The 10 best cornerbacks in the history of the New England Patriots

As one of the leaders of any NFL team, cornerbacks are an important part of a roster in hopes of having a dominant and successful defense.

The Patriots have a rich history of drafting some of the best talent in the position, as seen since the team's inception. Hopefully, this trend will continue today and in the future.

Criteria for selection:

Ranking cornerbacks in Patriots history isn't as easy as one might think. The team has been very fortunate in rostering some highly talented players over the years, and not just during their most successful era, either.

From racking up interceptions to memorable postseason play, the Patriots have a long list of solid contributors worth mentioning, especially for their work that goes beyond the stat sheet.

The 10 best cornerbacks in Patriots history

Honorable mention: Jonathan Jones

10. Ellis Hobbs

A third-round pick out of Iowa State in 2001, Ellis Hobbs exceeded expectations during his short four year stint in New England.

The undersized cornerback proved his value to the team again and again, recording 9 interceptions returned for 87 yards, 41 passes defended, 5 fumble recoveries (1 for a touchdown), 2.5 sacks, and 165 combined tackles.

Hobbs consistently shined in the postseason, breaking up several likely touchdown passes and picking off quarterbacks like Eli Manning. He was also a solid contributor on special teams, which was on full display in the 2006 AFC Championship Game when he returned a kickoff for 80 yards.

9. Otis Smith

After spending most of his career elsewhere in the NFL, Otis Smith joined the Patriots right in the nick of time as they began what would be the start of their legendary dynasty in 2000. He played some of his best football during the three seasons he spent in New England, including 2001, when he scored 2 touchdowns from interceptions during the regular season.

Before leaving for the Lions in 2003, Smith recorded 10 interceptions returned for 278 yards and 2 touchdowns, 37 passes defended, 4 fumble recoveries, 3 sacks and 191 combined tackles.

However, his most memorable interception came in the postseason when he picked off Kurt Warner in Super Bowl XXXVI to set up a crucial field goal in the Patriots' eventual win over the Rams in 2002.

8. Ronnie Lippett

An eighth-round draft pick who spent his entire career in New England, Ronnie Lippett's career has mostly gone under the radar since he retired in 1992. He came into the league in 1983 with such a force that he was among the few players considered for Defensive Rookie of the Year, and although he never made it to the Pro Bowl, he was a consistent contributor for the Patriots during a down time in the team's history.

Only missing a handful of games during his eight-year career, Lippett played in 122 regular season games and recorded 24 interceptions returned for 420 yards and 2 touchdowns.

He also added 8 fumble recoveries and one sack to his resume. He was such a fixture in the secondary, especially when it came to intercepting Dan Marino that he was eventually named to the Patriots All-1980s Team, solidifying his legacy in New England.

7. Malcolm Butler

Although his most memorable performance came during his rookie season in Super Bowl XLIX, Malcolm Butler contributed more to the Patriots secondary during his four years with the team than just that one play.

After being named one of the starters in 2015, Butler was named to his first Pro Bowl and earned Second-Team All-Pro honors the following season. Besides the infamous benching in Super Bowl LII, he never missed a game, recording 8 interceptions returned for 36 yards, 47 passes defended, 4 forced fumbles, 2 fumble recoveries, 205 combined tackles, and three tackles for a loss.

Despite the odds stacked against him to even make it to the NFL, Butler made the most of his opportunity and has become a legend for his interception from Russell Wilson in 2014, which secured the Patriots' fourth Lombardi trophy.

He was part of the winning team for Super Bowl LI, as well, and although his time with the team ended oddly and will likely never be what actually happened, Butler will forever be remembered for being a Super Bowl hero, so much so that Tom Brady awarded him the truck he won from being named Super Bowl MVP.

6. Darrelle Revis

Is there anything more satisfying than stealing a legendary player from one of your most hated divisional rivals? It's hard to imagine there is, which was exactly the feeling for the Patriots, who signed Darrelle Revis from the Jets in 2014.

At that point, he was already considered one of the greatest of all time, having put together an impressive career since New York drafted him in 2007. Revis was a five-time Pro Bowler and three-time First-Team All-Pro when he signed with the Patriots, hoping to win the first Super Bowl of his career.

Fortunately, he came at right time, as the Patriots were beginning the second half of their twenty year dynasty, which kicked off with their win over the Seahawks in Super Bowl XLIX. That year, Revis recorded 2 interceptions, 14 passes defended, a fumble recovery and 47 combined tackles, all of which earned him another Pro Bowl nod and First-Team All-Pro honors.

It would have been nice to see him remain with the team beyond just the one season, but Revis didn't need more than one year to become one of the greatest cornerbacks in Patriots history.

5. Asante Samuel

He might be enemy number one since he left the team in 2008, but it wouldn't be right to keep Asante Samuel off the greatest cornerbacks in Patriots history list.

The fourth-round pick in the 2003 Draft became a fixture of the Patriots' secondary during five years in Foxboro, playing during a peak time of what would become known as the start of the Bill Belichick-Tom Brady era dynasty. Samuel was among all-time greats on the defense but made a name of his own for his aggressive and standout performances.

Through the 75 regular season games he took the field, Samuel recorded 22 interceptions returned for 313 yards and 3 touchdowns, 79 passes defended, 4 forced fumbles, 237 combined tackles, and 8 tackles for a loss, all of which earned him a Pro Bowl selection and First-Team All-Pro honors in 2007.

Although his most memorable Super Bowl performance is not one most fans want to relive, he was part of two Lombardi-winning teams and was a significant contributor to the defense's effort to win those games.

His time with the Patriots certainly ended chaotically, hence his disdain for Bill Belichick and the team to this day, but he is still one of the best cornerbacks to ever lace up a pair of cleats in New England.

4. Stephon Gilmore

Perhaps one of the most unexpected but impressive stints by a cornerback in team history, Stephon Gilmore easily became one of the best to ever suit up with the Patriots after Bill Belichick signed him to a massive contract in 2017.

He was one of the bigger names the head coach and GM had acquired from a divisional rival during his career, as Gilmore had been with the Bills since the team drafted him tenth overall in 2012, and he went on to become an absolute legend at the position in Foxboro.

Gilmore was an immediate star for the Patriots defense, quickly earning the CB1 spot alongside Malcolm Butler. He would remain in that spot no matter who was paired with him, and recorded some of the most impressive years of his career before being traded during the 2021 season.

During his four years in New England, he recorded 11 interceptions returned for 200 yards and 2 touchdowns, 52 passes defended, 3 forced fumbles, 2 fumble recoveries, 185 combined tackles, and 3 tackles for a loss.

His most impressive accomplishments, however, were being named to three Pro Bowls, two First-Team All-Pros, and the Defensive Player of the Year Award in 2019. Gilmore was a big factor in the Patriots' win in Super Bowl 53, and who could forget his unbelievable pass breakup in the AFC Championship against the Jaguars the year before?

3. Raymond Clayborn

After Mike Haynes was taken in the first round of the 1976 draft, the Patriots hit it out of the park again a year later when they selected Raymond Clayborn with the 16th overall pick. The pair would make a legendary duo for the next several years, shutting down opposing receivers with ease and aggressive play style.

That was the epitome of Clayborn's NFL persona, as he consistently locked down opponents WR1 like it wasn't a hard job to do. Throughout his career, he recorded 36 interceptions returned for 555 yards and a touchdown, which was only the tip of the iceberg of a very impressive career.

Clayborn became a fixture of the New England defense during his 13 years with the team, making three Pro Bowls, three First-Team All-Pro, and one Second-Team All-Pro during that time. Although he was a great cornerback, he also contributed as a kick returner, setting NFL and team records in that role, too.

From his reliability and memorable interceptions of Dan Marino, who led historically great Dolphins teams, Clayborn was inducted into the Patriots Hall of Fame in 2017 while also being named to the Patriots All-1970s and 1908s Teams and their 35th Anniversary Team.

He helped set a standard for cornerback play of the future in New England, and his aggressive and often controversial style is still emulated today, for good reason.

2. Mike Haynes

In an era that isn't exactly remembered fondly in Patriots history, Mike Haynes led the team's secondary to impressive success since being selected in the first round of the 1976 Draft. Expectations were immediately high for the cornerback, given his career at Arizona State, and to say he lived up to them and more would be an understatement.

Although most probably remember him for his accomplishments with the Raiders, Haynes played his best football as a Patriot, which started with him winning Defensive Rookie of the Year and being named to the Pro Bowl and Second-Team All-Pro.

He continued that for the next four seasons in a row, and again in 1982, and by the time he left New England the following year, Haynes was a six-time Pro Bowler and Second-Team, All-Pro honoree.

Haynes set the tone for what a lockdown cornerback could be and how to maintain that level of success over several seasons, which inevitably led to him becoming an absolute legend of the game and in Patriots history.

During his tenure, he recorded 28 interceptions returned for 393 yards and a touchdown, 11 fumble recoveries, and a sack.

He has since been named to the Patriots All-1970s team, the 35th and 50th Anniversary Teams, and the Patriots Hall of Fame. He was also named to the NFL's 1980s All-Decade team, the 75th and 100th Anniversary Teams, and enshrined in the NFL Hall of Fame in 1997. His number (40) is also retired in New England, and rightfully so.

1. Ty Law

The greatest cornerback of all time for the New England Patriots has to be Ty Law, a player who lived through some of the most fascinating times for the team from 1995 to 2004. He was there for the peak Drew Bledsoe era, was part of the team when Tom Brady was controversially named the starter, and helped kick off the start of what would be the longest dynasty in sports history.

Although a lot of the focus during his time with the Patriots has predominately focused on Tom Brady, countless defensive line players, and Adam Vinatieri, Law was a huge factor in maintaining a dominant defense throughout it all.

He was the pillar of the cornerback room, which Bill Belichick built upon to create a lockdown secondary, and was a seasoned veteran by the time the team finally won their first Super Bowl in 2001. They went on to win two more Lombardi's before Law left the team in 2005, and by then he had already accomplished a Hall of Fame resume.

Throughout his 10 years with the patriots, Law recorded 36 interceptions returned for 583 yards and 6 touchdowns, 65 passes defended, 3 forced fumbles, 4 fumble recoveries, 638 combined tackles and 12 tackles for a loss.

On top of it all, he was named to the Pro Bowl four times and received First-Team All-Pro honors in 1998 and 2003. He would add three time Super Bowl Champion to his long list of accomplishments, as well as being named to the NFL's 2000s All-Decade Team, the Patriots' All-1990s, All-2000s, 50th Anniversary, and All-Dynasty teams. And, of course, he was inducted into the Patriots Hall of Fame in 2014 and finally into the NFL Hall of Fame in 2019.

His accomplishments speak for themselves, but Law meant more to the Patriots than just what he did on the field. He was also a leader, a mentor, and a great teammate, demonstrating the complete definition of what it was to be the ultimate Patriot.

The 10 best cornerbacks in Patriots history by interceptions

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