One of the best performances in the 49ers win against the Cardinals yesterday was from cornerback Charvarius Ward.
Ward registered two interceptions with one of them leading to a 66 yard pick six. It was his first touchdown and first multi-interception game of his career. His strong performance comes at a time where he recently said on Arik Armstead's show Third and Long that he views himself as a "top-five" cornerback in the NFL.
All he needed was the stats to back it up for him to start gaining popularity, and he did just that by backing it up against the Cardinals. Ward is making a case to be an All-Pro this season. For most of this season, he has been playing at a high-level. Now, there was a rough patch for him during the 49ers' losing streak, but overall he has been performing incredibly well. Look no further than when he put the clamps on D.K. Metcalf on Thanksgiving.
And now he has the stats to fuel that case after his career day against the Cardinals.
“It means everything," said Ward on his career performance. "I had a big smile on my face probably for the whole first half after that touchdown man… Two picks, first time that ever happened in my career (at any level) so definitely thankful for that.”
Credit where credit is due. Ward called it in the interview with Armstead prior to this game that he just needs to pick up some interceptions to stand out more. He certainly has done that and deserves to be recognized for it along with his performances prior.
"Amazing performance. Two picks, that’s big for him," said Dre Greenlaw. "He’s locked in. He knows he’s one of the best out there and he’s just trying to prove it.”
The unfortunate reality with cornerbacks is that unless you have astounding stats, then you're not really going to be recognized much. Take Cowboys' cornerback Duron Bland. He has registered five interceptions for touchdowns, which is an NFL record. However, he isn't the most consistent in coverage, but no one will care as he takes the ball away and turns it into points. Ward on the other hand gives no quarter in coverage, but doesn't have the interceptions to make him pop.
"He's playing at an All-Pro level," said Nick Bosa. "The stats don't always tell the whole story," but I'm very happy that he was able to get that. He deserves it. He's a top corner in the league no doubt."
Now that he has that amazing stats game, he should finally start to receive his flowers. Ward is for sure a Pro Bowl caliber player and is trending towards being an All-Pro.
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