Tag: Pass Rush Win Rate

Carl Granderson ranks top-15 in this key pass rushing stat from ESPN

ESPN’s pass rush win rate stat puts Carl Granderson among the best in the NFL this season. He’s leading the charge at defensive end:

The New Orleans Saints have a few key players that have contributed to their success so far this season, and one such player is defensive end Carl Granderson. Granderson, while looking at counting stats has not been exceptional yet, has been very good at generating pressure and winning against his opponent in the pass rush.

According to the ESPN analysis of these statistics, Granderson ranks 14th in the league at pass rush win rate, with a success rate of 24% on 46 plays (the most plays of anyone in the top 20). He also has the fourth-highest double-team rate of any player in the top 20 at 25%, behind only Trey Hendrickson, Chris Jones, and Myles Garrett, all high-level players. For reference, he ranks between Joey Bosa and T.J. Watt for pass rush win rate, among other players like DeMarcus Lawrence, Danielle Hunter, Brian Burns, and Jonathan Greenard.

Many have seen the impressive rise of Granderson over the past few seasons, as he has continued to get better and become a staple of this Saints defensive front four, but this season could end up being the one where he truly breaks out if he can end up finishing some of his rushes and taking down the quarterback more often.

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Commanders were second in the NFL pass rush win rate in Week 1

Sometimes, numbers don’t tell the whole story. #RaiseHail

In the first game under new head coach Dan Quinn and defensive coordinator Joe Whitt Jr., the Washington Commanders’ defense resembled the 2023 unit that finished 32nd in the NFL.

Washington missed tackles, failed to get adequate pressure on Tampa Bay quarterback Baker Mayfield, could not force a turnover and allowed four touchdown passes in a 37-20 loss.

Commanders defensive end Clelin Ferrell had the team’s only sack in Week 1. However, others were close. Defensive tackles Jonathan Allen and Daron Payne had Mayfield in their grasp at different times, but he escaped only to make big plays down the field.

With only one sack and Mayfield completing 80% of his passes in Week 1, it would appear that Washington did not apply significant pressure.

That’s not the case, according to Warren Sharp of Sharp Analysis. The Commanders finished second in the NFL in pass rush win rate last week at 67%, behind only the Chicago Bears (71%).

What exactly is pass rush win rate?

Pass rush win rate is a metric created by ESPN that records how often a pass rusher beats his block within 2.5 seconds.

Sometimes, stats don’t always tell the whole story. That was certainly the case for the Commanders last week. It’s encouraging that Washington was winning one-on-one matchups up front, but the failure to finish haunted them throughout the game.

It wasn’t only pass rush win rate where Washington excelled. Sharp had the Commanders finishing fifth in run stop win rate. That’s more in line with the numbers, as Washington held Tampa Bay to 3.7 yards per rush attempt.

There were a lot of questions about Washington’s pass rush coming into the season. How would Dorance Armstrong perform now that he’s in a full-time role? Could Ferrell and Dante Fowler Jr. help as pass rushers? However, the most intriguing player is former linebacker and 2021 first-round pick Jamin Davis.

Davis played limited snaps in Week 1 but made two excellent stops, including beating Pro Bowl tackle Tristan Wirfs to take down a Tampa running back for a six-yard loss. In total, the Commanders had eight tackles for loss, which is encouraging.

Washington hopes that high pass rush win rate turns into more sacks against the New York Giants in Week 2.

Seattle Seahawks rank second-to-last in ESPN’s pass rush win rate

Their toothless pass rush is an almost equally-problematic area.

The Seahawks’ porous run defense has taken up most of the oxygen this season when it comes to conversations about how to improve the team. That’s deservedly so, as they’ve gotten pounded by most of the rushing attacks they’ve faced this year. However, their toothless pass rush is an almost equally problematic area.

Uchenna Nwosu has been the lone consistent standout in this area, totaling a quarter of the team’s sacks and the unit’s highest pass rush grade by a healthy margin. The rest of the rotation has not produced, though and Seattle ranks very poorly in practically all advanced metrics. As a team they are No. 30 in PFF’s pass rush grade. In ESPN’s pass rush win rate they rank second-to-last at 33%. Here’s how all 32 teams stack up with two games left to play.

 

Browns three pass rushers have excelled at getting pressure

Through seven weeks, the Browns are getting their money’s worth from their top three pass rushers and there is a chart to prove it:

The Cleveland Browns have Myles Garrett to cause havoc for opposing offenses and he has done his job well. The former #1 overall pick leads the league with 9.5 sacks, two ahead of Harold Landry and two and a half ahead of TJ Watt.

This offseason, the Browns added Takk McKinley and then Jadeveon Clowney in an attempt to improve the rushers partnering with Garrett. McKinley has 1.5 sacks while Clowney has 3.5 with no other Cleveland defender have more than one sack.

Sacks are not the only way that pass rushers should be judged. The ability to get pressure on a quarterback is important as is their ability in run defense.

According to Seth Walder of ESPN, the Browns triumvirate stands out among the league with only Watt having a better pass rush win rate. Garrett and McKinley are below league average in run stop win rate while Clowney is right at that average (the vertical line that splits Clowney’s name):

While Cleveland may prefer all three of their edge guys to be further right on the chart, being better as pass rushers is their primary goal.

Having three defenders with such high pass rush win rates is one reason that Joe Woods has been comfortable only bringing four rushers. It also explains why a fifth rusher often gets home when sent.

It will be interesting to see how these rates track over the rest of the season but, early on, the Browns are getting their money’s worth from their three pass rushers.

Panthers DC Phil Snow makes a bold prediction for DE Brian Burns

Brian Burns has been the most effective player for the Carolina Panthers this year, hands down.

Brian Burns has been the most effective player for the Carolina Panthers this year, hands down. His ability to produce pressure consistently and disrupt both the run and the pass makes him an invaluable part of this young defense and one of the most exciting upcoming defensive ends in the NFL.

As well as Burns has played in 2020, his sack total is lagging behind a little. Heading into Week 11, Burns has posted four sacks and 12 quarterback hits, which seems low given how often he’s been inhabiting his opponents’ backfields. The numbers will come eventually, though. Burns’ pressure rate practically guarantees that. Defensive coordinator Phil Snow is expecting a breakout stat line for No. 53. Today during his Zoom call with the media Snow said Burns is going to have a three-sack game pretty soon.

Whether or not Burns winds up with double-digit sacks this year is irrelevant. He impacts the game a great deal even if the box score doesn’t always reflect it. Burns currently ranks No. 3 at his position in pass rush win rate.

In any case, if Burns getting a bunch of sacks really matters to Snow, he could help the cause by utilizing fewer three-man rushes, which has resulted in a fair amount of double and triple-teams directed at Burns.

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Panthers DE Brian Burns ranks in top-10 in pass rush win rate

Panthers defensive end Brian Burns ranks in top-10 in pass rush win rate through two games.

It’s been a putrid start to the season for the Panthers defensive line, which lost a ton of firepower this offseason. Through two games, the team has zero sacks, one quarterback hit and has been unable to defend the run again.

The one exception to the rule has been the play of second-year defensive end Brian Burns. While he doesn’t have any sacks yet he’s come close a couple of times and he ranks No. 7 in the NFL in pass rush win rate among edge defenders.

via ESPN

This is a better indicator of how much pressure a defender is getting than sacks, which can vary widely from week to week and season to season. Burns will get his, eventually.

Watch this spin move that almost landed him a hit on Tom Brady.

He’s also stood out against the run.

Burns has four tackles so far, two for a loss.

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