Dallas Cowboys cornerback Morris Claiborne has been a massive disappointment since being drafted No. 6 overall in the 2012 NFL Draft. Despite losing his starting position last season and missing the entire preseason with a shoulder injury, Claiborne has a tentative grip on the job by default.
Cowboys have middling confidence in Morris Claiborne, defense ripe for opposing fantasy points
Morris Claiborne won the starting cornerback job after Orlando Scandrick’s suspension, but the Cowboys don’t seem too thrilled about it. We break down the fantasy implications.
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Defensive coordinator Rod Marinelli seems less than enthused by the prospect, giving Claiborne a lukewarm vote of confidence to ESPN:
“Well, he’s there,” defensive coordinator Rod Marinelli said. “He’s our starting corner. That’s the confidence. He’s gotta go do it.”
Claiborne will be one of Dallas' starters while Orlando Scandrick serves his four-game suspension. In 25 games over two seasons, he has just two interceptions and 14 passes defended.
Fantasy impact: The Cowboys fielded a historically bad defense in 2013 and seem to have gotten even worse after losing DeMarcus Ware to a cap casualty and Sean Lee to injury. Their loss will be fantasy players' gain, though -- Dallas is going to be a popular matchup against every skill position player it faces this year.
First up are the San Francisco 49ers, who have defensive issues of their own with NaVorro Bowman and Aldon Smith out. That game has the potential to be a shootout, making Colin Kaepernick, Frank Gore, Michael Crabtree and Vernon Davis all must-start players in Week 1.
