You're not going to find a whole lot of agreement on the top of this year's cornerback class. In fact, you might even have trouble deciphering a top tier.

Depending on who your expert of choice is, the top cover man in April's draft could be Kansas' Aqib Talib, South Florida's Mike Jenkins, Virginia Tech's Brandon Flowers or Troy's Leodis McKelvin. Although that top four might be relatively consistent among the rankings, even that party can be crashed by Arizona's Antoine Cason, Boston College's DeJuan Tribble, Tennessee State's Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie or San Jose State's Dwight Lowery.

Oklahoma's Reggie Smith might even stand to join the discussion, but folks will have to first decide whether he projects better as a cornerback or a safety. He played both in college.

Of that first four mentioned, Talib might be the most polished and prepared cover man in the group. At 6-2, 202 pounds, he brings tremendous size and proven playmaking ability, as evidenced by his 13 interceptions and 43 other pass breakups in three seasons with the Jayhawks. His coaches thought so much of his athleticism that they used Talib at times as a receiver in his final two seasons in Lawrence. There's not a whole lot that he can show at the Scouting Combine to improve his projection, though slower-than-anticipated 40 times have never helped a defensive back.

Jenkins and McKelvin might stand to help themselves with strong performances in the positional drills. Both have made names as return men in college and figure to flash good 40-yard dash performances, but they give evaluators a bit less to go on in game tapes. McKelvin, in particular, only started 25 of his 49 games at Troy and nabbed a mere four interceptions. He could bring serious boom-or-bust potential to any team that spends a first-round pick. Jenkins has proven himself more in coverage but rejected the opportunity to show off for scouts at the Senior Bowl.

Flowers will need to run well on Tuesday to keep potential employers from picturing him as a safety. Some view him as more of an aggressive hitter than a capable cover man.

Cason might be the most proven of the available cornerbacks and might have gone in the first round had he decided to leave school last year. A four-year starter at Arizona, he doesn't tend to be viewed as a speed player, but Cason performed in sprints and relays on Arizona's track team and earned all-conference honors as a return man in his senior season. A good day on Tuesday and another potentially on his pro day might be enough to vault him to the top of a fluid class of corners.

Of course, one can't talk about vaulting defensive-back stock without mentioning Rodgers-Cromartie. The tall, versatile athlete's dominant college career carries the requisite concerns about level of competition after he played at the Division I-AA level. However, he has since proved himself at the Senior Bowl and shown the ability to play either corner or safety. Personnel people could easily look at a strong Combine performance from Rodgers-Cromartie and see his cousin Antonio. The latter, of course, garnered a first-round selection in 2006 based almost solely on his athletic ability after starting just one game in college. He then went on to lead the NFL in interceptions in 2007, despite starting just eight games.

Tribble was a top-rated corner coming into this season, but his play disappointed some observers. Combine that with a lack of height (5-9), and he’ll be fortunate to sneak into the end of the first round.

Lowery might have been the most productive of the Division I corners, as he snagged 13 interceptions in just two seasons at San Jose State, including the nine that tied him for the national lead in 2006. A stellar day of testing could just vault him up among the early April picks.

Of course, speed is so treasured and so significant in cornerbacks that a blazing 40-yard dash could turn guys such as Indiana’s Tracy Porter or Colorado’s Terrence Wheatley in first-rounders. Between the usual intrigue that surrounds the speed positions and the jumble at the top of this corner class, Tuesday’s workouts could easily become the most intriguing of the Combine.

Is it safe?

For all the uncertainty in the cornerback crop, there is one thing certain about this year’s safety class. It’s weak. There’s so little to focus on within the group that N.C. State’s DaJuan Morgan, who played all of one season at safety before entering the draft, could wind up being the first one taken. Miami’s Kenny Phillips, who was discussed as a likely top 10 pick heading into his junior season, has become all but forgotten. Some now have him lingering on the board into the second round after a season that downgraded pretty much every Hurricane.

Fortunately, in a reversal of what happens on the field, the corners are here to help out. There is a serious group of college cover guys who just might be looking at a future as NFL safeties, much of which could ride on how well they test on Tuesday.

Flowers, Rodgers-Cromartie, Lowery and Smith -- among the guys already mentioned -- could potentially move to safety in the pros. Alabama’s Simeon Castille and USC’s Terrell Thomas lead a second group of players who could test their way to safety. Others include Iowa’s Charles Godfrey, Arkansas’ Michael Grant and Matterral Richardson, Virginia Tech’s D.J. Parker, Missouri’s Darnell Terrell and both starting corners from the national-champion LSU Tigers, Chevis Jackson and Jonathan Zenon. All will be worth watching in the 40-yard dash.

Last chance to step up
Nebraska’s Zackary Bowman was a rising talent after a 2005 season that finished with him intercepting a pass and knocking down five others in an Alamo Bowl upset of Michigan. Then, a torn left ACL took away his 2006 season, and he suffered a rupture to his right patellar tendon and a separate hamstring injury in 2007. He has tremendous size at 6-2 and 200 pounds but might be caught without a team or a position if he doesn’t test well on Tuesday and convince people that he’s healthy.

Belongs in Indy
Wisconsin’s Jack Ikegwuonu probably would have been a first-day pick in the 2007 draft, and at this point, he probably wishes he had taken the leap. The Badger corner tore the ACL and MCL in his right knee during a late-January workout and will likely miss the entire 2008 season. Rather than fighting to become a second-round pick, he’s been relegated to fighting to get drafted at all. If a team does take a chance on Ikegwuonu, it might have to do so at safety.

A trip down memory lane
Is all the talk about speed and 40 times getting anyone nostalgic for some Fabian Washington? The former Cornhusker blew into Indy three years ago, flew to a sub-4.3 second 40 and lassoed first-round money from the Raiders. In 2007, he lost his starting job. Speed thrills, but there’s far more to playing cornerback in the pros.


Matt Schauf is an associate editor and senior NFL writer for the Sports Buff Fantasy Network and a contributing writer for Draft Stock