Counting down the top 25 players in the AFC East, one player at a time, one day at a time.

Why Antonio Cromartie?

When Darrelle Revis went down with a torn ACL in Week 3, a seismic shift transpired in the Jets secondary. Kyle Wilson was moved to the outside, and Antonio Cromartie became the team's No. 1 cornerback, tasked with shutting down a team's best receiver each week.

He was up to the challenge no matter who you ask.

The dropoff in the Jets' pass defense was to be expected, but was minimal overall. The Jets still were a top 10 pass defense last year in just about every major category. That is certainly a credit to Rex Ryan, but Antonio Cromartie's presence was a big part of the new game plan.

The Jets ranked fifth in the NFL against No. 1 receivers according to Football Outsiders' defense-adjusted value on average.

Individually, Cromartie ranked 12th in Pro Football Focus' yards allowed per cover snap and sixth in cover snaps per reception allowed -- indicative that he was not only allowing very few receiving yards on average, but very few receptions to begin with.

The Jets drafted Dee Milliner in the first round, but it's Cromartie who will likely be filling the void left by relocating Revis Island.

Did you know?

Antonio Cromartie's pick-six in Week 1 against the Bills was his first in a Jets uniform, and his first since Week 3 of the 2008 season against none other than...the Jets.

Check back every morning as we reveal one player a day on our way to No. 1 in the top 25.

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