pff linebacker rankings 2022

They also signed linebacker Myles Jack and D-lineman Larry Ogunjobi. 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. However, he earned an additional $500,000 in incentives along with a trip to the Super Bowl, so it couldve been worse, all things considered. No linebacker recorded more coverage snaps than Warner in all of 2021. The Vikings also brought in the underrated Jordan Hicks from the Cardinals in free agency. Rounding out the top-tier of linebackers. Gary Cosby Jr./USA TODAY Sports (Dean); Jasen Vinlove/USA TODAY Sports (Ojabo) 1. He might not even start this season. Projected contract: Two years,$12.5 million ($6.25M per year), $8 million total guaranteed, PFF Free Agency Rank: 139 He set career highs across the board, notching 146 combined tackles, six QB hits and two interceptions. NFL free agency is a year-round process, as teams scout opposing players in an effort to defeat them during the year and perhaps sign them in the offseason. San Francisco 49ers Projected Starters: Dee Ford, Javon Kinlaw, Arik Armstead, Nick Bosa The 49ers breed defensive linemen. Click here for PFF's full list of top 100 free agents. After looking like one of the worst linebackers in the NFL for a few years in Green Bay, Blake Martinez rebounded with a solid season in 2020 in New York before succumbing to injury early in the 2021 campaign. Here are the top 10 linebackers scheduled to become free agents in March. Both players posted the highest grades of their career, helping the Bengals to a Super Bowl appearance. Leonard was a beast in stopping the run, as his 91.1 PFF run defense grade was second among all defenders in 2021 -- not just linebackers. The Penn State product ranked No. 1 linebacker according to PFF, with a grade of 89.7. According to Stathead's AV tool, Leonard was tied in having the second-best season of any linebacker last year. may surprise some based on his age. Maybe the most volatile position in football, linebackers have seen their worth in the NFL fluctuate over the years. Those traits have allowed him to make a lot of tackles, but tackles are not always good plays for linebackers if they come after a big gain on the ground or because they were out of position in coverage. Mosley, Foye Oluokun. These power rankings are adjusted based on coach, quarterback and the market each season. Jack is now trying to reboot his career in Pittsburgh after suffering similar ill-fortune in Jacksonville. However, Dean played his role at an elite level, ranking 10th among all corners graded by PFF. 2021 PFF grade: 83.5 (N/A). White was a reliable presence at linebacker following the loss of 2020 first-rounderKenneth Murrayduring Weeks 4-9 and when Murray was battling injuries over Weeks 11-15. San Francisco 49ers . . Luckily for the Philadelphia Eagles, he was still available in the third round. 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. 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. 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. Campbells 90.4 tackling grade is his fifth straight such mark above 75.0, and that sure tackling goes a long way in Green Bay. 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. Best Bets Tool, PFF Free Agency Rank: 27 ECR VS. ADP. PFF's exclusive metrics provide matchup previews, position rankings, grades, and snap counts. 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. Here's the top 10 entering the 2022 season: 1. NFL NFL Home Tools NFL Scores NFL Premium Stats NFL Player Grades Free Agent Rankings QB Annual 2022 Pittsburgh Steelers (94/100) Cameron Heyward was second behind only Aaron Donald in PFF's grades of interior defensive linemen last season. In this article, I list my top 20 rookie linebacker rankings for your IDP dynasty leagues. NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year, first-team All-Pro and Pro Bowler. Murray surrendered a near-perfect passer rating into his coverage in 2021, allowing 14 catches on 15 targets for 132 yards and two touchdowns. This is a case of one elite linebacker pulling along another whose narrative hasnt really matched his production. 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. If the Cardinals had spent those picks elsewhere and held on to Jordan Hicks in free agency, they would be in a much better spot. Honorable mentions: Tremaine Edmunds, Matt Milano, Logan Wilson, Shaq Thompson, Alexander Johnson, Deion JonesJeremiah Owusu-Koramoah,Zach Cunningham, Anthony Walker, C.J. He finished as the highest-graded linebacker in football, recording 140 tackles, two interceptions and a career-high six sacks. What a find he was for the Packers last year. The soon-to-be 30-year-old is a solid all-around off-ball linebacker who has three straight seasons logging at least 750 snaps, and he took a major leap in 2022 with the. Tampa, Florida, USA; Tampa Bay Buccaneers linebacker Lavonte David (54) reacts after a play against the Carolina Panthers in the fourth quarter at Raymond James Stadium. Al-Shaair is in line to get paid as a free agent after teammatesFred Warner and Dre Greenlawfind themselves among the 16 highest-paid off-ball linebackers in the NFL. Drafting Quay Walker out of Georgia in the first round also helps the Packers' cause. The main contributors to a linebackers IDP success are the volume of defensive snaps combined with playing in zone-heavy defenses, which rack up tackles more efficiently. He packs a punch as a downhill player, as he can light up offensive linemen with ease. Barr agreed to a pay cut before the 2021 season that also voided the 2022 and 2023 seasons on his five-year extension signed in 2019. Shaq Thompson is a bona fide star, and he may be playing alongside a diamond-in-the-rough partner in Frankie Luvu. 3 min read. Foyesade Oluokun, JAC: New team, new official scorer. Its a rebuilt Jaguars linebacking corps after losing. 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. 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. 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). But in a vacuum, Drue Tranquill and Kenneth Murray are just not good enough players. For all the young players' struggles, there are a lot of promising linebackers who have the talent to become elite players at this level. 2021 PFF grade: 53.0 (50th of 89). Those tools caused Edwards to go undrafted despite an excellent college career, and he had to fight his way into a starting job by excelling in the preseason and on special teams. 1. He may be coming off one of his worst statistical seasons in recent memory, but he also missed five games with injury. There is hope that Channing Tindall, Miami's rookie linebacker out of Georgia, can find his way on the field. That's because he's both a speedy 240 pounds and one of the best tacklers in the class, having missed only seven times on 138 career attempts. Therefore, they are included in our defensive line rankings despite dropping into coverage at times. 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. Nevertheless, there were several interested teams last time he was a free agent he came very close to signing with theNew York Jetsbefore ultimately returning to Minnesota so it seems defensive coaches think they can find a way to put him in positions to succeed and utilize his athletic ability. Bobby Wagner may surprise some based on his age. No linebacker corps gets its collective noses dirtier than the Patriots' unit. Lloyd, who earned a 90.0-plus grade at Utah in 2021, does look set to start. The 30-year-old linebacker will be an unrestricted free agent for the first time in his career after a delayed start to his NFL career, and now hell be working his way back from a torn pectoral muscle injury. Hes not only straight-line fast, but he also processes and reacts with elite quickness. Chicago Bears Roquan Smith and Indianapolis Colts Shaquille (Darius) Leonard stock is falling due to availability concerns, making E.J. 1 as Bobby Wagner finally dethroned Ranking the top 10 linebackers for the upcoming NFL season By Jordan Dajani Jun 28, 2022 at. Gay hasnt graded as well but possesses the characteristics to become a top linebacker. He had a career year, helping turn around the Eagles' defense with the second-best grade among off-ball linebackers (84.4). He may be coming off one of his worst statistical seasons in recent memory, but he also missed five games with injury. His past two years against the run have been horrid, with him posting 39.8 and 30.0 run-defense grades. February 24, 2023 7:45 am CT. A couple of New Orleans Saints standouts were recognized on the list of the top 101 NFL players of the 2022 season from Pro Football Focus analyst Sam Monson. After missing most of the regular season. The transition from college football to the NFL used to be smooth for linebackers, but even elite prospects can now struggle in Year 1. 10 among linebackers last year. 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. 2021 PFF grade: 50.6 (51st of 89). 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. Below, we will rank the NFL's top 10 linebackers entering 2022. Although Wagner might be on the downswing of a great career, this unit could push for a top-five spot by the season's end if he rebounds after a poor 2021. 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). 2021 PFF grade: 65.1 (22nd of 89). We thought about if Parsons should even be included in this list since he played a fair amount of pass-rusher last season, but the bottom line is that Parsons is a great linebacker who can wear several different hats on defense. The transition from college football to the NFL used to be smooth for linebackers, but even elite prospects can now struggle in Year 1. Why drafting Dallas Cowboys LB Micah Parsons among the top-12 may not be the best decision. Mandatory Credit: Jay Biggerstaff-USA TODAY Sports. All of this culminates with the 2022 NFL Draft from Las Vegas, Nevada on Thursday, April 28th. And even though he hasnt quite been able to maintain an elite level of play every season, his impact on the field is obvious. Projected contract: One year, $6 million, $4.5 million guaranteed, PFF Free Agency Rank: 75 In Eric Kendricks, the Vikings have had a superb all-around linebacker for years. Al-Shaair missed a lot of time in 2022 but earned a career-best 67.8 overall grade and 79.7 run-defense grade. Just 25, he's on his way. In 2021, Davis was given a career-high AV of 15 while again being named an All-Pro after he recorded 105 combined tackles, 13 tackles for loss and three sacks. Milano was a fifth-round draft pick back in 2017 but has dramatically outperformed his first-round teammate. His PFF run-defense grade over the last two seasons has been in the 30s, and last seasons 47.1 overall grade was the worst of his NFL career. His first year with the Packers resulted in a whopping 85.0 mark. When healthy, Johnson is among the best sideline-to-sideline run-defenders at off-ball linebacker in the league. Vander Esch quietly played some good football in 2022 after signing a one-year flier to return to the Cowboys following a free agency period that didnt pan out as hed hoped. PFF ranks 49ers Fred Warner as the top linebacker in the NFL According to PFF's Sam Monson, the 49ers have the best linebacker in the NFL and another top-20 player at the position. Okereke is a solid stand-in next to Leonard. The 2022 season was Longs first as a full-time starter at middle linebacker, but hes made the most of opportunities in the past. Unfortunately for Vander Esch, he once again finds himself in the middle of the pack of a deep free-agent group at linebacker, but he should do a bit better this time around. PFF's exclusive metrics provide matchup previews, position rankings, grades, and snap counts. James Bradberry (74.1) 2022 PFF Grade 20th ranked Darius Slay (73.1) 2022 PFF Grade 25th ranked Avonte Maddox (71.3) 2022 PFF Grade 33rd ranked Josiah Scott (58.4) 2022 PFF Grade. 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. PFFs Fantasy Strength of Schedule (SoS) metric provides a league-wide, season-long view of opponent matchups for each fantasy position. Wagner gets a new opportunity on a new team with a lot more talent around him this season, so there is good reason to suspect that his grade might bounce back. A couple of former Clemson stars made this ranking of the NFL's top wide receivers from the 2022 regular season. PFF's exclusive metrics provide matchup previews, position rankings, grades, and snap counts. Perryman was signed to a two-year, $6.085 million contract before the 2021 season and promptly traded to the Las Vegas Raiders before the first week of the campaign. The strongest players are experts at open-field takedowns and make it hard for quarterbacks to feel comfortable throwing toward the middle of the field. With Smith entering the final year of his rookie deal, Spotrac believes he's in line to sign a five-year, $88.18 million extension. The Tennessee Titans are set to sport a talented and exciting inside linebacker duo in 2022 with David Long and Zach Cunningham, but where do they rank as compared to others in the NFL?. Jewell is the other Denver off-ball linebacker who missed the majority of the 2021 season with a torn pectoral muscle, but hes three years younger than Johnson. 15 overall among NFL linebackers.Bolton was in his sixth tier, which was reserved for "young ascending" players at the linebacker position. A defender who can blow up screen plays and make takedowns in the open field. Barr is a bit of a unique player, generally deployed as a Sam linebacker in a 4-3 scheme who occasionally gets his hand in the dirt. However, he will have to get better in coverage. If he can play more consistently week to week, teams may view him as a low-risk, high-reward option in a weak linebacker class. The Rank value requires a minimum number of snaps played. Parsons lined up as an edge rusher on 40.6% of his snaps as a rookie, and thats where he did the bulk of his damage. Hightower opted out of the 2020 season, and after a bit of a slow start getting reacclimated to the speed of the NFL game, he was back to his old self for stretches of the 2021 season. He was everything for the Green Bay defense, and while he might be the next linebacker to rejuvenate his career with a new team ( la Demario Davis), he very well could also be a one-hit wonder. Now its just a matter of how nice itll be. Put some respect on Demario Davis pic.twitter.com/4jzOf4GYS1. A pair of Seahawks came in at No. In 2019 and 2021 with the Ravens, he graded out to 80.0 and 74.8, respectively. While Chicago lost Akiem Hicks and Khalil Mackin the offseason, this unit could be rather strong again with some of the additions made in the secondary, and with the defensive-minded Matt Eberflus taking over as head coach. The top 10 linebackers in NFL currently are dynamic weapons and reliable leaders. No. Mandatory Credit: Steve Roberts-USA TODAY Sports. For IDP fantasy football leagues, there is a ton of variance in preseason player rankings, but utilizing tiers can help us properly value each group of players in 2023 fantasy football drafts. Oluokun is coming off a PFF run-defense grade of 44.0 and a coverage grade of 54.4. Plenty of well-known 'backers had coverage grades in the 30s this past season. He started in 16 games after starting in only 11 total in his previous three NFL 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. Alex Anzalone and Chris Board are two depth players who start for the Lions. Editor's note: For up-to-the-minute updates based on everythingwerehearing around the NFL, go to PFF's free agency rankings, where you can sort by position, team needs, and more all offseason long. 12 among linebackers in 2021 with a PFF coverage grade of 70 in 295 coverage snaps. He rarely leaves the field, having never played less than 90% of defensive snaps when healthy in a season, and is a lock for triple-digit tackles as a result. Projected contract: Two years, $15 million ($7.5M per year, $10M total guaranteed), PFF Free Agency Rank: 86 AVG. He even hit 107 combined tackles in 2020 despite playing in just 11 games! Kendricks has long been one of the consistent middle linebackers in the league, and he stepped up his game in 2021 with a career-high 143 combined tackles, five sacks and two interceptions. At 6-foot-3, 242 pounds, he has legit NFL size and athleticism. Parsons actually finished No. The Rams attacked the linebacker position this offseason, adding. No linebacker corps gets its collective noses dirtier than the Patriots' unit. This is a precarious spot for the Packers to be in, even with 2021 All-Pro DeVondre Campbell back for another season in the same defense he broke out with. Hes expected to return for Dallas playoff run after a shoulder injury knocked him out down the stretch, which will provide a big boost to the ferocious Cowboys defense. However, both Mike Williams and Tee Higgins didn't get a whole lot of love and are lower on the list. He has yet to post a sub-70.0 grade, with three out of his four years coming in above 78.0. He also made the absolute most of the occasional blitz, tallying 15 pressures, five sacks and three more quarterback hits on 70 pass-rush snaps. He rarely leaves the field, having never played less than 90% of defensive snaps when healthy in a season, and is a lock for triple-digit tackles as a result. 2021 Snaps: 1,148 Galina ranked the Colts at No. Typically, David is the ideal linebacker for IDP. Long plays a downhill, attacking brand of football that helps him blow up a lot of plays but also makes him particularly susceptible to over-committing on play-action passes and missing tackles when he takes a poor pursuit angle. This group could rank much higher by the end of next season. For all the young players' struggles, there are a lot of promising linebackers who have the talent to become elite players at this level. Brown has seen his play taper off after a really nice sophomore campaign in 2018 in which he posted an 81.2 grade. As stated in the article, Galina only included true off-ball . PFF themselves had the Cowboys 2021 secondary in the top 10. 2021 Snaps:444 Let's have a look at them. He had been one of the more consistent players at the position in the NFL, and so theres a chance he regains his form. The best linebackers in todays league are elite coverage players, but they can also affect the game in other ways. Smith has recorded at least 101 combined tackles in each of his four NFL seasons, and his last two campaigns have been impressive. This is likely a polarizing selection. 23 in 2021. It's good news, then,. Jordyn Brooks is an ascending star who will get more snaps this year. 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. Projected contract: Two years, $9.5 million ($4.75M per year), $5.25 million total guaranteed. Indianapolis, Indiana, USA; Indianapolis Colts outside linebacker Darius Leonard (53) reacts to a play in the first half against the Las Vegas Raiders at Lucas Oil Stadium. Hes aggressive, has a quick trigger and finds the ball carrier. Mandatory Credit: Darren Yamashita-USA TODAY Sports Chenal is going to thrive in man-blitz-heavy schemes. For the purposes of these rankings, we are looking only at true off-ball linebackers, as 3-4 outside linebackers though designated as linebackers are in truth edge rushers. 14 overall linebacker with a 72.3 PFF grade, and the No. Cole Holcomb could yet turn into a solid linebacker, while 2021 first-round pick Jamin Davis could also improve after a poor first season. Since 2020, the Colts linebacker has twice the number of forced fumbles of any other off-ball linebacker, and he has four interceptions and eight pass breakups over that time. The soon-to-be 30-year-old is a solid all-around off-ball linebacker who has three straight seasons logging at least 750 snaps, and he took a major leap in 2022 with the Denver Broncos. He signed a monster five-year, $95 million extension last July, and is worth it considering he's just 25. 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 . His PFF grade of 77.9 ranked eighth last year among linebackers, and he once again showed he's a well-rounded linebacker that doesn't get the kind of credit he deserves. Final Season Stats. Chicago signed Nicholas Morrow from Las Vegas to fill the spot next to Smith for 2022. Mandatory Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports. 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. 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.

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