Tag: alex mack

Deion Jones, Alex Mack make PFF’s all-clutch team

Falcons fans don’t need any reminder that winning a football game usually comes down to how a team plays in the final minutes. 

Falcons fans don’t need any reminder on how the difference between winning and losing a football game often comes down to how a team performs over the final minutes.

It’s the reason we obsess over game-winning drives and fourth-quarter comebacks. Playing well in clutch time is what separates the good and great players in the NFL.

Pro Football Focus came out with an all-clutch team from the 2019 season in which Ben Linsey picks a roster based on those players “who graded the best in the fourth quarter and overtime of one-score games (within eight points).”

Despite an underwhelming overall performance and 7-9 finish, Atlanta’s Deion Jones and Alex Mack made the starting lineup of PFF’s team of clutch performers. Jones was praised for his coverage ability:

If you look at the linebackers listed here, there is a pretty clear theme — these are players who make their name in coverage. Both first-team selections (Jones and Schobert) earned 90.0-plus coverage grades in the fourth quarter and overtime of one-score games, and they combined to allow one first down/touchdown on 10 targets with Jones intercepting a pass and Schobert forcing an incompletion. When the game is on the line and opposing offenses are marching, you want linebackers who can limit after-the-catch opportunities and make plays on the ball in coverage. That’s something all four of these linebackers can do.

For Mack, it’s more recognition as he’s been one of the league’s elite offensive linemen for the past decade. Here’s what PFF wrote about the All-Pro Falcons center:

Mack has been one of the best centers in the NFL for over a decade. Even on an Atlanta offensive line that was in disarray last season, he remained a constant for Matt Ryan and company. In this subset of plays, specifically, Mack allowed just one pressure on 59 pass-blocking snaps, good for a pass-blocking grade north of 80.0. Questions remain about how the young pieces like Kaleb McGary and Chris Lindstrom will progress, but Mack remains in Atlanta as an anchor that can be relied upon up front.

One of the reasons analysts have been high on Atlanta entering the previous few seasons is because the team has elite players at several key positions, including quarterback, defensive tackle and middle linebacker.

The Falcons purged their roster in an effort to free up cap space and get younger. Without a doubt, the pressure will be on in 2020 since the entire front office is potentially on the hot seat.

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Joe Thomas named PFF’s top tackle of the decade

Joe Thomas named PFF’s top tackle of the decade and was the top-rated Browns player from the 2010s

Pro Football Focus released its top 101 players from the last ten years, the PFF All-Decade team. And as he should be, former Browns left tackle Joe Thomas figures prominently in the rankings.

Thomas was the top-rated offensive tackle of the last 10 seasons. His overall ranking was 11th, just outside the top 10. That’s a little disappointing, though to be fair Thomas didn’t play in the final two full seasons and half of another.

His greatness extended back to his rookie season of 2007, though Thomas’ early years don’t count here. He made the 7.5 seasons in the 2010s stand up, however,

Joe Thomas is unquestionably one of the best players in NFL history; he was the gold standard for pass protection from the moment he entered the NFL. For the decade, only Andrew Whitworth surrendered pressure at a lower rate than Thomas (3.9%), and Whitworth was often far more protected within his offense in Cincinnati than Thomas was in Cleveland, where he blocked for a succession of quarterbacks who made his life tougher by holding onto the ball longer than they should. Thomas had three straight seasons in the decade with a PFF grade above 90.0 and will be Canton-bound before long.

That is lofty praise for Thomas, one of four players who spent time in Cleveland to make the list. Former Browns center Alex Mack was No. 44, current wide receiver Odell Beckham checked in at No. 91 and former right tackle Mitchell Schwartz was No. 100.

Matt Ryan, Alex Mack make PFF’s all-decade team

Going back to the 2010 season, the Atlanta has won 89 games and lost 71. The team has finished five of those seasons with at least ten wins. 

Over the past ten years, the Atlanta Falcons have seen more ups than downs. Going back to the 2010 season, the team has won 89 games and lost 71, while finishing five of those seasons with at least ten wins.

That success is a good example of how a franchise quarterback can keep a team competitive. Matt Ryan has been a model of consistency since he took over back in 2008 and that rightfully landed him on Pro Football Focus’ top 101 players of the past decade.

Ryan was ranked at No. 32 on the list, with PFF’s Sam Monson writing the following about Atlanta’s signal-caller:

Matt Ryan represents an interesting study in a player who will likely never be the best passer in the NFL but rarely strays far from the top few. Ryan has yet to grade below 75.0, and his MVP-caliber season of 2016 was one of the best single-season grades we have ever given. Over the decade, he had a top-five turnover-worthy play rate and a very solid 4.6% big-time throw rate. He has also been consistently one of the most accurate quarterbacks in football, posting an adjusted completion percentage of 76.1% over the last 10 years.

Alex Mack is the only other Falcons player to make the list thus far. Signing with the team as a free agent in 2016, Mack has been arguably the best center in the league over the past decade.

Pro Football Focus ranked him at No. 44, highlighting his consistency as one of the NFL’s elite linemen:

Few players have had a career so consistently good as Alex Mack. A first-round draft pick out of Cal back in 2009, Mack then posted 11 straight seasons of good PFF grades. At his peak, however, he was arguably the best center in the NFL. While some players have had better or even longer peaks, Mack’s consistency and reliability earn significant points here. Including postseason play, he has played 10,153 snaps over the decade, been flagged just 44 times and surrendered only 26 sacks while never earning even an “average” grade in any facet of the game PFF measures.

There are still 24 spots on PFF’s list that won’t be revealed until Thursday. One of those spots is sure to be Falcons wideout Julio Jones. Check back tomorrow to see the final results.

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Joe Thomas, Alex Mack earn All-Decade Team of the 2010s honors

Joe Thomas, Alex Mack earn All-Decade Team of the 2010s honors

The Cleveland Browns didn’t win very often in the 2010s, but they did have two of the best offensive linemen during the decade. Left tackle Joe Thomas and center Alex Mack represent the Browns on the Pro Football Hall of Fame All-Decade Team of the 2010s.

The full list of first-team honorees was revealed on Monday. Thomas is one of four tackles, while Mack made the cut as one of the two centers.

Thomas played every offensive snap from 2010 through the seventh game of the 2017 season, an iron man string that began in 2007. He earned Pro Bowl nods every year from 2010-2016 and was a 1st-team All-Pro in five of those seasons. He retired due to injury after the 2017 campaign.

Mack played the first six seasons of the decade in Cleveland, earning three of his five career Pro Bowl berths during his Browns tenure. He remains the starting center for the Atlanta Falcons.

The full list of the All-Decade team is at the Pro Football Hall of Fame website.

A recent history of the NFL’s 21st pick, where the Eagles are currently slotted to draft

A recent history of the NFL’s 21st pick, which the Eagles currently have

The Philadelphia Have 10 picks in the 2020 NFL and their first-round selection will come at pick No. 21 as it currently stands.

NFL teams have had enormous success with mid to late first-round picks and with the Eagles slotted to pick later in the round, Howie Roseman and company have a chance to land a bonafide star.

The recent history of players selected at No. 21 overall bolds well for the Eagles who’ll need to land a dynamic playmaker with their first-round pick.

Here are the players selected with the 21st overall pick since the 1998 NFL Draft.

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21st Overall

2019 Darnell Savage DB Maryland (Packers)
2018 Billy Price C Ohio State (Bengals)
2017 Jarrad Davis LB Florida (Lions)
2016 Will Fuller WR Notre Dame (Texans)
2015 Cedric Ogbuehi LT Texas A&M (Bengals)
2014 Ha Ha Clinton Dix S Alabama (Packers)
2013 Tyler Eifert TE Notre Dame (Bengals)
2012 Chandler Jones DE Syracuse (Patriots)
2011 Phil Taylor DT Baylor (Browns)
2010 Jermaine Gresham TE Oklahoma (Bengals)
2009 Alex Mack C California (Browns)
2008 Sam Baker OT USC (Falcons)
2007 Reggie Nelson S Florida (Jaguars)
2006 Laurence Maroney RB Minnesota (Patriots)
2005 Matt Jones WR Arkansas (Jaguars)
2004 Vince Wilfork DT Miami New England
2003 Jeff Faine C Notre Dame (Browns)
2002 Daniel Graham TE Colorado (Patriots)
2001 Nate Clements CB Ohio State (Bills)
2000 Sylvester Morris WR Jackson State (Chiefs)
1999 L.J. Shelton T Eastern Michigan Cardinals
1998 Randy Moss WR Marshall (Vikings)

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Randy Moss is the only player on the list to have a Hall of Fame career, but there have been some quality players selected at pick No. 21.

Chandler Jones had an All-Pro season for the Cardinals this season, while Alex Mack was one of the NFL’s top centers for years in Cleveland.

The Eagles second-round pick this season will be pick No. 53, the same pick that landed them Miles Sanders in 2019. LeSean McCoy was also the 53rd pick when he was selected, so it’ll be imperative for the Eagles to select a skilled player with this one.