Tag: top 10

Ravens 2022 season-in-review: Offensive line

We analyze the Ravens’ offensive line play in 2022

The Baltimore Ravens’ front five were faced with an impossible task in 2022, given the quarterback carousel that came to define the team’s fate at the end of the season. Despite achieving favorable pass-blocking grades via Pro Football Focus’ analysis of their film, quarterback Lamar Jackson was sacked 26 times in 12 starts, and Ravens backups hit the turf an additional 12 times over the course of Baltimore’s last five games.

The team would probably like those numbers to be lower, but despite that the team had much better offensive line play than in 2021, and multiple starters played very well over the course of the 2022 season.

Their offensive line was led by veteran tackle Morgan Moses, who graded out as the Ravens’ fourth-best offensive player on the season, per PFF. Fellow tackle Patrick Mekari received favorable grades as well, as did guard Kevin Zeitler and rookie center Tyler Linderbaum. All four of these core offensive linemen were in the Ravens’ top-10 graded offensive players according to PFF.

Left tackle Ronnie Stanley achieved a 69.4 grade from PFF, though he was active in only 11 games on the season. He regained his form that some thought he would lose after a long absence, performing admirably as he got back into game shape. Left guard Ben Powers stepped up and had a great year, likely earning himself a nice pay day in free agency.

The Ravens’ depth up front wasn’t an issue either. Like every other team in the league, they dealt with injuries over the course of the season and had to battle through some tough situations to punch their ticket to the playoffs. Players such as Trystan Colon-Castillo made an impact on the team and contributed to the Ravens’ effort despite less-than-ideal circumstances.

Heading into next season, Baltimore should be more focused on upgrading its skill position groups and extending their quarterback than on their offensive line, as the unit was their main focus during last offseason, paying off in a big way.

Chargers’ top 10 offensive performers in 2022, per PFF

These 10 Chargers were Los Angeles’ top performers in 2022, according to Pro Football Focus.

The Los Angeles Chargers’ season came to an abrupt end when they blew a huge lead to the Jacksonville Jaguars in the Wild Card round of the AFC playoffs, but it is said that in great attempts, it is glorious even to fail.

Though any glory the Chargers found over the course of the season pales in comparison to the sting of their playoff loss, with the offseason on the horizon, Pro Football Focus’ year-end offensive player rankings will become all the more important as Los Angeles looks to re-tool for 2023.

Here are the Chargers’ top-10 offensive performers by PFF’s metrics:

Brandon Miller named to Midseason Wooden Award Watch List

Brandon Miller’s outstanding play has landed him on the midseason Wooden Award watch list!

The Alabama Crimson Tide have been incredible out of the gate starting the season 12-2 with a handful of top-10 wins already. A large reason for that success is five-star true freshman [autotag]Brandon Miller[/autotag].

Coming out of high school, Miller was the No. 5 small forward in the country and the No. 14 player overall. Upon his arrival in Tuscaloosa, Miller has been nothing short of the best player for the Tide this season averaging 19 points, eight rebounds and two assists through his first 14 collegiate games.

For his outstanding efforts to start the Tide’s 2022-2023 campaign, Miller has been named to the Wooden Award Midseason Top 25 watch list. The Wooden Award is given out annually to the most outstanding men’s and women’s college basketball players.

If Miller continues to carry the Tide and push for a No. 1 seed come March, he will have a very legitimate case!

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Notre Dame opens ACC play with top-10 showdown at Virginia Tech

Should be a good one this afternoon!

Three weeks ago Notre Dame (8-1, 0-0) played a complete game in dominating UConn in a top-10 matchup at Purcell Pavilion.  Today the Irish are on the road for another top-10 showdown, this one to open ACC play for the year.

The fifth-ranked Irish return to the hardwood for the first time in eight days they open ACC play at No. 6 Virginia Tech (10-0, 1-0).  This game will be the first-ever top-10 matchup played at Tech’s Cassell Coliseum.

Due to finals week, Notre Dame hasn’t played in eight days.  Their last time out was a dominating win over Merrimack as Olivia Miles helped guide the Irish to an easy victory. The sophomore’s triple-double in the contest was the third of her career already which is now a program record.

Virginia Tech is led by the reigning ACC Player of the Year and the most recent ACC Player of the Week Elizabeth Kitley.  Kitley averaged 20 points and 11 rebounds in Tech’s two most recent victories which included a conference win over Boston College.

The showdown is set to tip-off at 4:00 p.m. EST and can be seen on ACC Network.

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Joel Klatt releases his new college football top teams rankings

Does Ohio State deserve to stay in the top 4?

On a day that saw four teams in the top 10 fall and plenty of drama and excitement, we’re left to shake out what’s going to happen in regards to the College Football Playoff and the rest of the postseason of the greatest sport on the earth.

Can Michigan possibly jump Georgia after the Wolverines routed Ohio State in the Horseshoe?

How high will TCU go after finishing their 11-0 regular season?  And is USC now a shoe-in for a top-four spot?

Fox Sports college football analyst Joel Klatt was quick to release his new top teams following the biggest games of Saturday.  Here is how Klatt ranked his top seven squads:

Joel Klatt reveals new college football top 10 as Week 11 concludes

Agree with Klatt’s top 10 or what is he getting wrong?

Perhaps crazy isn’t the right way to describe what Week 11 of the college football season was but intense certainly fits the bill.  Of the 25 ranked teams in the College Football Playoff rankings this week, eight were handed losses this weekend.

We took a guess at what that might mean to the next batch of rankings when they’re released this coming Tuesday night.  Other rankings from college football experts are starting to roll in as well.

After UCLA concluded by falling at home to Arizona, Fox Sports analyst Joel Klatt weighed in with his new top 10 rankings.  As added bonus, he gave a handful of teams shoutouts who are on the cusp of entering his top 10, too.  Here is how Klatt’s newest rankings look with just two weeks remaining in the college football season.

Joel Klatt releases full college football top 10 following Week 5

Do you agree with the changes?

Late Saturday night with the nation’s top-ranked teams already spoken for in terms of Week 5, Fox Sports analyst Joel Klatt gave an early preview of his new top 10 by releasing his top five teams.  In them he dropped Georgia from first all the way to fourth after their second unimpressive showing in a row, even if they did win an SEC road contest.

So what does the rest of Klatt’s top 10 look like?  And what teams does he have just missing out on his top 10?  Klatt took a little more time to release all 10 (and a couple near-misses) and you can check them out below.

Where did Saints players rank in ESPN’s position-by-position top 10 polls?

Where did Saints players rank in ESPN’s position-by-position top 10 polls?

The gulf between expectations that the New Orleans Saints (and their fans) have for themselves and those shared by outsiders couldn’t be wider. The Saints attacked the offseason with the playoffs in mind, even if Sean Payton stepped down, betting on big returns from some of their best players. And the Saints are loaded up with top-10 talent at a number of spots on both sides of the ball.

ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler’s surveyed more than 50 executives, coaches and players for his position-by-position polling, sourcing quotes from around the NFL to illustrate what each player does well and how they stack up against their peers. Let’s run through the list:

Top-10 RB Alvin Kamara closing in on Saints’ all-time touchdowns record

Alvin Kamara voted #5 running back by players, coaches, and execs, but will soon be #1 on Saints’ all-time touchdown list, via @RossJacksonNOLA:

Marques Colston played his last NFL game in 2015, ending an iconic 10-year run with the New Orleans Saints. Since then, he has reigned as the Saints’ touchdown leader (and the best NFL player to never make a Pro Bowl) with 72 career touchdown receptions. Now, after only five seasons, former Offensive Rookie of the Year Alvin Kamara is only 5 all-purpose touchdowns away from taking the crown as the all-time touchdown leader in New Orleans.

With 68 touchdowns scored as a runner, receiver, and even as a kick returner, Kamara is averaging nearly a touchdown every game of his career with only 73 regular season games played. That is exactly half as many games as Colston played throughout his career (146). Kamara is very good at football.

His talent is not limited to local recognition and franchise records, though. Players, coaches, and executives across the NFL were polled by ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler to create top-10 lists for different position groups, and Kamara clocked in at No. 5 among the running backs. The praise for Kamara unsurprisingly centers around his versatility, uncanny balance ability and the general difficulty that comes with game-planning against him. Here’s what Fowler heard about Kamara from around the league:

“You can put a really good safety on him, and he’ll still come back to the sideline and say, ‘Uh, we’ve got a problem,'” a veteran AFC coach said.

“Two-phase, three-down back. Contact balance is rare. What he does in the passing game separates him,” an NFC exec said. But after four straight seasons of 80 or more catches, Kamara slipped to 47 catches last year.

“He’s a nightmare for us,” a high-ranking NFL personnel evaluator said. “Not having Brees getting him the ball in the short area like he used to, behind a great offensive line all those years, has affected him a bit. And he’ll probably lose a step eventually. But there are a lot of top backs we’d rather face than him.”

Questions about Kamara’s availability will be plentiful this offseason. He awaits a court hearing in August connected an offseason arrest following an alleged altercation while at the Pro Bowl. He is, without a doubt, one of the most valuable players on the roster in New Orleans. They stand to potentially compete without him for at least six games. But if that is the case he’ll have his impact in both the run and passing game. Fielding a top-5 NFL running back for 11 games will still benefit the Saints as they look to get back to the playoffs in 2022.

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Saints’ Demario Davis primed to outperform his top-10 LB ranking from NFL personnel

Demario Davis is finally getting the recognition he deserves with a top-10 ranking as voted on by players, coaches, and executives, via @RossJacksonNOLA:

The role of the NFL linebacker has changed drastically changed across the NFL. With more and more two-linebacker sets, defenses across the league are asking their second-level players to be more involved in the passing game than die-hard football fans will remember from the Lawrence Taylors and Brian Urlachers of the world. New Orleans Saints star Demario Davis has navigated that evolution over the next decade by developing into a multifacted defender who can cover, rush the passer and make plays in the run game. All while being the quarterback of Dennis Allen’s defense.

His progress netted him the No. 6 spot on ESPN’s top-10 off-ball linebackers list ahead of the 2022 season. The rankings are determined by the votes of NFL players, coaches and executives. Davis’ ability to mold to the modern-day game did not go unnoticed. Here’s what NFL personnel shared with ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler:

“He might start to decline this year, but he’s so damn smart that it almost doesn’t matter,” an NFL personnel evaluator said. “Does everything well.”

“He’s always been an exceptional athlete and worker, and just the maturity that comes from being in the position for so long and being in multiple schemes and the game evolving to more sub-based packages has allowed him to become the three-down prototype,” an NFC scout said.

Davis is expected to be accompanied this season by second-year pro Pete Werner. For the majority of the last two season, he’s worked next to current free agent Kwon Alexander. But Werner’s versatility as a multi-phase defender himself may have a positive impact on Davis. Not to mention the team arguably improved at safety with the offseason acquisitions of Tyrann Mathieu and Marcus Maye. The ability to disguise across the field (and don’t forget C.J. Gardner-Johnson) could generate confusion and hesitation for opposing quarterbacks, opening time for the former Arkansas State Red Wolf to get after them or take advantage of their mistakes over the middle.

Davis’ production has not seen a decline since joining the Saints. He’s racked up over 100 tackles in each of the last four years since arriving in 2018. He’s also produced at a level that no defender across the league has during that span as well.

With his ability to impact that game several different ways on defense, his willingness to continue to evolve with the game, and a strong supporting cast. Davis is primed to outplay his No. 6 ranking in 2022.

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