Over the last 22 years, there hasn’t been a white guy who started at cornerback in the NFL. The drought has gone on long enough that it’s become sort of a tongue-in-cheek joke every year when the NFL combine rolls around.
The facts are that playing cornerback requires the most skill of any of the skill positions — running backwards and sideways to try and guard someone running full speed — and only the most elite athletes on the highest level of football qualify.
For the last 22 years, that has not included white dudes.
In 2024, for the first time since Jason Sehorn started 5 games for the New York Giants in 2002, there might be one. Second-year Denver Broncos cornerback Riley Moss is listed at the top of the depth chart, with Damarri Mathis not far behind.
Moss is one of three white cornerbacks expected to make NFL rosters in 2024, according to the official X account of MLFootball; Moss, Philadelphia Eagles rookie and fellow Iowa product Cooper DeJean and second-year Miami Dolphins cornerback Ethan Bonner.
“The last time a white CB started in a game was over 20 YEARS AGO & there have only been 15 white CBs in NFL history,” wrote MLFootball on X.
Moss Went From FCS Commit to Big Ten Star
Moss was originally committed to play for FCS powerhouse North Dakota State but flipped when he got a late offer from Iowa, where he was an All-American and the Big Ten Defensive Back of the Year in 2021 and a two-time All-Big Ten selection.
Moss ran the 40-yard dash in 4.45 seconds in the 40-yard dash at the 2023 NFL combine and was drafted by the Broncos in the 3rd round (No. 83 overall) of the 2023 NFL draft.
As a rookie in 2023, Moss played primarily on special teams with 6 tackles in 14 games.
Getting to start for the Broncos in 2024 would mean lining up on the opposite side of the field from one of the NFL’s best cornerbacks in NFL All-Pro Patrick Surtain II — a massive opportunity for either player.
Moss started the Broncos’ preseason opener against the Indianapolis Colts on Aug. 11 and had 3 tackles. Mathis has started 17 games over the last two seasons.
“Obviously, I look different,” Moss told The Palm Beach Post’s Joe Schad before the 2023 NFL draft. “I don’t play different. I’m obviously, you know, one of one, but at the same time, it doesn’t really affect me. And you know, sometimes, teams will see me out there and they’ll throw the ball towards my way. Absolutely. Let’s go. Throw it. Throw me the ball.”
Sehorn Finished Career as Safety With Rams
Sehorn was an athletic marvel and one of the NFL’s most well-known players in the mid-to-late 1990s with the Giants, where he started 73 games at cornerback from 1996 to 2002 .
Sehorn actually played minor league baseball for the Chicago Cubs for one year before moving back to football, where he starred at Shasta (Calif.) College before playing two years at USC, where he first played defensive back.
Sehorn ran the 40-yard dash in 4.37 seconds at the 1994 NFL combine and was drafted in the second round (No. 59 overall) by the Giants. After injuries took away some of his speed, Sehorn finished his career at safety with the St. Louis Rams, where he started 3 games in 2003.
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Broncos Could Start NFL’s First White Cornerback Since 2002