Look at the players Franklin had in his secondaries for the three years he was here : Casey Heyward, Sean Richardson, Andre Hal, Kenny Ladler, Javon Marshall, and Steven Clarke. Lots of continuity and experience for most of that time frame. Casey and Andre were great cover corners who prevented a lot of big plays. A Common traits of almost all of them were great play recognition and commitment to run support. The fact that some are in the pros attests to their talents. They cleaned up a lot of messes and kept games from getting out of hand so that we seemingly always had a chance late in the game. And of course they were all all recruits of the former defensive back, Bobby Johnson. Mason did not have the advantage of these players for last season or this one. The current group may progress but so far haven't compared favorably to their predecessors. I think a strong argument exists that Franklin owed his success more to this position group than any other.
