Emerson Island: A Hostile Environment For Browns' Opposition

Cleveland Browns' cornerback Martin Emerson Jr. is earning more and more respect around the NFL. Based on the analytics, some believe that he is still underrated.

Dec 28, 2023; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Browns cornerback Martin Emerson Jr. (23) takes the field during player introduction before the game against the New York Jets at Cleveland Browns Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Scott Galvin-USA TODAY Sports / Scott Galvin-USA TODAY Sports

The Cleveland Browns proudly showcase one of the best defensive back rooms in the entire NFL. A major part of that group is their trio of lockdown corners in Denzel Ward, Martin "MJ" Emerson Jr and Greg Newsome II.

The youngest of the three cornerbacks, MJ Emerson Jr., also happens to be the biggest at 6'2" and 200 pounds. As the 23-year-old corner enters his third season with the Cleveland Browns, he will once again look to establish a dominance in coverage on the outside.

Dominant feels like an appropriate word when describing Emerson. Since entering the league in 2022, the long corner has 115 total tackles, 89 solo tackles, one sack and four interceptions. All four interceptions came in the 2023 season as well.

When a wide receiver is matched up against Martin Emerson Jr., they are on "Emerson Island". This catch phrase is fitting based on Emerson's impact in coverage the past two seasons. On Thursday, Emerson posted on X "Emerson Island" in reference to some impressive coverage statistics from the 2023 season.

Emerson Island https://t.co/aTUeeU7JaU

— Martin Emerson Jr (@MartyMargg1) May 23, 2024

Cody Alexander is the owner of MatchQuarters, which if you visit the website, focuses a lot on technique and other in-depth analysis related to football. His post stating that Emerson is one of the most underrated corners in the NFL was coupled with some fascinating statistics.

• In Cover-0, he ranked 16th.
• In Cover-1, he ranked 6th.
• In Cover-2, he ranked 20th.
• In Cover-3, he ranked 12th.

• Overall Man Coverage Ranking: 8th
• Overall Zone Coverage Ranking: 6th
• Composite Cornerback Ranking: 5th

Despite the Cleveland Browns primarily playing man coverage under defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz, Martin Emerson Jr. was able to rank in the top ten of both man and zone coverage based on Alexander's statistics. Not only did Alexander post those rankings, but he also included a heat map with the y-axis as the pass depth and x-axis as the pass width. What this graph identified is that Emerson forces a lot of low-percentage throws to the outside when targeted.

Dec 28, 2023; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Browns cornerback Martin Emerson Jr. (23) reacts after defending a pass intended for New York Jets wide receiver Xavier Gipson (82) during the second half at Cleveland Browns Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports / Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports

For someone who witnesses Emerson at work each game, this is likely not surprising. What these statistics do though is put a numerical value on just how important he is to this Cleveland Browns' defense.

Even though this is impressive, Emerson and the Browns coaching staff will likely both feel that he has room to get even better. This offseason, he gets an opportunity to get back to work and strive for more. Perhaps he can even enter the conversation of best NFL cornerback in 2024.

One thing is clear, Emerson Island is a hostile environment for opposing NFL wide receivers. Spending four quarters matched up against him makes for a long game.