL season, per Sports Info Solutions, there were 19,933 total quarterback dropbacks. Against those dropbacks, NFL defenses put four defensive backs on the field just 18% of the time (3,579 snaps), while nickel defense (with five defensive backs) ruled the league by far with 59% of all snaps (11,780). And if you want to know how much the NFL isn’t a base defense league anymore, consider this: Defenses lined up in dime coverage (six defensive backs on the field) on 20.9% of total dropbacks (4,091), which means that teams played more dime defense than base defense. The Seahawks were the only team to play base defense more than 50% of the time (67%), and the Cardinals finished second at 37%.

In terms of a player who may play as a pure slot in the NFL, St-Brown may be the best of them all. The traits St-Brown possesses showcase everything a team would in a slot receiver. The suddenness, vice-grip hands, and yards after the catch ability are terrific in the case of St-Brown. Not until recently has there been much emphasis on the slot receiver in the NFL. Jerry Rice worked out of the slot occasionally and he is the best WR ever. But I believe you are asking strictly the slot and I’d say Wes Welker was pretty unstoppable at what he did and now Julian Edelman is just as effective. Just last year, Day 2 picks at receiver like D.K. Brown, Terry McLaurin, and Deebo Samuel had the best rookie pass-catcher seasons, and their successes serve as a reminder that it's. At the midway point of the 2020 season, Adams has crafted a convincing case as the game’s premier receiver. Consider the following: – Adams ranks first in the NFL in receptions per game (8.8), receiving yards per game (112.5), receiving touchdowns per game (1.33) and receiving first downs per game (6.0). That makes him one of the best slot receivers in the 2020 NFL Draft. Hill is a guy who has been a slot receiver since his first day at Ohio State. In the NFL, I expect that trend to continue. Hill has shown significant struggles against press coverage, and that means if you can, you want him aligned off the line of scrimmage.

All this is to say that unless you’re the Seahawks, you’d better have some top-level slot defenders if you want to put a credible pass defense out there in a league where offenses are implementing more kinds of receiver sets and route combinations than ever before.

And it’s not as if the skill sets required to be a slot defender are the same as those for an outside cornerback. You might be up against a 6-foot-5, 250-pound tight end on first down who can body you right out of the paint, and on the next play, you may have to deal with a small, speedy option-route receiver whose job is to juke you right out of your shoes. And as Richard Sherman once told me in his Seattle days, the thing about playing outside cornerback is that the boundary is your friend. That’s not the case when you’re in the slot, where you’re defending in space pretty much all the time.

So, which slot defenders were the most effective and valuable to their teams in 2019, and thus should be set up to do the same in 2020? With help from Pro Football Focus’ metrics, and a whole lot of tape study, here’s one list. To avoid small sample-size results, each of these defenders played at least 50% of their snaps in the slot.

Mike Hilton Chris Harris Jr. Jourdan Lewis Tramon Williams Mackensie Alexander Nickell Robey-Coleman Marlon Humphrey D.J. Hayden Brian Poole K’Waun Williams Tyrann Mathieu

Davante Adams doesn’t need to say he’s the best wide receiver in the NFL because the numbers do most of the work for him.

At the midway point of the 2020 season, Adams has crafted a convincing case as the game’s premier receiver.

Consider the following:

– Adams ranks first in the NFL in receptions per game (8.8), receiving yards per game (112.5), receiving touchdowns per game (1.33) and receiving first downs per game (6.0).

– At his current per-game averages, Adams would finish with 123 catches, 1,575 receiving yards and 18 touchdown catches despite missing two games.

– Adams ranks first among receivers in overall grade at Pro Football Focus.

– Adams ranks first in yards per route run (3.26), per PFF.

– Adams ranks first in yards per route run from the slot (4.05) and receiving touchdowns from the slot (5), per PFF.

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– Adams ranks 10th in the NFL in receptions and eighth in receiving yards despite missing 2.5 games.

– Adams ranks first in the NFL in catches (11) and touchdown catches (5) inside the red zone.

– Among receivers, Adams ranks sixth in total yards after the catch and third in yards after the catch per game.

– Adams ranks second in the NFL in receptions gaining a first down or scoring a touchdown on third and fourth down (16). He’s third in total catches (18), first in total yards (279) and second in touchdowns (3) on third and fourth down.

– Adams has three games this season with at least 10 catches and 150 receiving yards. The rest of the NFL has seven total. And no player, other than Adams, has more than one.

– Adams has two games with at least 170 receiving yards. The rest of the NFL has five. And no player, other than Adams, has more than one.

– Adams is one of only four receivers with at least 50 targets and zero drops in 2020, per PFF.

– Adams is one of only 12 players with at least three catches of 40 or more yards.

– Despite missing 2.5 games, Adams is one of only 11 players with at least seven catches of passes thrown at least 20 yards in the air, per PFF.

– Adams has caught all seven of his catchable passes thrown over 20 yards, per PFF.

– Adams has three games with at least two touchdown catches, leading the NFL.

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– Adams is catching 76.8 percent of his targets, which ranks ninth among receivers with at least 40 targets.

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– Despite Aaron Rodgers throwing two interceptions when targeting him in Tampa Bay, Adams still ranks fourth among all receivers in passer rating when targeted at 135.8.

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– Adams has led all offensive players in the NFL in overall grade during two of his six games this season, per PFF.

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– Adams ranks fourth among wide receivers in Total Points Added, a metric from Sports Info Solutions.

– Adams ranks seventh among wide receivers in DYAR, or Defense-adjusted Yards Above Replacement, a metric from Football Outsiders.

– Since 2016, Adams ranks fifth in the NFL in receptions, sixth in receiving yards and first in receiving touchdowns.