After looking like he might be the next great linebacker earlier in his career, Deion Jones play has fallen off a cliff. 2021 Snaps: 783 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. 2022 stats (Chargers): 5 sacks, 146 tackles, 1 forced fumble. His 33 run stops in 2020 were a top-10 mark at the position. 2021 Snaps: 323 He, perhaps critically, chose to stay in the defense that helped produce that phenomenal season, but we are all too aware of the folly of using just one season of play to determine everything we know about a player. He missed just two tackles in coverage and allowed only four explosive receptions. Here are the best available players remaining heading into Day 2 of the 2022 NFL draft. Pro Football Focus's top linebacker in the 2020 NFL Draft only kind of, sort of plays linebacker. Zach Cunningham, if nothing else, stops the run. 17 linebacker in the NFL going into 2022, placing him in the "young. Maybe the most volatile position in football, linebackers have seen their worth in the NFL fluctuate over the years. Unlock all tools and content including Player Grades, Fantasy, NFL Draft, Premium Stats, Greenline and DFS. These power rankings are adjusted based on coach, quarterback and the market each season. Kendricks' grade did falter in 2021 a 59.9 mark that was down from 82.6 and 90.1 the past two years, respectively. 5 overall pick recorded 128 combined tackles, a career-high 18 QB hits in 2021 and earned his first Pro Bowl selection this past season. A couple of former Clemson stars made this ranking of the NFL's top wide receivers from the 2022 regular season. Click here to view PFFs full IDP rankings for the 2022 season and tiers for the defensive linemen and defensive backs. Even Micah Parsons a Defensive Player of the Year candidate as a rookie put up middling run-defense and tackling grades in his first year in Dallas. According to Stathead's AV tool, Leonard was tied in having the second-best season of any linebacker last year. 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. 8 in total pressures. This ranking may be a surprise after the Seahawks lost future Hall of Famer Bobby Wagner in free agency this offseason, but Wagner seemed to be on the downslope of his career. Parsons was the No. The grades for the Detroit Lions in their 9-8 campaign offer up an analytically-based glimpse of how the Lions performed. The first week of March will see the NFL Combine which will be followed by College Pro Days. 1 as Bobby Wagner finally dethroned Ranking the top 10 linebackers for the upcoming NFL season By Jordan Dajani Jun 28, 2022 at. Pro Football Focus has finalized the regular season grades for the 2022 NFL season. 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. 2021 PFF grade: 83.5 (N/A). All Rights Reserved. Mandatory Credit: Steve Roberts-USA TODAY Sports. . CBS Sports is a registered trademark of CBS Broadcasting Inc. Commissioner.com is a registered trademark of CBS Interactive Inc. site: media | arena: nfl | pageType: stories | PFF's top linebackers in the 2023 NFL Draft 1. despite dropping into coverage at times. There is hope that Channing Tindall, Miami's rookie linebacker out of Georgia, can find his way on the field. 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. . Rounding out the top-tier of linebackers. Within 2021 and 2022's class, Detroit made use of the later rounds to nab names such as wideout Amon-Ra St. Brown, linebacker Malcolm Rodriguez and edge James Houston. No. You must be logged in and create a league profile to apply custom fantasy scoring to the stats, projections and rankings pages. In 2019 and 2021 with the Ravens, he graded out to 80.0 and 74.8, respectively. With that said, an elite linebacker does make a defense better there just arent that many of them in the league at this moment. 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. ECR VS. ADP. Though he's 32 years old, David hasn't taken a major step backwards just yet. 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. Luckily for the Philadelphia Eagles, he was still available in the third round. The transition from college football to the NFL used to be smooth for linebackers, but even elite prospects can now struggle in Year 1. Projected contract: Two years, $10 million ($5M per year), $5.5 million total guaranteed, PFF Free Agency Rank: 163 Lloyd, who earned a 90.0-plus grade at Utah in 2021, does look set to start. The Saints had been looking for someone to play the linebacker position opposite him for years and seem to have found one in Pete Werner, who was outstanding as a rookie in 2021. The transition from college football to the NFL used to be smooth for linebackers, but even elite prospects can now struggle in Year 1. White has had four straight seasons with coverage grades above 60.0, which is not an easy feat for an off-ball linebacker in todays NFL against so many hi-lo concepts and the increase in run-pass options putting a ton of stress on the position. 2021 PFF grade: 60.4 (30th of 89). His 18 quarterback pressures ranked fourth among off-ball linebackers, as Patriots head coach Bill Belichick continued to deploy the 6-foot-3, 260-pounder all over the place in his constantly evolving defense. He went from having a one-year contract worth $2 million to signing a five-year deal that carries an AAV of $10 million! 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?. Former Penn State linebacker Micah Parsons just wrapped up his second season in the NFL, and he continues to leave little doubt the Dallas Cowboys made the smart decision using a first-round draft pick on him. But in a vacuum, Much of this unit's potential lies with third-round rookie. 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. 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. Best Bets Tool, PFF Free Agency Rank: 27 Davids 72.3 overall PFF grade is the lowest mark he has posted in a single season since 2016, and Wagners 71.8 was his lowest since 2015. He might not even start this season. 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. The Packers long searching for a reliable off-ball linebacker brought Campbell aboard on a one-year, $2 million contract, and his 86.7 overall grade was second among linebackers through Week 8 while his 90.7 run-defense grade ranked first, leading to a Pro Bowl nod. His struggles come in coverage, where he's allowed nearly 1,000 yards over the past two seasons. The former undrafted free agent is in for a big pay raise this offseason after making the absolute most of his one-year deal. Across the three years prior to joining Green Bay, Campbell hadnt earned a grade higher than 56.6 in any season. 10 among linebackers last year. Honorable mentions: Tremaine Edmunds, Matt Milano, Logan Wilson, Shaq Thompson, Alexander Johnson, Deion JonesJeremiah Owusu-Koramoah,Zach Cunningham, Anthony Walker, C.J. 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. 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. Warner had a transformative effect on the 49ers defense when he became the starter. Pro Football Focus supported claims of San Francisco's top-end roster by putting seven of their players in the top 101 of the 2022 season. The ACC consisted of 14 members in two divisions. He was. In two weeks, NFL GMs will begin negotiating with free . Edwards has shown that as much as linebacker is one of the most athletic-traits-driven positions in football, prospects with marginal physical tools can still become solid NFL starters. Asamoah is undersized at 6-foot-1, 228 pounds, but he possesses sideline-to-sideline range. He at least improved upon his 29.7 grade as a rookie with a 43.5 mark in Year 2. Jack had hovered near 70.0 overall grades before a down 2021 season, and the Steelers will hope that those good years arent behind him. Here are the top off-ball linebackers slated to hit free agency in 2022. Unlock all tools and content including Player Grades, Fantasy, NFL Draft, Premium Stats, Greenline and DFS. Foyesade Oluokun, JAC: New team, new official scorer. He may be coming off one of his worst statistical seasons in recent memory, but he also missed five games with injury. 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. Only Micah Parsons graded out higher than Werner among first-year linebackers last season. Projected contract: Two years, $18 million ($9M per year, $11.5 million total guaranteed), PFF Free Agency Rank: 55 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. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-USA TODAY Sports. His 170 combined takedowns ranked third among linebackers this past season. Linebackers with the most INT's in both man and zone coverage last season Man: Bobby Okereke (2) Zone: Darius Leonard (4) pic.twitter.com/RJ4JbjcbYx Projected contract: One year, $6 million, $4.5 million guaranteed, PFF Free Agency Rank: 75 A lot is riding on the development of Zaven Collins and Isaiah Simmons, who have simply not played well enough especially for first-round picks. The PFF grades aren't always right on point, but they do serve as a generally effective tool for comparisons . 3 linebackers Seahawks should . Recently, Seth Galina from PFF ranked all 32 linebacker units in the league. One can make the case that both Wagner and David are still as good as it gets at the linebacker position despite getting up there in age, but each player is coming off a relative down year by their standards, which always brings up the looming specter of decline. These athletes are called upon to be run-stuffing defensive linemen on some downs, and hybrid cornerbacks on others. Click here for PFF's full list of top 100 free agents. , who draws all the attention at the offensive line, opening up room for the linebackers for clean tackle opportunities. 1 linebacker on this list entering 2022. JaWhaun Bentley is a hard-nosed player like his counterpart Mack Wilson. The league may be trending ever more toward the passing game, but there is still a place in the NFL for linebackers who are excellent run defenders first and foremost. Las Vegas brings in Jayon Brown from the Titans to play alongside Denzel Perryman. 2021 PFF grade: 53.0 (50th of 89). This was the last season that the conference used divisions in its football scheduling. Hes aggressive, has a quick trigger and finds the ball carrier. Expect both young studs to push for 140-plus combined tackles, if healthy. Our exclusive database, featuring the most in-depth collection of NCAA player performance data. Amid replacement-level cornerback and safety play at times, Warner's gravitas over the middle of the field allowed the team to play a high percentage of zone coverage to protect its outside cornerbacks. Its hard to overstate Fred Warners effect on the 49ers' defense in their run to the NFC championship in 2021. for the folks who say Micah Parsons is an edgethere were four games where he played basically edge only because of injuries, and the rest of the games he was predominantly an off-ball linebackerMicah Parsons is a linebacker who can play edge defender pic.twitter.com/rcjJlM00MS. Power Rankings are PFFs NCAA power ratings based on weekly player grades in each facet of play. . Here are the top 10 linebackers scheduled to become free agents in March. 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. However, Georgia wide receiver Kearis Jackson is not ranked in Pro Football Focus' NFL draft big board rankings. The former No. The Ravens are still looking for that breakout year from Patrick Queen after two subpar seasons. The 12th. New: Draft Mode! Aug 9, 2022. Login or Register Projections: QB | RB | WR | TE | K | DEF | DL | LB | DB Give him the freedom to play fast, and he'll excel. Unlock all tools and content including Player Grades, Fantasy, NFL Draft, Premium Stats, Greenline and DFS. PFF's exclusive metrics provide matchup previews, position rankings, grades, and snap counts. his sure hands also need to be highlighted," PFF's Zoltn Buday wrote. 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. The 49ers applied the second-round restricted free agent tender at a price tag of $3.986 million to Al-Shaair for the 2022 season, perhaps illustrating that they feared he would get signed to an offer sheet elsewhere if they went with the right of first refusal tender.