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 Thursday, February 17
Woodson vs. Springs
 
ESPN.com

 The Matchup:
Charles Woodson vs. Shawn Springs.

The Game:
Raiders (2-1) at Seahawks (2-1) on ESPN's Sunday Night Football, 8:20 p.m. ET.

The Question:
Who is the better young cornerback?

Charles Woodson   Shawn Springs
 
HT: 6-1 | WT: 197 | AGE: 22 | YR: 2

By Mark Malone
Special to ESPN.com

Shawn Springs probably has a little bit more experience because he has one more year in the league, and that's invaluable. But based on raw ability and talent, I would take Charles Woodson.

Woodson is aggressive and will challenge receivers. The thing he has learned to do, which he struggled with at first, is learning how to play off the receiver. When you ask a great cover cornerback to play off the receiver, there's so much to decipher, from peeking back at the quarterback to reading the receiver. Sometimes, by the time they react, it's too late and they get fooled. Woodson has probably developed a little quicker in that area than Springs.

I don't know if there's a better pure athlete in the league than Woodson. He can do just about anything. He will come up and tackle people if you ask him to, which is rare for a cover corner. Woodson is a tough and smart player who is not all about the bravado. He has a pretty good perspective about what's going on.

It's too early to expect Woodson to play at the level of Deion Sanders at his prime, but I think Woodson is already playing at the level Deion played at early in his career in Atlanta. He belongs in that category.

Woodson and Springs, two Pro Bowl cornerbacks, are both good. You hate to say one is better because you feel like you are shorting the other player. But if you made me choose, I would pick Woodson.

  HT: 6-0 | WT: 197 | AGE: 24 | YR: 3

By Merril Hoge
Special to ESPN.com

Shawn Springs has all the qualities the modern cornerback needs to be successful in the NFL. He has great size and elite speed. He can run with any receiver or play physical at the line of scrimmage with any receiver.

Springs' full arsenal is hard to find. He has an uncanny ability to make plays on the ball and can be locked up one-on-one with a team's best receiver, whether it's a big receiver or a little one who can run. He is being used more and more like that in Seattle's defense. You can't find a mismatch against Springs.

Springs is one of the elite corners in the league. What makes him one of the elite is his physical ability against the run. Springs has the great cover skills, but he also has that added dimension of being able to support the run, something Deion Sanders will not do.

Compared to Charles Woodson, a Heisman Trophy winner playing in the same division, Springs might be a bit underrated, but that won't last for long. What you have to remember about Springs is that he has to be a rookie all over again this year.

With the arrival of new head coach Mike Holmgren, Springs is playing under a new defensive philosophy than he did his first two years in the league and is finding out where he fits in the new scheme. Once he figures that out, he will let his great natural instincts take over.


 


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