PFF has slowly been chipping away at its “top 32 players” lists at each individual position, and starting with offense, the Detroit Lions have largely appeared in the top 10.
Let’s start with the bad news. As we noted last week, PFF has Jared Goff surprisingly low in its quarterback rankings, finishing at No. 16. That’s behind the likes of Kirk Cousins, Tua Tagovailoa, Jordan Love and Jalen Hurts. A reminder: Goff finished 10th in PFF grade last year among quarterbacks.
By venturing out from the quarterback position, several Lions earned well-deserved respect at their position. Amon-Ra St. Brown ranked seventh in his wide receiver rankings, and Jahmyr Gibbs was ninth in PFF’s running back rankings after his successful rookie season.
“His 74.5 grade ranked 25th among running backs as he ran for 945 yards and 10 touchdowns at an excellent 5.2 yards per carry clip,” PFF’s Thomas Valentine wrote. “Only (Derrick) Henry and (Christian) McCaffrey had more carries of 15+ yards than Gibbs in 2023, and his 3.12 yards after contact per attempt tied for 16th among running backs. With 52 receptions under his belt in his first year, Gibbs will continue to be a focal point of the Lions offense.”
Where some Lions fans may have the most trouble is when it comes to the offensive tackle rating, which fell on Tuesday. The newly paid Penei Sewell does not take first place in her ranking. She didn’t come second either. Sewell ranked third in PFF’s grade, behind 49ers left tackle Trent Williams and the Buccaneers’ Tristan Wirfs. Despite earning the highest PFF grade among all offensive linemen last year, Sewell was ranked third because of his pass-blocking grade.
“Sewell showed significant improvement during the 2023 season, as his 95.1 run blocking grade and 92.8 overall grade ranked first at the position. However, because his pass blocking rating fell outside the top 10, he finishes third in this ranking,” Zoltan Buday wrote.
I’m guessing their positional rankings will continue throughout the offseason, so don’t be surprised to see Sam LaPorta, Frank Ragnow, Kevin Zeitler, Aidan Hutchinson, DJ Reader and Alim McNeill get some love soon.
- Calvin Johnson visited the Tigers for batting practice last week and suddenly Detroit won three straight. Coincidence???
- uSTADIUM did a new NFL Draft in 2023, and FOUR players the Lions selected ended up in the first round, three in the top 12.
- Congratulations to Dan and Mackenzie Skipper! Continue with the report as eligible jokes:
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