Tag: league leader

Travis Kelce grades out as best TE in NFL, according to PFF

Travis Kelce grades out as the NFL’s best tight end, according to Pro Football Focus.

While Travis Kelce’s romance with Taylor Swift has grabbed more headlines than any other story this season, the Kansas City Chiefs tight end is making moves on the field that have earned him the best grade in the NFL at his position, according to Pro Football Focus.

Kelce’s spectacular 88.7 grade wasn’t earned by accident. In a year where the Chiefs’ offense has been frustratingly dysfunctional, Kelce’s presence has been one of the only things that the team can rely on week in and week out.

Patrick Mahomes deserves some amount of credit here, too, but Kelce seems to have almost singlehandedly carried Kansas City’s passing game on his back.

Entering the Chiefs’ Week 9 tilt against the Miami Dolphins in Frankfurt, Germany, Kelce leads Kansas City in receptions, receiving yards, touchdowns, and targets. He figures to play a key role in each of the Chiefs’ remaining games this season and should have no issues remaining the highest-graded tight end in the league if he can continue producing at the rate he has established through the 2023 season’s first eight weeks.

This key metric proves Patrick Mahomes is NFL’s best QB on third down

Next Gen Stats broke down #Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes’ success in third-and-long situations.

To say that Patrick Mahomes has played stellar football since taking over as the Kansas City Chiefs’ starting quarterback in 2018 would be an understatement of epic proportions.

He has not only delivered the team Super Bowl wins but has also achieved spectacular statistical success that places him entirely in a league of his own. Mahomes’ accomplishments on third down are well documented, but one analysis done by Next Gen Stats proves that when it comes to the most crucial situations, the reigning MVP is more likely to deliver than any other signal-caller in the league.

His average time to throw, throw past sticks percentage, yards per attempt, and pass EPA are all the best of any quarterback in the league in third and seven-or-more-yard situations.

While some of these marks could be attributed to Andy Reid’s offensive scheme, Mahomes’ ability to process, react, and deliver accurate balls to receivers on time is truly second to none in one of the game’s most difficult situations.

Chiefs DL George Karlaftis among league leaders in QB pressures

#Chiefs DL George Karlaftis is among the NFL’s leaders in quarterback pressures after Week 8.

The Kansas City Chiefs’ resurgent pass rush has been a key part of the team’s success through eight weeks of the 2023 NFL season.

Usually led by Chris Jones, Kansas City seems to have another stud on its hands up front in George Karlaftis, who is tied for seventh among all players in the NFL with 39 total quarterback pressures.

Of these 39 pressures, six have converted to sacks for the second-year star who certainly seems to be on the rise heading into the middle part of the season. While Karlaftis has exceeded all expectations, others up front are still waiting to get into a rhythm.

The aforementioned Jones and veteran Mike Danna are tied for second place on the Chiefs’ leaderboard with 5.5 sacks. Nobody else on the team has more than three.

Expect Karlaftis to continue wreaking havoc in opposing backfields as he helps lead Kansas City’s defense to new heights in the coming weeks.

Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes leads NFL in passing yards since 2020

#Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes was featured by PFF as one of three signal-callers to eclipse the 14,000 passing yard mark since 2020.

Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes is known for his prolific statistics in Andy Reid’s offense and was featured by Pro Football Focus as one of three signal-callers to eclipse 14,000 passing yards since 2020.

Mahomes had elite company on PFF’s list and was joined by Tom Brady and Los Angeles Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert as the only passers to reach the impressive milestone.

While Brady, a seven-time Super Bowl champion, came close to matching Mahomes’ production, Herbert lagged behind both signal-callers with nearly 800 fewer yards than the reigning MVP.

Statistics like these can help put Mahomes’ dominance into perspective, given that 300-yard games and five-touchdown performances seem to be an expectation for him in Kansas City’s offense. No other quarterback in the NFL can truly rival his exceptional output on the gridiron, and Mahomes even makes it seem that those who come close are still left in a cloud of dust at the end of the season.

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Rashee Rice leads NFL in one key metric ahead of Chiefs’ preseason finale

Rashee Rice currently leads the NFL in one key metric heading into the #Chiefs’ preseason finale against the #Browns on Sunday.

Rookie wide receiver Rashee Rice has all the makings of an elite pass-catching prospect and has looked great in the Kansas City Chiefs’ first preseason games. Though he faces long odds to beat out veterans Marquez Valdes-Scantling and Skyy Moore for a top spot on the team’s depth chart, he enters the Chiefs’ preseason finale as the NFL’s leader in yards after the catch, according to Pro Football Focus.

His 84 yards after the catch are an impressive testament to his ability to make defenders miss and find space on his routes in Andy Reid’s complex offensive system. Though his preseason statistics won’t count toward his official rookie year statistics, Rice has set himself up for success ahead of Kansas City’s Week 1 matchup against the Detroit Lions in September.

Watch for Rice to continue showcasing his elite elusiveness against the Cleveland Browns on Saturday in the Chiefs’ 2023 preseason finale at Arrowhead Stadium.

Jonathan Owens still producing at outrageous rate after bout vs. Giants

#Texans safety Jonathan Owens’ 80 tackles on the season are good for 10th place on the league’s tackle leaderboard

For all the hype that the Houston Texans rookie class received heading into this season, one fifth-year veteran seems to have stolen the spotlight with his enormously productive 2022 campaign. Safety Jonathan Owens burst onto the scene for Houston this year as a key fixture in their secondary and has been one of the most promising players on an otherwise uninspiring defense.

A 12-tackle performance against the New York Giants pushed Owens’ season tackles total to 80 with eight games left to play in the regular season. That mark puts him at 10th on the NFL’s leaderboard for tackles, ahead of players like Bobby Wagner, Jordan Hicks, and Devin White.

It is particularly interesting that Owens has managed this outstanding pace from the safety position, where tackles are usually fewer and farther between than at linebacker. Only Los Angeles Chargers safety Derwin James has more tackles at the position, though James is known for his dual role as a hybrid player in the secondary who plays down in the box among linebackers in subpackage defenses.

Owens has certainly set himself apart this season and has served as a bright spot for the Texans’ defense in an otherwise disappointing season. With his help, rookies Jalen Pitre and Derek Stingley should have no problem continuing to learn the ropes of tackling at the pro level, and the defense should be able to contain some of the more talented offenses they’ll face in the coming weeks.

Whether Owens’ production will bear fruit for the team in the win column remains to be seen, but his contributions are certainly a good sign that other players on the defense will be able to find their niche in the same way that he has. With a few more weeks to beef-up his numbers, Owens could find himself with the league tackle title by the season’s end.

Cooper Kupp leads NFL in receptions ahead of Rams’ Week 6 matchup vs. Panthers

Kupp’s prolific numbers have been awe-inspiring, but might not be the best thing for the #Rams offense in the long-term

Though things have started to unravel for the Los Angeles Rams in recent weeks, star wide receiver Cooper Kupp has managed to maintain the prolific pace he set in 2021, and is currently leading the league in receptions heading into Week 6. With 49 catches through just five games, the holds sole ownership of the best mark in the NFL by a wide margin.

The next most productive receiver in terms of raw catches this year has been Minnesota Vikings’ superstar Justin Jefferson, who bests Kupp in yardage but has recorded nine fewer receptions. At his current pace, Kupp could be expected to eclipse the 100-reception benchmark around Week 10, which would leave him seven games to break New Orleans Saints receiver Michael Thomas’ record of 149 catches in a season, which was set in 2019.

Kupp has been one of the only bright spots on Los Angeles’ offense so far this year, and arguably their best player on either side of the ball. Quarterback Matthew Stafford has connected with him regularly out of necessity, as the team has a host of injuries along their offensive line that have severely limited their ability to move the ball downfield.

The Rams’ running game has been particularly slow to produce this year, and in turn, has forced the coaching staff to rely on Kupp to churn out yards in situations where he otherwise might not have been called on in recent years. Effectively, Sean McVay’s offense has turned into a west coast style pass-to-run scheme that highlights Kupp as the team’s bell-cow target on nearly every play.

Unfortunately, the results of this strategy haven’t been favorable for anyone except Kupp, as the team currently sits a game under .500 and is reeling from their most recent loss to the Dallas Cowboys. If they can manage to keep Kupp involved while also finding opportunities for other contributors on the offense to get involved, the team may see its fortunes turn around.

Until then, the dysfunction within the offense is likely to continue, and the team will keep force-feeding Kupp.

Justin Jefferson leads the NFL in receiving yards

The Vikings’ star receiver sits atop the league in one category

The Minnesota Vikings have rocketed off to a 4-1 start and that has to do with the success of the offense.

New head coach Kevin O’Connell has the offense humming. He is using creativity in getting the ball to his best players, including wide receiver Justin Jefferson.

Having come from the Super Bowl champion Los Angeles Rams, O’Connell helped craft the offense that had Cooper Kupp running loose winning the triple crown for receivers.

After five games, Jefferson is well on his way to achieving similar success. Through the first five games, the star receiver has the NFLs lead in receiving yards.

Jefferson sitting 20 yards more than Kupp while thriving in the offense that made Kupp the player that he is today. Jefferson is also second in receptions with 40 but his two touchdown receptions sit five behind the NFL leader Travis Kelce.

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Chiefs LB Nick Bolton leads all rookies in tackles through Week 6

While the defense has struggled to start the season, #Chiefs second-round pick Nick Bolton has impressed, leading all rookies in tackles through Week 6 | from @thejohndillon

Selected in the second round by the Kansas City Chiefs in April’s draft, many thought Missouri product Nick Bolton could turn the team’s defensive fortunes around after their Super Bowl loss.

While his addition hasn’t changed much in terms of the unit’s performance, he has individually managed to make an outsized impact for the Chiefs so far this season. Bolton has started in every game for Kansas City so far and he now leads all NFL rookies with 40 combined tackles according to Stat Muse. He has nine more combined tackles than the next closest rookie, Las Vegas Raiders CB Nate Hobbs. His 30 unassisted tackles is 10 more than the next closest rookie, New Orleans Saints CB Paulson Adebo.

Bolton is currently pacing for triple digits in the category in the new 17 game schedule. The small sample size may not be indicative of sustained success this year, especially given the defensive ineptitude unfolding around him every week, but Bolton has a chance to make good on high expectations with continued progress.

He will need to get more acclimated to playing his specific role in coverages and identifying play-action specifically, which are both common coaching points for first-year players. Bolton hasn’t yet recorded his first NFL sack but could become a dominating force if defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo can find success using him as a disguised blitzer.

Opponents seem comfortable directing their offense towards Bolton in recent matchups, similar to the way they’ve picked on Daniel Sorenson in coverage. Both the rookie linebacker and veteran safety sit atop the team leaderboard in tackles, which would indicate that coordinators are picking them out as players with skillsets they can exploit on Sundays.

Kansas City’s primary deficiency last season was their inability to stop the ground game though, and Bolton has certainly become an intimidating presence in the defensive backfield, sitting alone at the top for the Chiefs with five tackles for loss. His nose for the football when attacking downhill is undeniable and should excite fans who have clamored for better defensive output. Bolton isn’t done developing yet, still improving every week in his effort to help steer Kansas City back on track for another championship as a young budding star.

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Chase Young tied for most sacks in NFL; Washington defense leads league with 11 sacks

Through two games, Chase Young is tied for most sacks in NFL, while Washington leads the league with 11 total, edging the Steelers by one.

There’s no way to get around the fact that Sunday’s loss to the Arizona Cardinals was a tough one, and it was a game that Washington had chances to win had they made a few plays in the first half and taken advantage of some opportunities early on.

However, there were still several positives to come out of the game, mainly coming from the defensive line. After Sunday’s game, a few players and position groups have put themselves among the top stat leaders in the NFL, starting with Chase Young, who is tied for the most sacks in the league with 2.5 through two games.

Not only has Young been impressive, but the entire defensive line is top of its class, leading the NFL with 11 sacks through two games. They were held relatively quiet, to their standards, on Sunday against the Cardinals, only coming up with three sacks, but we all remember the type of performance they put on against Philly in Week 1.

Up next, Washington gets to travel to Cleveland, where they’ll look to put Baker Mayfield in the dirt time and again. He’s only been sacked twice so far this year, but in both 2018 and 2019, the Browns saw their QB go down a total of 65 times combined.

This should be a fun matchup for Washington.

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