Everything is Coming Together in Year Two for Chiefs Cornerback Rashad Fenton
Cornerback Rashad Fenton has quickly emerged as a solid contributor among a position group that was an area of concern heading into this season. This comes after an up-and-down 2019 campaign which saw him record four passes defended, an interception and a forced fumble in 12 games as a rookie. Late-round corners usually don't come with high expectations, and Fenton is well aware of that.
"As a sixth-round guy, you're labeled as just a special teams guy," Fenton said to members of the media in a press conference this week.
He was way more than that in his first season with the Kansas City Chiefs, spending time both on the boundary and in the slot as a nickel corner. Possessing adequate size (5'11", 188 pounds) and technique for a player in defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo's system, the bar was set high ahead of year two. Fenton has cleared it early on.
With Bashaud Breeland missing the first four games of the 2020 season due to a suspension and rookie L'Jarius Sneed going down with a broken collarbone, someone in the secondary had to step up. That player was Fenton in the Chiefs' Week 4 matchup with the New England Patriots, as he had what was easily his best game yet.
Playing 100% of available snaps on defense, the South Carolina product matched his 2019 total of passes defended in just one game. In addition to batting down four balls in the secondary, he snagged his first interception of the season and recorded three tackles. Despite having a rough snap leading to a N'Keal Harry touchdown catch, Fenton still managed to grade out as Pro Football Focus' best Chiefs defender for the game. Fenton chalked it up to experience and a greater understanding of both the Chiefs' defense and the opposition's offense.
"This year, since I know the defense, I'm able to pick apart the offense a little more and just learn a little more tendencies," Fenton said. "That was the most I was probably able to do from this year to last year."
The preparation is showing, as he's playing a confident brand of football. Mix that with solid athleticism and an element of physicality that is rare in today's NFL, and the Chiefs have a steadily-improving young corner.
Fenton's role with Breeland back in the mix is unknown. I talk about this further with Arrowhead Report's Tucker Franklin in one of this week's Roughing The Kicker podcasts. The Chiefs have preferred to keep Antonio Hamilton in the slot and with Breeland's attachment to one of the two boundary spots, it makes sense to simply shift Fenton back to a place he's quite familiar with. This will ensure the team's three best cornerbacks are on the field as often as possible until Sneed is ready to return.
"It just feels good knowing that when your number is called, and you have a job to do, that you're able to get the job done at an exceptional level as the starters would," Fenton explained.
He was quiet in the first three weeks of the season, but "exceptional" would be a perfect way to describe his performance against the Patriots. Considering he's just 23 years old, it's safe to expect even more improvement from him moving forward.
