In today’s pass-happy NFL, the slot corner — or the ‘star’ corner as Joe Barry calls it — is a de facto starter for most teams, and that includes the new Joe Barry defense that we will see deployed in Green Bay this season. In a press conference earlier this offseason, Barry would go on to say that the slot corner will be on the field for about 80 percent of the defensive snaps—so yeah, basically a starter.

Last season, this position was primarily held by Chandon Sullivan, who took 608 total snaps in the slot. If I had to sum up Sullivan’s season in one word, I would choose “fine.” On 77 targets, he allowed a completion rate of 65 percent and 11.8 yards per catch with two touchdowns. And if you recall, he was a favorite target of Jared Goff and Tom Brady during the playoffs.

However, that isn’t to say it was all bad either. According to PFF, Sullivan ranked fifth out of 25 eligible slot corners in snaps per target and second in snaps per reception. With that said, that isn’t to say that this position can’t be upgraded; it certainly can, and that is what the Packers are going to try to do.

Defensive backs coach Jerry Gray has told reporters that they have four or five players in mind at the moment who could play the star role. But the plan during training camp and the preseason is to whittle that number down to one or two:

“That’s going to give us a chance to see how many guys can actually really dominate at that position, and eventually, after it’s over before the season starts, I think we would hone in on one or two of those guys.”

When it comes to who those four or five players are, Sullivan is clearly one of them, and I would venture to guess Darnell Savage is as well. During his two years in Green Bay, Savage has taken 230 and 229 snaps from the slot, respectively, and could be in line for more opportunities depending on how things shake out this summer.

I also imagine we will see Jaire Alexander lined up in the slot more often than what he did under Mike Pettine. As I wrote recently, Jalen Ramsey’s snaps in the slot doubled under then defensive coordinator Brandon Staley as he followed the opponent's top receiver and was utilized there in zone coverages to muddy things up over the middle for the quarterback.

I believe that we can expect to see Alexander utilized in a similar fashion, although the boundary will remain his primary responsibility.

Fifth-round rookie Shemar Jean-Charles primarily lined up out wide at Appalachian State, but in the NFL and with Green Bay, many are anticipating a move inside. Jean-Charles was a ball-hawk in college, totaling 25 pass breakups in two seasons, including 16 this past year, which led the nation. Gray would rave about Jean-Charles’ “smarts” and mentioned that they’ve lined him up both out wide and in the star role.

However, when it comes to Jean-Charles, he is a fifth-round rookie, so at least for the time being, expectations should be tempered. Odds are he won’t contribute much this season — although we obviously hope he’s able to — but he does provide added competition in the slot.

Since Gray mentioned four or five possible candidates, I’ll also throw Will Redmond’s name out there—and keep in mind, I’m just making educated guesses, no one has come out and said, “these are the five players.” Last season, Redmond took about one-third of his snaps from the slot, and in coverage, allowed 17 receptions on 24 targets at 13.1 yards per catch.

While coverage ability is the obvious requirement for a successful star cornerback, there’s much more to it. It’s a position that requires versatility and the ability to function in all facets:

“It's a unique position because you've got to be able to play man, you've got to be able to play zone,” said Joe Barry to reporters. “And when I say zone, you've got to be able to play like a linebacker almost. You've got to be involved in the run game and the run fits. We'll ask our nickel to be involved in the pressure package, so it's a unique position, but we've got a bunch of guys that are learning it just like they're learning every aspect of the back end.”

As Gray stated, the goal is to narrow this list from five players to just one or two, but my early guess is that we see more of a committee. For example, Sullivan may take a majority of the snaps, but I don’t see it being 608 again. If the Barry defense resembles Staley’s as we expect it to, then Alexander’s snaps inside will increase fairly significantly—he only took 33 there last year.

Savage could also see his snap count from the slot increase as well. As we’ve seen, Savage has been much more effective during his short career when playing closer to the line of scrimmage, and he’s also a willing tackler in the run game and has been solid when asked to blitz—all of which makes him a very good fit for this role, as Barry described above.

On top of that, Adrian Amos could see some snaps there on occasion as he has in the past, as could Vernon Scott, Henry Black, or whoever else ends up as the team’s third safety.

It’s a position that feels very much up from grabs— or at least that’s the impression that we have on the outside looking in — and over the course of the next few months, Joe Barry and Jerry Gray will figure out which players will be best suited for this all-important role.

“From the defensive standpoint, you better have good pass rushers and really good DBs. Specifically that nickel position, that star position. I think it’s vital,” said Barry to Packer Report. “I am from the school that you cannot have enough guys who are potential nickels.”

“In today’s football, you better have a great nickel or star corner.”