Where Braelon Allen ranks among PFF’s best all-time Wisconsin Badgers running backs

Where does Braelon Allen rank on Wisconsin’s all-time list?

The Wisconsin football program is known for its long history at the running back position.

The latest product is Braelon Allen. He entered the 2024 NFL Draft after a three-year Wisconsin career that included 3,494 rushing yards, 275 receiving yards and 35 total touchdowns.

Related: Ranking Wisconsin football’s incoming transfers by expected impact in 2024 season

Allen’s play style doesn’t directly relate to that of Badger greats Jonathan Taylor, Melvin Gordon and James White. His NFL prospects are a bit of a question mark, as a result.

What the former Badger does boast is a power-first style with surprising speed. Derrick Henry, A.J. Dillon and others have made careers off overpowering defenders. Allen hopes to follow in that list of running backs.

Before the NFL Draft later this month, ProFootballFocus took to X to compare Allen’s collegiate grade with some of Wisconsin’s other greats.

He ranks third since 2014, unsurprisingly behind both Taylor and Gordon:

Allen will hope to hear his name called on the second day of April’s draft as he looks to continue Wisconsin’s legacy at the position.

Contact/Follow @TheBadgersWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Wisconsin Badgers news, notes and opinion. Follow Ben Kenney on X.

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Wisconsin landed one of the best transfer running backs this offseason

Wisconsin landed one of the best transfer running backs this offseason

The Wisconsin Badgers were active in the transfer portal this offseason. Luke Fickell’s program landed 12 players, including new starting quarterback Tyler Van Dyke (Miami) and top-ranked linebacker Tackett Curtis (USC).

The transfer class ranks No. 18 nationally and No. 5 in the new Big Ten.

Related: You might be surprised where Wisconsin football is on ESPN’s early 2024 SP+ rankings

One under-the-radar name in the class is former Oklahoma running back Tawee Walker. With Braelon Allen gone to the NFL and Chez Mellusi coming off yet another significant injury, the Badgers greatly needed help at the position.

It seems they found it in Walker, who is ProFootballFocus’ third-ranked transfer running back this offseason:

Walker is 247Sports’ No. 350 overall transfer and No. 34 running back. PFF was more impressed at what it saw last season when the junior rushed for 513 yards and seven touchdowns on 102 carries.

The former Oklahoma Sooner is set to have a big impact for the Badgers this fall.

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Chiefs WR Rashee Rice ended 2023 regular season with fifth-best PFF grade among rookies

#Chiefs rookie WR Rashee Rice earned the fifth-best PFF grade of any rookie for his performance during the regular season.

Rashee Rice has been a godsend for the Kansas City Chiefs’ offense in a year that the unit has struggled to move the ball with its once-elite passing game.

Reigning MVP Patrick Mahomes did his best to make the most of his receiving corps over the course of Kansas City’s 17-game schedule, but wasn’t able to get players like Marquez Valdes-Scantling, Justin Watson, or Skyy Moore in rhythm.

Rookie pass catcher Rashee Rice, however, has made a huge impact and has developed into one of Mahomes’ most consistent targets in his first games in the NFL. According to Pro Football Focus, Rice’s 85.4 grade for the 2023 season is the fifth-highest of any rookie.

While there remains plenty of room for Rice to grow, these marks are impressive, especially given his status as a second-round pick. Expect Mahomes to look for Rice against the Miami Dolphins on Saturday as Kansas City seeks to earn a playoff victory in absolutely brutal weather conditions at Arrowhead Stadium in the AFC’s Wild Card round.

Patrick Mahomes remains Chiefs’ highest-graded player after poor showing vs. Raiders

#Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes still has Kansas City’s highest PFF grade for the 2023 season after a dismal showing against the #Raiders.

The Kansas City Chiefs’ latest loss to the Las Vegas Raiders was a huge disappointment to the team’s fans, and with just two games of the regular season remaining, reigning MVP Patrick Mahomes will need to do something special to right the ship in Western Missouri before the playoffs start in January.

Mahomes has struggled to find his footing in 2023, but his performance should be the least of the Chiefs’ worries. Even after his dismal showing against the Raiders on Christmas day, he remains Kansas City’s highest-graded player this year, according to Pro Football Focus.

While PFF grades are far from infallible, Mahomes’ composite grade of 84.9 for the season indicates that his play has been better than average, even if the Chiefs haven’t found the success many expected on the field.

Expect the star quarterback to put on a show against the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 17 as Kansas City seeks to clinch its spot in the AFC playoffs with a win over their bitter conference rival.

LB Leo Chenal received Chiefs’ highest PFF grade in Week 8

Second-year linebacker Leo Chenal earned the highest PFF grade of any #Chiefs player in Kansas City’s Week 8 loss to the #Broncos.

The Kansas City Chiefs fell flat against the Denver Broncos in Week 8, earning their second loss of the season on the road in brutal fashion.

While this game was seen by many fans as an inflection point for Kansas City, not all was lost after Pro Football Focus combed through each play to grade the Chiefs’ performance.

Second-year linebacker Leo Chenal was one of the team’s only standouts in the disappointing loss and earned the highest mark of any player who participated for Kansas City.

Chenal’s tenacity was a good sign for a Chiefs linebacking corps that has suffered its share of injuries heading into the middle part of the NFL’s 2023 schedule. With star backer Nick Bolton out with a wrist and Willie Gay Jr.’s latest tailbone injury set to play a factor in the unit’s depth moving forward, Chenal may be counted on to play a larger role in Kansas City’s defense in the coming weeks.

A Wisconsin Badger was PFF’s highest-graded cornerback from Week 6

A Wisconsin Badger was PFF’s highest-graded CB in CFB Week 6:

Wisconsin’s 24-13 Week 6 win over Rutgers came with one defining moment.

Rutgers trailed 10-0 nearing halftime and had driven the ball down to Wisconsin’s 6 yard-line. Quarterback Gavin Wimsatt dropped back and airmailed a pass out to the right flat. Wisconsin cornerback Ricardo Hallman was all over the route, intercepted the ball and took the return 95 yards for a pick-six.

The play extended Wisconsin’s lead to 17-0 entering halftime and created an insurmountable deficit for a struggling Rutgers offense.

“We watched a bunch of film on [Rutgers] and knew when they got to the red zone…they like a lot of crossing routes,” Hallman said to 97.3 The Game’s Mike Heller after the game. “So we were manned up and I saw my guy go inside, and the other guy go out. And I was like ‘oh, I can make this play.’ So I saw the chance and jumped right in front of it. And ultimately I was able to take it, I don’t know how far the runback was…I was glad to stop their momentum and give us some points before half.”

Hallman’s pick-six is one of the Badgers’ best moments of the season thus far. That play, plus the rest of his afternoon, was enough to earn Hallman a PFF grade of 89.3 — the highest of any cornerback across Week 6 of college football.

Wisconsin is back in action this Saturday with a pivotal contest against the 5-1 Iowa Hawkeyes.

A former Wisconsin Badger was one of PFF’s highest-graded rookies from NFL Week 1

A high grade for a former Wisconsin DT:

There were very few bright spots during the Pittsburgh Steelers’ 30-7 loss to the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday.

As it happens to be, most of the bright spots were former Wisconsin Badgers.

The first was perennial All-Pro T.J. Watt, who recorded three sacks and two forced fumbles.

Related: How every former Wisconsin Badger performed in NFL Week 1

The second was rookie Keeanu Benton, who ProFootballFocus graded as one of its top rookies of Week 1. The former Badger only recorded three total tackles, but PFF ranked his performance an 86.1 thanks to some excellence defending the run:

The Wisconsin product showed his run-stuffing ability in Week 1 against the Niners, earning a positive grade on over 11.8% of his run-defense snaps. And perhaps more impressively for a rookie, he earned no negative grades on those snaps.

The service also noted Benton was the second-highest graded Pittsburgh Steeler overall, behind another former Badger in T.J. Watt.

Benton, Watt and the rest of the Steelers’ cast of Wisconsin products are back in action Monday night as they host the Cleveland Browns.

Myles Garrett earns the highest PFF grade of any player in Week 1

Browns EDGE Myles Garrett earns the highest PFF grade of any player in Week 1 (through Sunday)

Myles Garrett had himself quite a Sunday afternoon in Charlotte. The Browns defensive end was all over the stat sheet against the Panthers in Cleveland’s thrilling win:

Two sacks, four tackles, three TFLs, one forced fumble, one pass defender, six QB hurries of former teammate Baker Mayfield.

Garrett’s impact on the game was undeniable. The film grade reinforces just how awesome Garrett was against the Panthers. No. 95 registered the single highest overall game grade of any NFL player in Week 1 (pending Monday Night Football) from Pro Football Focus.

PFF graded Garrett with a 94.4 grade for the game. That tops veteran EDGE Jerry Hughes, who logged an impressive 93.6 game grade in his debut with the Houston Texans. Much of Garrett’s success came at the expense of the Panthers’ first-round rookie tackle, Ikem Ekwonu, who was on the hook for both of Garrett’s sacks. The overall grade would have been even higher if not for a charted missed tackle on Garrett.

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Breaking down the Browns’ Week 17 grades from Pro Football Focus

Almost all the top grades came from the defense, notably the young secondary

The Pro Football Focus grades from the Cleveland Browns’ Week 17 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers nicely illustrate the sharp divide between Cleveland’s offense and defense. Nearly all the top grades were earned by players from Joe Woods’ defense, while the offense lagged considerably behind.

Right guard Wyatt Teller was the only Browns offensive player to top a score of 70, earning a 74.4 in his 71 snaps. The rest of the top-10 Browns grades from the game belonged to defensive players.

Cornerback A.J. Green tops the list with a fantastic 91.7 overall grade. He didn’t allow a single completion in 27 coverage snaps. Green’s score would have been even higher if not for a missed tackle.

The rest of the top 10 (min. 12 snaps):

  • S Richard LeCounte – 82.2
  • S M.J. Stewart – 81.3
  • LB Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah – 80.5
  • DE Myles Garrett – 78.8
  • LB Anthony Walker – 74.4
  • Teller – 74.4
  • CB Greg Newsome – 73.6
  • LB Sione Takitaki – 70.8
  • DT Malik McDowell – 67.7

It wasn’t all roses for the defense, however. Several thorny grades pockmarked the unit, notably along the line. Four linemen brought up the rear on the defense with grades below 50: Tommy Togiai, Malik Jackson, Jordan Elliott and Porter Gustin.

On offense, TE Austin Hooper earned the lowest grade and that was with PFF being charitable in only assessing one dropped pass on his ledger. Three Baker Mayfield passes hit both of his hands only to not result in a completion, with the last being an interception.

Right tackle James Hudson earned an overall grade of 50.9, a higher mark than expected. PFF liked his run blocking enough to counter the three sacks and five QB pressures he allowed in the game. Punter Dustin Colquitt also had the lowest-graded game of his 17-year career.

PFF: Looking at the 10 highest-graded Eagles entering Week 15

#PFF: Looking at the 10 highest-graded Philadelphia #Eagles entering Week 15

The Eagles have returned from the bye week and as the team starts preparation for the first of two contests against Washington over the next three weeks, nows is a good time to look back on the previous 14 weeks.

PFF has weekly grades for all 32 NFL teams and we’re taking a look at the 10 highest graded Eagles entering Week 15.