Tag: mitchell schwartz

Chiefs RT Mitchell Schwartz questionable to return with back injury

Another injury on the offensive line has the Chiefs’ depth stressed to the max.

The Kansas City Chiefs are getting dangerously thin along the offensive line against the Buffalo Bills and the first quarter isn’t even finished yet.

Starting RT Mitchell Schwartz was a late addition to the injury report this week with a back injury. He started the game and appeared fine initially. It appears that he only lasted one series before aggravating the back injury as he hurried off to the locker room.

The team quickly ruled him questionable to return to the game with that same back injury. The team was already thin on offensive tackle depth as rookie OT Lucas Niang opting out of the 2020 season.

Mike Remmers has been filling in at left guard for Kelechi Osemele, but he has shifted out to play right tackle in place of Schwartz. Nick Allegretti has shifted in to play left guard. They also have undrafted free agent Yasir Durant available to play. Daniel Kilgore is starting in place of center Austin Reiter too.

So far they’ve been able to keep Mahomes upright, but this will obviously limit the gameplan a bit. We’ll keep you updated on Schwartz and his status as the game progresses.

[vertical-gallery id=79007]

Chiefs RT Mitchell Schwartz discusses challenge of facing Ravens defensive front

“They’ve got a lot of guys,” Schwartz said of the Ravens defensive front.

Kansas City Chiefs RT Mitchell Schwartz has been through the grinder early on in the 2020 NFL season. He’s faced off with heavyweights like J.J. Watt, Whitney Mercilus, Joey Bosa and Melvin Ingram to name a few. It hasn’t all been sunshine and roses either, in Week 1 he surrendered his first sack in what felt like a millennium.

As Schwartz gets prepared for Week 3, he’ll face an entirely new challenge. The Baltimore Ravens revamped their defensive front from a season ago, adding players like Derek Wolfe and Calais Campbell to the mix. The number of players they have who can get after the quarterback is a daunting task, even for a veteran like Schwartz.

“They’ve got a lot of guys,” Schwartz told reporters on Thursday. “(Matthew) Judon has been there for a while, he’s an awesome player. To bring in Calais (Campbell), to bring in Derek Wolfe, they’ve got some younger guys, (Tyus) Bowser has been playing really well, they still have (Pernell) McPhee there who seems like he’s been there forever, and he’s still playing awesome football.”

Schwartz isn’t just expecting to see just one player line up across from him the entire game. He’s preparing to face a variety of players and he’s preparing for a team that has dialed up blitzes nearly 42% of the time through the first two weeks of the season. He’ll be blocking up a lot of different players coming from a variety of alignments.

“You’ve got a lot of guys, they tend to like to blitz a lot too, go one on one a lot so they can roll those guys through,” Schwartz explained. “Everyone’s a little bit different and they’re all good players. They do a really good job of it. Who you’re going against isn’t as cookie-cutter as some weeks where, ‘Oh, I’m going to see this guy 85% of the snaps.’ You’re going to get a rotation of them. They’re able to roll through. The front seven seems like its 12 or 13 deep, and it’s pretty much all awesome players.”

Whoever lines up across from Schwartz in Week 3, expect him to elevate his game under the bright lights of “Monday Night Football.”

[vertical-gallery id=77258]

Chiefs’ Andy Heck sees potential in versatile 2020 offensive line group

Chiefs offensive line coach Andy Heck shares how what he expects from his offensive line in 2020.

[jwplayer KdmAfagj-ThvAeFxT]

Andy Heck has been with the Kansas City Chiefs as their offensive line coach since 2013. He was brought in by Andy Reid and has been an integral part of the resurgence of the Chiefs.

Coach Heck recently shared some insights on how the offensive line has grown this offseason and how the newest additions, Mike Remmers and Kelechi Osemele, are performing.

“Brett Veach and his staff of course always do a great job of bringing us quality football players, guys who are going to be competitive,” Heck told reporters on Thursday. “The thing that I love about these two players is you have experience, they’ve played a lot of good football, and both of them love football. I think if you asked the team here, it’s that we’re collecting guys who love to play football

“I’m really impressed. I’ve been a big fan of his just watching him play. He’s a very physical football player. As I mentioned earlier, he’s a guy who loves the game. It’s obvious to everyone who watches him. That’s infectious and it’s great for our group. He’s fitting in terrifically.”

Starting left tackle Eric Fisher has played his entire career with Coach Heck. Fisher recently suffered a concussion and is currently in the NFL’s concussion protocol which has raised some questions about the versatility and depth of the offensive line.

“Rick [Burkholder] is working with the Fish,” Heck said. “We’ll get him back whenever he’s ready and whenever that is, he’s working there at the left tackle spot. We’ve got some young guys working at the tackle spot in Greg Senat and Jackson Barton. We also have other guys who have positional flexibility. That’s something that I really like to train into guys whether they’re playing guard or tackle. We’re just looking for the best five, best seven, the guys who are going to make this roster”

New guys playing in new places is typically something that takes time, especially among offensive linemen, due to the constant communication it takes for success.

“You definitely need to build chemistry and trust between O-linemen,” Heck explained. “I view it maybe a little differently than some because I feel like we’re all in this rowboat together, we’re all pulling in one direction, we need to get to know every guy in that room. Whether I’m playing left guard or right tackle, it doesn’t really matter to me, I’m going to be combination blocking with somebody, I need to get to know all of these guys.

“I really believe in building versatility and not making a big deal out of that. We have a good group of guys that love to play ball together, they don’t flinch when you say, ‘hey, go work over there, go work over here.’ It’s the next man up. That’s what I love about this group.”

While Osemele and Remmers are improving every day with their new team, Andrew Wylie is embarking on his third season with the Chiefs. The young lineman has been a staple of the offensive line, on the interior and even at tackle, throughout his time.

“I’ve been a big fan of Andrew’s since he got here,” Heck said. “The guy shows versatility, toughness, and he’s gotten better every year that he’s been here. We’ve got him working in there at guard and he’s off to a good start, along with some other guys. He’s now a couple of years into our system, he’s played a lot of ball for us. I feel like he’s picking up the finer points, but he’s off and running and off to a great start.”

Coach Heck’s son, Charlie, who played his college ball for North Carolina, was drafted by the Houston Texans in the 2020 NFL Draft. It is always a proud moment for a father who played in the league for as long as Andy Heck did to see his son’s dreams realized. The Chiefs open up the season against Houston in Kansas City which should be a big moment for the Heck family.

“Charlie is off to a good start there in Houston,” Heck said. “I ask him to give me one play you’d want to have over again, so I just do a little bit of coaching there. He’s got great coaches down there. I’m looking forward to competing against him. My wife is going to be a bit nervous, but I’m looking forward to it.”

The offensive line play is more important than ever with a rookie running back and the importance of keeping Patrick Mahomes healthy. The Chiefs offense likes to move guys around and put playmakers in the best possible scenario to succeed. The offensive line under Heck’s tutelage has the same approach and mentality.

[vertical-gallery id=74927]

Lane Johnson lands just outside the top-5 in a ranking of offensive tackles entering the 2020 NFL season

Lane Johnson is No. 6 in a ranking of tackles entering the 2020 season

[jwplayer 9HJb3Too]

The 2020 season is fast approaching and the Eagles will again have one of the top offensive lines in the NFL thanks to star right tackle Lane Johnson.

With Brandon Brooks out, Johnson is the high profile name on the line and he’ll be leaned on by Jason Peters who’s returning to play right guard.

Pro Football Focus recently ranked the top-25 offensive tackles in the NFL entering the 2020 season and Johnson landed in the top-10 at No. 6, while second-year left tackle Andre Dillard was left off the list.

6. LANE JOHNSON, PHILADELPHIA EAGLES
It’s a shame that Johnson’s 2019 season ended the way it did, as he was having a career year. He produced an 88.8 PFF grade, ranking second in the NFL. His run-block grade sat at 92.6, which was the best we have seen at the position since Joe Staley in 2012. He’s created holes for the run game ever since he came into the NFL in 2013, ranking outside the top-10 in run-block grade just once. That’s the definition of reliable right there. To take that a step further, Johnson played 2018 with a couple of nagging injuries and still managed to produce like a top-10 tackle.

Johnson will no doubt use the top-6 ranking as motivation, and as one of the highest-paid at his position, he’s definitely worthy of feeling like he should be the highest-rated tackle in football.

The Eagles simply aren’t the same as a unit without Johnson on the field.

[vertical-gallery id=638359]

[lawrence-related id=638827,638825,638820,638800,638814]

Mitchell Schwartz confident in Kansas City Chiefs’ offensive line depth

Schwartz thinks that the Kansas City Chiefs can withstand some losses along the offensive line.

The biggest question for the Kansas City Chiefs entering training camp is who will earn the vacant jobs at left and right guard. The team will be without former starters Stefen Wisniewski and Laurent Duvernay-Tardif. Wisniewski left in free agency to join the Pittsburgh Steelers and Duvernay-Tardif has opted out for the 2020 season.

As things start to gear up for training camp, right tackle Mitchell Schwartz is feeling very confident in the group of players that Brett Veach has brought in. Whether it’s the rookies or the free agents, Schwartz knows that they’ll all be ready for whatever is thrown their way.

“In terms of new guys, we have guys who have been here and a couple of new guys,” Schwartz said. “That’s something that Coach [Andy] Heck has been extremely good with in terms of moving people around and making sure that throughout training camp and the practice time, he’s cross-training as many people as possible so that when you inevitably do have guys get hurt or something happens, you’re not playing next to someone that you’ve never played with before. Even if it’s drill-to-drill, it doesn’t really matter where you line up, you just kind of get a feel for who is next to you. We’ve got a lot of good players. I think our offensive line is going to be awesome this year. It’s nice to get back into the normal swing of things.” 

While Schwartz says the offensive line won’t really get a feel for things until they get into pads, he’s not worried. They’ll be getting just as many padded practices as they normally would. That means there will be no disadvantages as he gets used to someone new working at right guard. Schwartz does seem to have a preference toward lining up next to one of the veteran players on the team.

“Honestly, with the older guys, I think that the longer they’ve played, the easier it is to mesh them together,” Schwartz said. “Obviously, K.O. [Kelechi Osemele] has had an awesome career and [Mike] Remmers has too. Those are guys who understand how to play with people and next to people. That’s something that I’m not too worried about. [Martinas] Rankin played great last year. I was really excited to see him keep progressing. It was a bummer, my injury kind of made him get hurt as well because he had to move to right tackle. I hope to see him healthy. I don’t know what exactly his status is going to be, but I know that he played really well last year. I’m excited to keep seeing that growth. We’ve seen offensive lineman get injured every year. It could be one, it could be five. They’ve always had really good depth here, and that’s what’s allowed us to keep having success.” 

Left tackle Eric Fisher seemed to have a preference toward playing next to a veteran player too, so that’s certainly something to watch as training camp progresses. But as Schwartz explained, the depth on the offensive line is what will make this group successful. Offensive line coach Andy Heck will likely have guys playing at a number of different spots during camp, not only to find out their best position but so they’re prepared in the event of an injury.

[vertical-gallery id=73372]

Chiefs veterans preach accountability while players are away from team facility

Without a bubble environment like the NBA, Chiefs veterans weigh in on keeping accountability.

The NBA has a set up in Orlando at Disney’s Wide World of Sports that is commonly referred to as “The Bubble” which is a zone designed to keep players as well as coaches and staff members isolated from the COVID-19 pandemic while finishing their 2019 season. The rules and regulations within
“The Bubble” have been rigid, to say the least.

The NFL doesn’t have a similar strategy. They’re holding the normal individual team training camps with an umbrella protocol and precautions set up for each team. When practices come to a close, players are allowed to go home which puts added pressure on players to be cautious.

Coach Andy Reid stated that it will be up to the players to do the right things after they leave the building. A few veteran Chiefs players spoke on what that means and how to keep players accountable.

“It’s accountability,” All-Pro tight end Travis Kelce said. “The guys coming in this office, they know what this team is capable of. It shows in what we did last year and who all we have coming back, which means we have just about every single leader that we had in this locker room—outside of two that respectively decided to opt-out. I think we’re as set and ready leadership-wise as we’ve ever been.”

“The tone has to be set and the accountability has to be set amongst all the guys in the locker room that there’s a virus out here, it’s not something we can play around with, it’s something that we have to take seriously”, Kelce continued, “Guys are going home to their families. We have kids and wives and beautiful families that we have to make sure that we’re all being held accountable for. So, like Coach Reid said, just making sure that you’re doing the right things for the guys around you. But I don’t see much of a problem because a lot of that is already set in the culture that Coach Reid and the leaders on this team have set.”

Six-year NFL linebacker Anthony Hitchens shared similar sentiments.

“We just tell the young guys just be smart,” Hitchens said. “It’s just not about you, it’s about the team. A lot of us have families and wives and kids and if you go out and do something you’re not supposed to, it can affect other people’s families.

“We have a lot of good people here. (Brett) Veach and Coach Reid have been doing a really good job getting good guys here, so I got all the confidence in the world everybody will go home and be smart and just ready to work locked in six to seven more months straight, and let’s play hard and let’s play safe.”

Right tackle Mitchell Schwartz spoke to the seriousness of the current situation and the importance of self-discipline during training camp.

“I think that the biggest thing is going through the meetings and seeing the steps that have to happen if a guy does get COVID-19, all of a sudden all of the people that he’s been around need to quarantine for a certain amount of time,” Schwartz said. “One guy testing positive could have this huge spill off where a certain amount of people then has to go away for five days. There are always steps in the process where you realize that one single test can have an effect on our football team for multiple weeks, especially once we get into the season.”

“It’s not just, ‘Oh, I have it. I have to sit out for two weeks. It’ll be okay.’ It’s, ‘I have it and these other people could be affected, and now it’s this debilitating thing,’” Schwartz continued. “Kind of like we saw with the Miami Marlins where one person had it and then a whole team gets it. I think we all realize how important it is. It’s going to take a lot of self-discipline to make sure we’re doing the right thing away from the building.”

It is clear that leadership plays a major role in the Chiefs’ locker room and the fact that they are the defending Super Bowl champions with repeat aspirations will keep players in the right frame of mind. This is an offseason unlike any that has preceded so goal-setting and adhering to the protocols set forth for camps are vital which are being taken seriously by the players and staff.

[vertical-gallery id=73372]

The NFL’s 11 best offensive tackles

You need to protect the quarterback in today’s NFL, and if you’re going to be a great tackle start there. Here are the est in the game.

A few years ago, long before a career change that brought me to this moment, I was doing what probably everyone reading this piece was doing: Watching the NFL Draft. It was the 2013 NFL Draft to be exact, and the Miami Dolphins had just made their first-round selection: Dion Jordan, a pass rusher out of the University of Oregon.

It was a bit of a shocking move, in that Jordan was considered a first-round prospect but maybe not someone worthy of a Top Five selection. He also tore his labrum that February and would be sidelined for three to four months as he recovered from the surgery to repair the injury.

When the pick was made Mike Mayock, covering the draft for the NFL Network, said something that has stuck with me since. He talked about how the Jordan pick was more evidence that the most important spot on a football field is the seven yards behind the center. I’m paraphrasing now, but he said that teams need guys who can “throw from that spot, protect that spot, and attack that spot.”

When you are going to pay the guy throwing from that spot somewhere in the vicinity of $500 million dollars, the guys protecting that spot better be darn good at what they do.

Here are some of the best the league has to offer at protecting the spot from the tackle position.

More Top 11 lists: Slot defenders | Outside cornerbacks | Safeties | Linebackers | Edge defenders | Interior defensive linemen 

Honorable Mentions

(Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports)

Two names are going to be glaringly absent from this list, so we need to address them right out of the gate. First up is Trent Williams, who found a new home this offseason with the San Francisco 49ers. Williams is usually a lock for lists like this, but as he missed all of 2019, he failed to meet the snap threshold for this piece. Then there is Jason Peters, another mainstay at the offensive tackle position. Part of the criteria for these lists is a bit of forward-thinking, and since Peters is actually kicking inside to guard this year for the Philadelphia Eagles, it is hard to consider him a tackle for this exercise.

Other names that just missed out include Bryan Bulaga, who is sliding into a tackle spot for the Los Angeles Chargers this season, and Jake Matthews, who continues a long lineage of NFL success. Then there is Trent Brown, a massive human who locked down Tom Brady’s blindside two seasons ago, and now handles the right tackle spot for the Las Vegas Raiders. A few more years of success from Brown probably slides him onto future such lists. Finally Braden Smith is worthy of consideration after just two years in the league, and perhaps he’ll crack the Top 11 in next year’s edition.

Best Tackle Pair

(Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports)

As we will discuss in a few minutes, you need bookends at the tackle position in today’s NFL. Gone are the days when the best pass rusher was going to be attacking your left tackle on down after down. Now defenses are attacking from every possible angle, and some of the best pass rushers in the game (such as Von Miller and Khalil Mack) are working against your right tackle in large part. So the teams that have a pair of bookend tackles are in good shape.

Those teams include the Baltimore Ravens, who get to roll out Ronnie Stanley and Orlando Brown Jr. on Sundays. Then there are the Dallas Cowboys, and we will see both La’el Collins and Tyron Smith on this list. Indianapolis has a solid pair as well, with Anthony Castonzo and the previously-mentioned Braden Smith. Some good pairs were broken up this offseason, such as Bavid Bakhtiari and Bryan Bulaga, as well as Taylor Lewan and Jack Conklin. Lane Johnson and Jason Peters are still teammates, but no longer the pair of bookends they once were.

That brings us to the top duo, the combination of Ryan Ramczyk and Terron Armstead in New Orleans. Both players make this list and they are both elite talents at the position. Sean Payton and company have assembled a talented offensive line group and these bookend tackles are a huge part.

Now, the Top 11.

Pages: Page 1, Page 2, Page 3, Page 4, Page 5, Page 6, Page 7, Page 8, Page 9, Page 10, Page 11, Page 12

The NFL’s 11 best edge defenders

The NFL places a premium on the ability to get to the quarterback. Here are the league’s 11 best pass-rushers heading into the 2020 season.

What makes a great edge defender? You can go over traits and production and add them together any way you choose, but when I spoke with Chiefs right tackle Mitchell Schwartz recently for the “Speaking of Everything” podcast, he talked about the importance of having multiple ways to get to the quarterback.

“On the whole, it’s guys who can do multiple things,” Schwartz said of the pass-rushers who give him fits on the field. “If a guy is really good at tone thing, for the most part, you can stop it. If it’s Justin Smith power, there’s only so much you can do against that. But for the most part, if a guy can only do one thing, it’s not the best version of it you’ve ever seen. If a guy is super-quick and that’s all he can do, you get him off the [snap], and he’s done. If a guy is really strong and only has a bull-rush, and you’re sitting on it, there are things you can do to disrupt the timing, and there’s not much else he can do. The thing [the best pass-rushers] can do is any combination of three moves — some variation of the inside move, some variation of the speed or outside move, and then, the power move. If you’ve got the ability to do two of those, let alone three, the offensive lineman doesn’t have anything he can wait for or predict.”

The edge defenders on this list can beat you in multiple ways, and from multiple gaps. And though the primary focus is on quarterback disruption, you’re not going to be one of the NFL’s top 11 pass-rushers if you can’t break off pressure to stop the run in an instant. And if you can drop back in basic coverage… well, that helps as well. Here are the best players when it comes to presenting impossible math problems to opposing offensive linemen.

Honorable Mentions

(Cary Edmondson-USA TODAY Sports)

The Washington Football Team now has five first-round picks along its defensive line with the addition of second-overall pick Chase Young, but Ryan Kerrigan led the edge guys with just 37 total pressures. Matt Ioannidis, a fifth-round defensive tackle out of Temple in 2016, was the team’s best pass-rusher last season. So, there’s that. As far as guys who were tough to keep off the Top 11, let’s start with San Francisco’s Arik Armstead, who totaled 73 pressures and had 42 stops, tied for third-best in the league. Everson Griffen had 70 pressures and 30 stops for the Vikings last season and is currently an unsigned free agent. We’d expect that to change soon, depending on an actual football season happening. Brandon Graham of the Eagles seems perennially underrated because he gets more pressures than sacks, and he amassed 68 pressures in 2019, along with 38 stops. Harold Landry III of the Titans is an up-and-comer who could have a breakout season in 2020, and the Falcons certainly hope Dante Fowler Jr. can keep up the career-year pace he set last season with the Rams.

Now, onto the top guys.

Pages: Page 1, Page 2, Page 3, Page 4, Page 5, Page 6, Page 7, Page 8, Page 9, Page 10, Page 11, Page 12

Chiefs RT Mitchell Schwartz tackles anti-Semitic Instagram posts from Eagles WR DeSean Jackson

Schwartz hopes we can now bring light to rising issues of anti-Semitism following DeSean Jackson’s harmful Instagram posts.

As one of the most prominent Jewish players in the NFL, Kansas City Chiefs RT Mitchell Schwartz is taking a stand against anti-Semitism and hate in all forms.

This comes following an incident with Philadelphia Eagles WR DeSean Jackson, where he shared a number of anti-Semitic posts on Instagram that included quotes attributed to Adolf Hitler and admiration for controversial Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan. Schwartz and Jackson were teammates at University of California in college.

Jackson later apologized for his posts claiming the posts were misinterpreted. The Eagles organization and the NFL both released statements, prompting another apology from Jackson for sharing quotes he now deems “offensive” and “harmful.”

On Wednesday evening, Schwartz responded with some of his thoughts on the situation in what was a powerful call for understanding, unity and action against hatred.

“As a Jewish American in the NFL, I stand with my brothers of all races and creeds against any form of discrimination and hate,” Schwartz began. “One of the things that makes our game so great is the diverse background of the guys in the locker room, not just from a racial standpoint but from a religious one as well. Although in my personal experience my teammates have always been supportive and interested in my faith. Anti-Semitism is on the rise in this country. Tragedy after tragedy, the number of hate crimes against Jews has reached record levels in the past few years.

“My hope is we can use this moment to shed light on and bring awareness to the hate and oppression the Jewish Community still faces while standing strong with the Black Lives Matter movement. We can only have change if we denounce racism and bias in all its forms. Our platforms as athletes are a powerful tool, and with them comes immense responsibility. We can all do better.”

On Thursday evening, Schwartz appeared on CNN Tonight with Don Lemon to talk about Jackson, anti-Semitism and the statement Schwartz released on Wednesday.

“The first thing is, you’re just surprised,” Schwartz said. “I think anytime Hitler’s name is attached to any sort of thing you’d imagine that people would kind of stay away from that. I think that was the first thing where you realize, ‘Hey, this probably wasn’t that great.’ Then you start reading it and you realize just how bad the wording was. I truly don’t think DeSean meant any sort of hate or anything. I think it came way more from a place of ignorance and that’s something that we’re seeing with him the past couple of days being able to reach out to different communities and learn more about them. But it’s bad. We’ve learned — especially the past couple of months — that we have to speak out when we see things that aren’t right. That wasn’t right and I’m glad people are speaking out about it.”

Schwartz believes that Jackson is taking the action necessary to redeem himself and will be in good hands learning from Howie Roseman and Jeffrey Lurie with the Eagles franchise. Schwartz hasn’t reached out to Jackson, but he did give Lemon an idea of what he’d say to him if he had an opportunity to speak with him.
“I would just say that our platforms are immense,” Scwhartz told Lemon. “I think we’re realizing how much power we have, obviously on the field but also off as well. Social media in general is such a huge responsibility and we have to take that seriously. Just the past couple of months we’ve realized how much power we have and how we can change things for the better for our generations and future generations. Making sure that you’re kind of reading through everything a couple of times. . . We have an opportunity now to bring light to (the rise in anti-Semitism) and hopefully make change for the better.”
[vertical-gallery id=71928]

Every NFL team’s most underrated player

Every NFL team has at least one player whose play deserves more praise than it gets. Here’s every team’s most underrated player.

In the NFL, players are underrated for all kinds of reasons. Sometimes, they’re second banana to a superstar whose deeds take up all the oxygen. Other times, it may be that the player has to climb up the depth chart as a little-regarded contributor, and the media hasn’t caught up yet. It’s also possible that the player has an incandescent talent that’s hidden by an unfavorable scheme. And it could also be that the player has had one great season, and everyone’s waiting to see if it’s a fluke.

No matter the reasons, every player on this list has set an exceptional standard deserving of more recognition. Here are the most underrated players for every NFL team going into the 2020 season.

Arizona Cardinals: EDGE Chandler Jones

(Getty Images)

Do you know which NFL player has the most sacks since 2012? We’re kind of giving it away here, but yes, it is Chandler Jones with 96 since his rookie season. That puts him above Von Miller, J.J. Watt, Cameron Jordan, Justin Houston, Aaron Donald, and anyone else you’d care to mention. Jones also has 85 quarterback hits and 307 quarterback hurries in that time, but he’s rarely discussed when it’s time to talk about the league’s edge-rushers. This despite the fact that he led the league in sacks in 2017 with 17 and finished second to Shaquil Barrett with 19 last season. Perhaps it’s because he’s been doing his work of late with a Cardinals team that hasn’t made the playoffs since 2015, but no pass-rusher deserves more praise in line with his accomplishments than Jones.

Atlanta Falcons: DL Grady Jarrett

(Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports)

Lost in the specter of the Falcons’ 28-3 meltdown in Super Bowl LI was the fact that Jarrett, the Falcons’ fifth-round pick in 2015, was a borderline MVP candidate with three sacks and four quarterback hits before everything fell apart. Downgraded out of Clemson because he was allegedly too short, Jarrett has been a remarkable interior disruptor throughout his NFL career. Whether aligned at nose tackle or three-technique, Jarrett has totaled at least 43 quarterback hurries every season since 2016. The Falcons rewarded him with a four-year, $68 million contract in July, 2019, but Jarrett still doesn’t get the recognition he deserves.

Baltimore Ravens: OT Ronnie Stanley

(Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports)

Who’s the best left tackle in the NFL today? Were you to poll 100 experts, you’d get several different answers. But it’s hard to argue against Stanley, who allowed just one sack and 10 total pressures in 543 pass-blocking snaps last season, and helped the Ravens put together the NFL’s most dynamic rushing attack in his 489 run-blocking snaps. The 2019 season marked Stanley’s first All-Pro and Pro Bowl nods, and there should be more of that to come. Lamar Jackson is the talk of Baltimore’s offense, but it wouldn’t go the way it does without Stanley’s presence.

Buffalo Bills: WR John Brown

(JAMIE GERMANO/ROCHESTER DEMOCRAT AND CHRONICLE -Imagn Content Services, LLC)

The big news for the Bills this offseason was the trade that brought Stefon Diggs to the team, but Buffalo’s receiver corps was already pretty strong, and Brown was the primary reason in 2019. Despite the fact that he plied his trade in a new offense and took passes from erratic quarterback Josh Allen, the former Cardinal and Raven set a career high with 72 receptions and posted the second 1,000-yard season of his career. The addition of Diggs should give Brown more one-on-one opportunities to succeed — especially if Allen is able to get his GPS aligned.

Carolina Panthers: S Tre Boston

(Jim Dedmon-USA TODAY Sports)

Few deep safeties have been as adept in pass coverage than Boston over the last five season, so it has been a mystery why the Panthers cut him in 2017, and why he was unable to find more than a series of one-year deals with different teams until Carolina re-assessed its approach and signed him to a three-year, $18 million deal in March. It’s still chump change for a guy who plays as well as Boston does — he’s totaled 16 interceptions to just eight touchdowns allowed in his career — but it’s a nice bounceback for a player whose desire to protest may have cost him a more lucrative deal.

Chicago Bears: WR Allen Robinson

(Raj Mehta-USA TODAY Sports)

If any current receiver would be justified in filing a grievance against the NFL for lack of quarterback support, it would be Robinson, who has moved from Blake Bortles as his primary QB in Jacksonville to Mitchell Trubisky in Chicago. Hardly ideal. Still, Robinson led the NFL in touchdown receptions with 14 in 2015, and last season, with Trubisky falling apart most of the time, he still caught 98 passes for 1,147 yards and seven touchdowns. 2020 marks the last year of Robinson’s current contract with the Bears, and he’ll undoubtedly make the best of Chicago’s Trubisky/Nick Foles quaterback situation, and perhaps wind up on a team with a functional quarterback after that.

Cincinnati Bengals: RB Joe Mixon

(Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports)

The hope in Cincinnati is that the offense will come around with Joe Burrow at quarterback, but the Bengals are already set at the running back position, where Mixon gained 1,137 yards and five touchdowns on 278 carries last season, adding 35 receptions for 287 yards and three more touchdowns for good measure. Only five backs broke more rushing tackles than Mixon’s 52, and he totaled 14 runs of 15 or more yards last season, tied for fourth in the league.

Cleveland Browns: RB Nick Chubb

(AP Photo/Nick Wass)

Tennessee’s Derrick Henry was the NFL’s rushing leader in 2019, but it could easily be argued that Chubb was the league’s most efficient rusher. Not only did he gain 5.0 yards per carry (1,494 yards and eight touchdowns on 298 carries), but he also led the league in rushed of 15 or more yards (20), only the Raiders’ Josh Jacobs broke more rushing tackles than Chubb’s 66, and only Henry averaged more yards after contact per carry than Chubb’s 3.77. He was a one-man wrecking crew in a broken offense in 2019 — perhaps new head coach Kevin Stefanski can change that, but there’s no doubting Chubb’s status as one of the league’s rising stars.

Pages: Page 1, Page 2, Page 3, Page 4