“Witherspoon wasted little time becoming a top player in the competitive NFC West,” Fowler writes. “Seattle deployed him in a variety of ways, from instinctive cover man (16 pass deflections) to effective blitzer (3 sacks, 8 tackles for loss). Witherspoon’s play earned him a Pro Bowl nod and a fourth-place finish in the Defensive Rookie of the Year race.”

The cornerbacks that ranked ahead of Witherspoon were Jaylon Johnson (Chicago Bears), Jaire Alexander (Green Bay Packers), Trent McDuffie (Kansas City Chiefs), Jalen Ramsey (Miami Dolphins), L’Jarius Sneed (Tennessee Titans), Sauce Gardner (New York Jets), Denzel Ward (Cleveland Browns) and Patrick Surtain II (Denver Broncos).

If Witherspoon is already viewed as an elite cornerback just one year into his career, the Seahawks defensive back could build quite the career as he moves into his prime. Now with a full offseason under his belt and his introduction to one of the best defensive minds in football in head coach Mike Macdonald, Witherspoon has the chance to continue climbing this list and proving even further why he is one of the best despite being one of the youngest.