Who's the Better CB Prospect Fit for Dolphins: Johnson or Barron?

The Miami Dolphins’ most crucial needs in the 2025 NFL draft have come into focus.

With the first two waves of free agency finished, it’s clear the Dolphins’ primary needs are guard, safety, cornerback, and interior defensive line. There are some depth needs across the roster, but those are the positions where the team needs a starter.

Although the positions where the Dolphins need the most help are obvious, which player they should select is far less so. In this series, we’ll cover the top players available at each position of need and break down who fits the Dolphins best, starting with cornerback.

Let’s look at Jahdae Barron (Texas) and Will Johnson (Michigan).

Jahdae Barron’s Fit With Miami

Pros Of Barron’s Game

Barron was a relative unknown coming into the 2024 season but broke out in a big way, helping Texas to the College Football Playoff. He recorded 10 pass breakups, five interceptions, 58 total tackles, and one sack, and locked down one half of the field for most of the season.

Barron is an instinctive zone cornerback who does an excellent job reading the quarterback’s eyes and breaking downhill on routes to make plays on the ball.

The Texas product is also a good all-around athlete. His 4.39 40-yard dash time and 1.50 10-yard split rank in the 87th and 86th percentile among cornerback prospects since 1999, respectively.

Barron is also one of the few cornerbacks in the class who is truly versatile. He mainly played cornerback outside last season but logged at least 380 snaps in the slot in 2022 and 2023. He’s also played at least 140 snaps in the box during the last three seasons.

Outside cornerback is more valuable, especially for the Dolphins, who have Kader Kohou slated to return. However, Barron’s flexibility could allow the Dolphins to mix and match Barron, Kohou, and Jalen Ramsey, depending on the matchup.

All three of Miami’s top cornerbacks would have inside-outside versatility, while Ramsey and Barron would also have safety flexibility — one of the Dolphins’ other big needs.

Cons Of Barron’s Game

The primary concern with Barron’s game is his size. His 5-foot-10, 194-pound frame ranks in the 23rd and 37th percentile, respectively. Those numbers aren’t great, but they’re not prohibitively bad.

However, his arm length is a little concerning. He measured in with 29-inch arms at the NFL Combine, which would be in the third percentile for cornerbacks.

A huge part of Barron’s game is making plays on the ball, and while he was largely successful using his quickness and timing to do that in college, NFL receivers will be bigger and stronger. Barron’s length mostly affected him when he was defending the run, as it limited his tackle radius.

The other concern with Barron’s profile is the lack of man coverage prowess. The Dolphins don’t run a ton of man coverage under defensive coordinator Anthony Weaver, but if that’s a changeup they want to throw at teams, Barron’s skill set won’t translate as well.

He’s got the straight-line speed to hold up, but his ability to quickly pivot through route breaks will make it challenging for him to stick with solid route runners.

Will Johnson’s Fit With Miami

Pros of Johnson’s Game

Like Barron, Johnson is an excellent zone coverage cornerback who likes to read quarterbacks' eyes and bait them into bad throws.

He’s an exceptional athlete with good speed, quickness, and change-of-direction skills. These allow him to win in various ways, whether breaking downhill on a route or competing at the catch point down the field.

Johnson missed a good chunk of the 2024 season with injury (we’ll get to that later), but his 2023 tape is top-five-caliber. He was a shutdown cornerback who allowed a passer rating of just 30.9, helping Michigan win the National Championship.

Although many have written off Johnson’s play in 2024, it wasn’t actually that bad. He allowed a passer rating of just 52.6 when targeted and allowed zero touchdowns in coverage.

The Michigan product also has excellent ball skills, as he’s posted nine interceptions and seven pass breakups in three seasons starting for the Wolverines. Miami’s defense struggled to create turnovers for most of last season, so Johnson’s playmaking ability might be extra appealing.

Cons of Johnson’s Game

The first concern many will raise with Johnson is the turf toe and hamstring injury he battled during the season and pre-draft process. While it’s a fair concern, we’ve already covered why long-term concerns about Johnson’s health are unfounded.

As for his concerns on the field, they mirror Barron’s in many ways. Johnson’s man coverage ability is better than Barron’s, but he’s definitely better at playing in zone coverage. While Johnson lacks elite long speed, his change of direction skills are better.

Still, asking him to play primary man coverage wouldn’t be wise — of course, this isn’t likely something the Dolphins would ask of him anyway.

Johnson is also undersized, which surprised many evaluators. Johnson’s height (6-1) is great, but his weight (194) and arm length (30 inches) rank in the 37th and 10th percentile, respectively.

Those concerns don’t limit Johnson on tape much, but again, NFL receivers are bigger and stronger, so there’s a chance they pop up more often.

They mostly popped up when he was defending the run, which is not a strength of his game at all. Johnson can be a disinterested tackler when near the line of scrimmage, a problem that was especially bad this past season.

Johnson vs. Barron — Verdict

We’ll start with the cop-out answer before planting our flag on one of these prospects.

In a vacuum, Johnson is the more talented player. His upside and overall profile are that of a starting outside cornerback with All-Pro potential. If the Dolphins want to take a big swing, Johnson is the correct player to do that with.

However, there’s an argument that Barron is the better fit for Miami. The Dolphins have multiple holes across the secondary, and if they’re using pick No. 13 on a cornerback, it would make sense to take one who can provide value at multiple spots.

Barron’s play at outside cornerback this past season was incredibly impressive, and a lot of his best plays are directly translatable to what the Dolphins would ask him to do in their scheme.

The same can be said of Johnson, but Barron’s slot flexibility would allow the Dolphins to put their best defensive backs on the field at all times. He would be an ideal match to play with Ramsey and Kohou.

The only potential wrench in this plan is if the Dolphins view Barron as a slot-only player. In that case, taking someone like Johnson would probably be better for the team’s long-term health in the secondary.

Ramsey is getting older, and Kohou is a nice CB3, but the Dolphins don’t have any other cornerbacks who should be counted on long term. Building a secondary with a stud outside cornerback like Johnson would be easier than building one around Barron — if he’s viewed as a slot-only option.

In reality, the Dolphins can’t go wrong with either player. Barron and Johnson are scheme-fits who have put out excellent tape in recent seasons.

That said, Barron profiles as a better fit with the players the Dolphins have on the roster. If the goal is to maximize the 2025 team’s success, he might be the better option.