Cornerback

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A cornerback (also referred to as a corner) is a position in American and Canadian football, more broadly classified as a defensive back. The modern cornerback is ideally very fast, agile, and has good football instinct. Like any defensive player, he must be able to react faster than his opponent, since he does not have the benefit of knowing where a play is going to go. Essential skills for a cornerback include backpedaling, jumping, staying with his man, anticipating a pass route and reading the quarterback.

Most modern NFL defensive formations use four defensive backs (two safeties and two corners; CFL defenses generally use five defensive backs (one safety, two defensive halfbacks, and two corners). A corner's responsibilities vary depending on the type of coverage called. Coverage is simply how the defense will be protecting against the pass. A corner will be given one of two ways to defend the pass (with variations that result in more or less the same responsibilities): zone and man-to-man. In zone coverage, the cornerback is responsible for an area on the field. In this case, the corner must always stay downfield of whoever it is covering while still remaining in its zone, always between the sideline and the opposing wide receiver. Zone is a more relaxed defensive scheme meant to provide more awareness across the defensive secondary while sacrificing tight coverage. As such, the corner in this case would be responsible for making sure nobody gets outside of him, always, or downfield of him, in cases where there is no deep safety help. In man coverage, however, the cornerback is solely responsible for the receiver across from him, usually the offensive player split farthest out. In man coverage, the corner is tasked with keeping his assigned wide receiver "inside" of him and well covered.