pff linebacker rankings 2022
Bobby Wagner, Seattle Seahawks Seattle's defense may have deteriorated around him, but Bobby Wagner remains the class of the linebacker position, especially since Luke Kuechly 's retirement. Overall, Georgia has 11 players in PFF's big board including six players ranked in the top 80 NFL draft prospects. It's like your very own digital cheat sheet. Contract projection: Available in PFF's free agency rankings. 23 in 2021. No. For all the young players' struggles, there are a lot of promising linebackers who have the talent to become elite players at this level. Despite the inconsistent offense, the Chicago Bears had the No. With the new league year just around the corner, it's time for all 32 NFL teams to turn their attention to NFL free agency in a bid to improve their rosters for a new campaign. 2022 (146 FBS TEs, minimum 20 targets) Yards per route run: 25th; PFF receiving grade: 12th; YAC: 7th; 2021 (133 FBS TEs, minimum 20 targets) Yards per route run: 94th; PFF receiving grade: 111th . Santa Clara, California, USA; San Francisco 49ers middle linebacker Fred Warner (54) lines up over Green Bay Packers center Josh Myers (71) during the first quarter at Levi's Stadium. Cole Holcomb could yet turn into a solid linebacker, while 2021 first-round pick Jamin Davis could also improve after a poor first season. Minnesota Vikings players on both sides of the ball, including Kendricks, have already opened up about the culture change they have felt early on this offseason with Kevin O'Connell. s departure, and his 105 tackles were more than his first three seasons combined. A new defensive coordinator and scheme will help him, though. His 89.0 run-defense grade in 2022 ranked fourth at the position, with his 13 tackles for loss or no gain tied for 12th. Los Angeles' overall defense is so good, at least on paper, that it might not matter who plays linebacker. despite dropping into coverage at times. Yes, Davis was a late-bloomer, but not many players can make the impact he does in stopping the run, tackling, rushing the passer and working in coverage. In his recent post on linebackers, PFF's Sam Monson ranked Nick Bolton No. 2022 NFL Draft Position Rankings: Linebackers By Michael Renner Apr 22, 2022 Devin Lloyd and Nakobe Dean will be the talk of the class and likely the only two first-round linebacker prospects in 2022, but there's still a lot of talent at the position on Days 2 and 3 of the draft. So, who's the best off-ball linebacker in the NFL today? Put some respect on Demario Davis pic.twitter.com/4jzOf4GYS1. David Long, meanwhile, was playing at a solid level before an injury forced him to miss most of the second half of the 2021 season. Please check the opt-in box to acknowledge that you would like to subscribe. This ranking may be a surprise after the Seahawks lost future Hall of Famer. Divine Deablo had some interesting moments as a rookie in 2021 and is worth keeping an eye on. Jewell missed almost all of 2021 due to injury but is a run-stuffing force when on the field. 2022 NFL linebacker unit rankings: Giants come in at 24 (PFF . Edwards was one of just four linebackers to earn grades above 75.0 in run defense and coverage, generating 11 quarterback pressures on just 26 pass-rush snaps, as well. The PFF grades aren't always right on point, but they do serve as a generally effective tool for comparisons . Rashaan Evans and Mykal Walker are solid players, though, and the team will hope that rookie Troy Andersen can make an early impact. 2021 Snaps: 679 Campbell is a one-year wonder at the moment, but that year was All-Pro caliber and the most recent thing we have seen from him. Expect both young studs to push for 140-plus combined tackles, if healthy. Unlock all tools and content including Player Grades, Fantasy, NFL Draft, Premium Stats, Greenline and DFS. It's also noteworthy that David is good in coverage, something other linebackers can struggle with. He is set to play next to Anthony Walker, who is a solid if unspectacular player. 10. This is a case of one elite linebacker pulling along another whose narrative hasnt really matched his production. Nick Bolton and Willie Gay are two young linebackers who came on strong last season. After ranking the best individual linebackers heading into 2022, here's how each team's linebacking corps stacks up. Hes a high-upside player now playing with a future Hall of Famer. He is a fantastic story of earning a job the hard way. 3 min read. He didn't end the 2021 campaign in the best fashion, but did rebound to record 13 combined tackles, two tackles for loss, four QB hits and two passes defensed in Tampa Bay's two postseason games. Cunningham is one of the most run-focused linebackers in the game, but his PFF coverage grade has declined throughout his career, dripping from average at best to outright poor over the last two seasons. He was not as good a coverage or run-stopping linebacker as he was as a pass rusher, but his talent makes you think he will figure it out shortly. Final Season Stats. When healthy, Johnson is among the best sideline-to-sideline run-defenders at off-ball linebacker in the league. After looking like he might be the next great linebacker earlier in his career, Deion Jones play has fallen off a cliff. That flexibility is tremendously valuable to the Dallas defense, but Parsons could take his game to another level if he shows development off the ball in Year 2. 1 linebacker on this list entering 2022. Vander Esch has had an up and down first four years in the NFL, but the talent that made him a first-round pick in 2018 still flashes on occasion and will certainly draw attention. While those grades arent poor, by any stretch, they are a notable step down from these players' excellent career baselines and some way short of their elite best. His first year with the Packers resulted in a whopping 85.0 mark. Now its just a matter of how nice itll be. Foyesade Oluokun was brought in from Atlanta, but there is certainly hope that the team's two rookie picks at the position, Devin Lloyd and Chad Muma, can play early. Over the past three seasons, his 19.8% pass-rush win rate and 23.8% pressure rate are both the second-best marks among off-ball linebackers with at least 100 pass-rush snaps over the span. This is a case of one elite linebacker pulling along another whose narrative hasnt really matched his production. Age: 28. Adam Holt. Here are the best available players remaining heading into Day 2 of the 2022 NFL draft. His 75.9 grade two years marked a career high. There's no telling what he could be with more reps at the position. Nakobe Dean, LB, Georgia . The redshirt junior is a dominant run-stuffer, as his 49 run-defense stops in 2022 ranked second among all linebackers in the country while his 20 tackles for loss/no-gain were tied for third. Typically, David is the ideal linebacker for IDP. Los Angeles' overall defense is so good, at least on paper, that it might not matter who plays linebacker. Consequently, the list of consistently elite players is far shorter than for other positions, and there is much more volatility in this position group. Even, Parsons is already one of the best defensive playmakers in the NFL as he enters just his second season in the league, but its difficult to rank him purely as an off-the-ball linebacker. 2021 Snaps:444 Christian Kirksey has not had a season of note since 2016 with the Browns, yet he projects as a starter in this defense once again. Some of it is because he's been a little bit dependent on good play from the defensive line in front of him, but a good deal of it has been his ability to more . 2021 Snaps: 979 the star of the Colts' defense has been rock solid since exploding onto the scene as a rookie. Perhaps most importantly in todays NFL, Tranquill followed up his 74.6 coverage grade in 2021 with a career-high 75.4 mark, with his 18 stops in coverage a top-20 figure among off-ball linebackers. Why drafting Dallas Cowboys LB Micah Parsons among the top-12 may not be the best decision. 2021 PFF grade: 50.6 (51st of 89). Players like T.J. Watt, Matt Judon, Harold Landry and Shaquil Barrett are not included. 2022 stats (Chargers): 5 sacks, 146 tackles, 1 forced fumble. He also frequently lines up at safety, defensive line and nickel corner, and if he had his way . San Francisco 49ers . I also gave a target round for your rookie drafts, these are just suggestions as all drafts are different. He's a Hall of Famer, no doubt, but the reason he's so high on this list is because he's not done just yet. Better luck with his health led to a respectable 63.8 overall grade and 72.6 pass-rush grade in 2021. Losing Kyle Van Noy, the highest-graded coverage linebacker in 2021, will hurt. Last but certainly not least, Pratt also peaked at the right time, with his 90.1 overall grade since Week 8 the top mark among linebackers. Mandatory Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports. . We have already seen that play from Smith in Chicago, but the decline of the defense around him and perhaps more importantly directly in front of him has led to a decline in his play. His All-Pro season in 2019 was special, but some might have thought it was just a one-year thing. Roquan Smith has had an up-and-down NFL career so far, and the team will be hoping he can bounce back from a 47.1 grade last season. He also has 30 quarterback pressures over 135 pass-rush snaps the past three seasons and took a quantum leap in coverage in 2022 en route to a 73.0 grade. He has yet to post a sub-70.0 grade, with three out of his four years coming in above 78.0. But in a vacuum, Drue Tranquill and Kenneth Murray are just not good enough players. Overall, White has had an incredible start to his career, as he's picked up All-Pro honors, a Pro Bowl bid and a Super Bowl ring in just three years. Nakobe Dean was widely considered to be a potential first-round pick before the 2022 NFL Draft. It was his first season missing fewer than 10% of his tackle opportunities, and he put up an 86.8 overall grade with seven tackles and two defensive stops during a strong playoff run. Its hard to overstate Fred Warners effect on the 49ers' defense in their run to the NFC championship in 2021. Galina ranked the Colts at No. He might not even start this season. This means zone-heavy coverages and, more specifically, a Cover-2 heavy scheme, which proves to be the most effective coverage at propping up linebacker tackle numbers (as illustrated below). Kansas City Chiefs News Chiefs' young linebacker unit breaks into top 10 in PFF rankings The Chiefs' top two linebackers are 22 (Bolton) and 24 (Gay), yet Pro Football Focus finds the. Devin Bush has not lived up to his draft status as a first-round pick, and 2022 might be his last chance to prove himself at the NFL level. 7 ranking in Pro Football Focus' list of the top 25 safeties of the 2022 . . Projected contract: Two years, $9.5 million ($4.75M per year), $5.25 million total guaranteed. They also signed linebacker Myles Jack and D-lineman Larry Ogunjobi. We have seen elite play from the seventh-year pro, but we've not nearly seen enough of it, given his physical talents. As stated in the article, Galina only included true off-ball . He was arguably the best player on the best college defense of all time but slipped into the third round of the draft with some potential medical red flags. What a find he was for the Packers last year. Projected contract: Four years, $40 million ($10M per year, $22.5 million total guaranteed), PFF Free Agency Rank: 63 Another player without elite physical tools, Jewell reads the game very quickly and is consistently in the right place at the right time against the run. He put forth a monster rookie season in 2019 but hasnt quite attained the same highs in subsequent seasons. Maybe the most volatile position in football, linebackers have seen their worth in the NFL fluctuate over the years. 9 linebacker in coverage with a 73.9. The Titans ask a lot of their off-ball linebackers, and Long can do it all. Oluokun leads the way for a very underwhelming free-agent class at off-ball linebacker, though his timing of reaching unrestricted free agency could work out nicely in his favor. David also graded out as the No. Bentley improved considerably in his second season as a full-time player, as his 68.1 overall grade was almost 15 points better than his 2020 overall grade. Although Parsons didn't walk away from the 2022 season with hardware to show off for his accomplishments in 2022 the way he did in his rookie season in 2021, Parsons continues to . Here's the top 10 entering the 2022 season: 1. Campbell recorded the second-highest PFF grade of any linebacker with an 85, and also was the second-highest graded linebacker in coverage with an 82.2. Much of this unit's potential lies with third-round rookie Christian Harris, who managed 34 run stops at Alabama in 2021 (tied for 36th among 374 qualifying FBS linebackers). One of the five highest-graded linebackers last season in his first year with Carolina, Luvu is another Demario Davis trajectory candidate. 8:44 am ET. Philadelphia brought Edwards back in 2022 on a one-year, $2.15 million deal at a position they have all but refused to invest in with top draft capital or free-agent dollars in many years, but Edwards may put the Eagles positional value to the test this offseason if they want to keep him around. A position of weakness for the Eagles in 2021 might turn into a position of strength in 2022 with the additions of rookie Nakobe Dean and veteran Kyzir White to pair alongside T.J. Edwards, who had a breakout 2021 season. Singleton has had quite the career path to this point, finally reaching unrestricted free agency ahead of the 2023 season after entering the NFL as an undrafted free agent of the Seattle Seahawks in 2015. You dont want to line him up against an opposing receiving weapon in a one-on-one, but he demonstrated better recognition of route patterns and improved as a zone coverage backer. His 2021 campaign wasn't his best, but he seems like a player that's just going to get better, and someone who could end up becoming the next Lavonte David for the Bucs.
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