Jason Verrett has impressed during training camp. However, there is cautious optimism among fans and the media while discussing how good the veteran cornerback has looked. He has, after all, endured an injury-plagued career and hasn't proven yet that he can remain healthy.
The San Francisco 49ers gambled on Verrett for the second consecutive year. They signed him coming off of an injury last offseason and re-signed him to a one-year deal this offseason, hoping to see the cornerback compete and prove to be the player team decision-makers believe he can be.
In six NFL seasons, Verrett has avoided landing on injured reserve just once. It's where he found himself once again last year, as he attempted to return from torn Achilles tendon suffered a year earlier.
While Verrett has produced just 67 snaps since Week 5 of the 2016 season, Anthony Treash of Pro Football Focus is buying the talk that, if healthy, the veteran should start opposite Richard Sherman. Of course, he is competing with Emmanuel Moseley and Ahkello Witherspoon and will need to fend them off.
Treash explained why he lists Verrett as a starter among his list of training-camp buzz he is buying.
"Verrett was limited to only 156 coverage snaps in his 2014 rookie campaign due to injury but managed to produce a solid 82.5 coverage grade," wrote Treash. "In his only (mostly) healthy season in 2015, Verrett produced the highest PFF coverage grade (90.9) among cornerbacks. Should you expect him to be healthy? No. Should you expect him to play that well again if healthy? No. But the risk-reward with starting Verrett is far higher than starting Emmanuel Moseley and Ahkello Witherspoon."
In Verrett's one season avoiding a significant injury, 2015, the cornerback was named to the Pro Bowl, and as Treash stated, he was among the best cornerbacks in the league that year. Verrett was recently clocked at a speed of 22.2 mph, according to The Athletic, which is just shy of the 22.5-mph mark he hit with the Chargers during his rookie season in 2014.
"He's way further along this year," Sherman said last week. "His feet look incredible. His confidence is rising with every day. He's so sound, and he's so hard on himself, and so tough on himself. But he's been fantastic at the line of scrimmage. That's something that, coming into camp, he wanted to improve on, and something that he's improved drastically on just from last year.
"In his best years, he was incredible at the line of scrimmage. I think he's regaining that form and that confidence, and it's been exciting to see for our team."
