Why Panthers’ Corn Elder is a hard-hitting bargain pick (with an incredible name)

Corn Elder isn’t the kind of cornerback you can leave on an island in man coverage. He is the kind of cornerback who can make plays, break up passes over the middle, and swallow up tailbacks as one of college football’s strongest tacklers.

And after falling to the 152nd pick of the 2017 NFL Draft, he could be a major bargain for the Panthers.

They selected the Miami standout after four years of constant improvement in Coral Gables. Elder (whose full first name is Cornelius, and who had one of his best college games against the Cornhuskers) grew from four-star prospect into All-ACC cornerback, leading a Hurricane defense that limited opposing offenses to just 214 passing yards per game in 2016. While the former high school tailback may be undersized, his ferocious play and leadership in the secondary suggest he’ll be a valuable addition.

With fluid hips and high-level athleticism, Elder is a strong zone cornerback who breaks well to the ball and then charges through targets to break up passes. He’s spent time on either sideline and in the slot, giving him versatile FBS experience and flexibility. He moves well laterally, allowing him to break back to the ball after receivers earn separation.

His most NFL-ready skill is his tackling. Elder is fearless when it comes to taking down ballcarriers, lowering his pads and using strong leg drive to finish the job and prevent runners from falling forward. He finished 2016 with 55 solo tackles — a borderline nutty number from a cornerback.

His quickness and focus allow him to shed blocks on the second level and step up to make plays. It also makes him a valuable weapon on special teams. Not only will be be useful as a gunner, he had a 27.8-yard punt return average over his college career, though that only included 12 opportunities.

At 5’10, Elder lacks ideal height, especially after players like Richard Sherman have made taller cornerbacks a sustainable trend. He’s a strong help defender, but gets beat in one-on-one coverage. Bigger receivers can shunt him aside near the line of scrimmage, and faster ones can roast him downfield, particularly with double moves. He’ll be picked on in red zone coverage, where jump-ball passes will rarely go his way.

His coverage stats at Miami bear this out. He only recorded three interceptions in his four years. While he supplemented that production by knocking down 23 passes in his past two years, the limited output is enough to drop him behind a banner crop of cornerback prospects.