Tag: pass block win rate

Taliese Fuaga, two other Saints rank highly in ESPN’s pass block win rate

Taliese Fuaga ranks among the best offensive tackles in the league when looking at ESPN’s pass block win rate so far:

The New Orleans Saints’ 2024 NFL draft picks were very intriguing from the start, especially Taliese Fuaga, who was looked at as the immediate franchise tackle due to Ryan Ramczyk’s injury and Trevor Penning having a rough initial start to his career. Now, Fuaga and Penning are both playing at an exceptionally high level for two weeks, and Fuaga ranks among the best offensive tackles in the league when considering the statistic pass block win rate. This statistic measures the percent of pass-blocking snaps that the offensive lineman wins, i.e. does not give up a pressure or sack.

According to the ESPN rankings in these statistics, Fuaga has taken 28 pass-blocking snaps, and on 27 of them, he has won the rep (96%). This ranks Fuaga tied for ninth best among offensive tackles, tied with Andrew Thomas, Jordan Mailata, and Lane Johnson, which is a pretty exceptional company to be in as a rookie.

His fellow Saints teammates Erik McCoy and Lucas Patrick also rank among the best interior linemen in this statistic, with McCoy at 12th (97%) and Patrick at 18th (96%). This success can be shown in many other metrics as well, such as pressures allowed within 2.5 seconds, where the Saints rank first at an extremely low 4%. The next best is at 11% with the Los Angeles Chargers, and the average for the NFL is 23%. That is how successful this Saints offensive line has been at protecting Derek Carr, and doing so at such a high rate is allowing the offense to play at a very high level.

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Panthers’ projected pass block win rate among NFL’s lowest

ESPN is projecting that their pass block win rate is only going to be 56%, which would rank No. 27.

Winning in the NFL today requires a capable quarterback and an at-least respectable supporting cast around him. We know that the Panthers have a strong group of pass-catching weapons and a sharp playcaller in offensive coordinator Joe Brady. In theory, Sam Darnold should be able to take a step forward in his development. However, Carolina’s highly-questionable offensive line could be the bad apple that spoils the whole thing.

Heading into the 2021 season, there’s not much faith in this unit. Pro Football Focus has the Panthers offensive line ranked No. 31 in the league. ESPN is projecting that their pass block win rate is only going to be 56%, which would rank No. 27.

“Sam Darnold should have better weapons and better coaching in Carolina, but he probably will not get a particularly good pass-protecting line. The ranks above might even give an overly optimistic impression, because Erving and Elflein both ranked poorly in 2019. Moton, who just got a four-year extension, is the only reliable blocker here.”

Some quarterbacks can overcome a porous offensive line and lift their team with their ability to improvise and throw on the run. Darnold has not proven to be one of them since he was drafted. In fact, he was recently named the league’s worst passer outside the pocket.

Locking in Moton on his massive extension gives this unit some much-needed stability. However, the other four spots are far from a sure thing and the depth behind them isn’t exactly impressive, either.

It’s always possible this group will be a pleasant surprise. That said, the Panthers front office should have a backup plan in case things go south once the season begins.

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