2016 All-NFL Draft Team, Preseason Edition

If you're going to make an All-Rookie team based off of preseason performances, you might as well do it after Week 3, as Week 4 generally involves backup-heavy lineups, with teams trying to shield their starters from injury. So, we did just that.

After three samples of what rookie talents might look like, we've complied a list of rookies who had the most complete success as starting or rotational players this preseason. That means rookies like Ezekiel Elliott, the Dallas Cowboys running back who has only been able to play in one game so far, won't be making the cut.

Follow us as we go through the most successful preseasons from the league's freshest faces. Some you may have heard of as top-end draft picks, while some on the list were college free agents.

NFL play is the great equalizer for separating draft status, as the NFL is a short-term league. The best players play, no matter the circumstances, and there's a general feel for what each rookie is, based on what they have done, after three games.

Backfield

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Titans RB Derrick Henry

Quarterback: Dak Prescott (Dallas Cowboys)

Running backs: Derrick Henry (Tennessee Titans), DeAndre Washington (Oakland Raiders)

The talk of the preseason has been Dak Prescott, a fourth-round rookie who has shown out in every game he's played and is now in line to start for the Dallas Cowboys. The Cowboys, who lost starting quarterback Tony Romo to a back issue in Week 3 of the preseason, were "forced" to start Prescott early on in the 2016 season after backup passer Kellen Moore went down with a broken ankle earlier in training camp.

Against first- and second-team defenses, Prescott has posted the second-highest passer rating of a qualifying quarterback NFL-wide. If there were some sort of 2016 redraft in September for the players selected in last April's class, Prescott would be a first-round pick.

As far as the running backs go, the clear top rookie back in the league is Derrick Henry, who was a second-round pick for the Tennessee Titans. Henry capped off his college career with a Heisman Trophy Award and a national championship win with the Alabama Crimson Tide. He hasn't slowed down since then.

After three weeks of preseason play, Henry is third in the entire NFL in rushing yards, and only four yards behind the leader; he just may take the crown after Week 4. It's not too often that you get to go against a 6'3", 247-pound back in practice, so defenses are learning how to stop him on the fly.

The second-best running back this preseason out of the 2016 draft class is DeAndre Washington of the Oakland Raiders. His five yards-per-carry average is impressive in itself, but he also leads rookies with two runs of over 20 yards.

The only rookie back with more touches and a higher yards-per-carry average than Washington, a fifth-round pick, is Henry. He has a weird build at 5'8", 204 pounds, but Raiders head coach Jack Del Rio was able to make Maurice Jones-Drew work when they were together in Jacksonville.

Pass-Catchers

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Titans WR Tajae Sharpe

Wide receivers: Robby Anderson (New York Jets), Tajae Sharpe (Tennessee Titans)

Tight end: Tyler Higbee (Los Angeles Rams)

There isn't a pair of players who went from nameless to starters as quickly as our pair of All-NFL Draft wideouts. In fact, our top receiver, Robby Anderson, wasn't even drafted coming out of Temple.

After splitting time at receiver and cornerback for the Owls, Anderson signed as a college free agent with the New York Jets, the team who he started for in Week 3 with star pass-catcher Brandon Marshall out due to injury. In three weeks, Anderson has created 203 receiving yards and two touchdown receptions, both rookie-leading, out of limited reps.

Right behind Anderson in terms of impressive performances at the position is Tajae Sharpe of the Tennessee Titans. Unlike Anderson, Sharpe was actually drafted in 2016. Sharpe, a fifth-round pick, was largely looked over as a contributor on the team, but once Dorial Green-Beckham, the squad's 2015 second-round pick, was traded to the Philadelphia Eagles, eyes focused in on Sharpe in Nashville.

Sharpe is slated to start, which is interesting considering 1) It usually takes times for receivers to grasp the NFL game, and 2) Sharpe's draft position correlates closer to someone who would typically be on the chopping block rather than someone who was a 16-game starter as a rookie.

One reason for Sharpe's quick rise could be that he learned more advanced schemes in college than we gave him credit for, as his head coach, Mark Whipple, was a quarterbacks coach with the Cleveland Browns and Pittsburgh Steelers in the last dozen years. Sharpe's 163 receiving yards rank second in the league, behind only Anderson, no matter the position.

To tell you that any tight end truly stood out this preseason from the rookie class would be a lie. Even the first tight end off the board, Hunter Henry, is likely to be a 16-game backup behind Antonio Gates this season in San Diego.

Tyler Higbee of the Los Angeles Rams was able to post five receptions for 49 yards against the Dallas Cowboys in Week 1, though, a performance which alone would have made him seventh in the tight end class for the entire preseason. If you're excited about anyone from this 2016 class, it has to be Higbee, who was drafted in the fourth round.

Offensive Linemen

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Ravens OL Ronnie Stanley

Bookends: Ronnie Stanley (Baltimore Ravens), Jack Conklin (Tennessee Titans)

Interior offensive linemen: Laremy Tunsil (Miami Dolphins), Cody Whitehair (Chicago Bears), Joe Thuney (New England Patriots)

Offensive line is a unit which has seen several busts in recent drafts. A decade ago, offensive linemen were viewed as unsexy, plug-and-play draft selections.

Now, those players must be developed slowly like quarterbacks, as what they do in the college game with spread offenses is changing as much as any other position in the sport. All first-round linemen aren't even assured a spot as one of the top five on a depth chart.

Still, there have been some standouts this preseason. At offensive tackle, the two biggest names are Ronnie Stanley, who took over at left tackle for summer-release Eugene Monroe, and Jack Conklin, who is starting at right tackle for the Titans, who have two of the top four individual rushing leaders in the sport for the preseason.

Stanley and Conklin look like nonliabilities as starting offensive tackles, which is an absolute victory for a pair of rookies. If you're able to see the field as an NFL bookend before the age of 25 and are able to hold your own, that's an amazing accomplishment.

As far as the interior linemen are concerned, there are three different narratives that lead us to our three top players in the unit.

The first is Laremy Tunsil, who slipped in the draft to the Miami Dolphins, who already had a left tackle, so they have kicked Tunsil inside to guard. He's battling Dallas Thomas, a 2013 third-round pick, for the gig, but Tunsil seems to have taken the inside lane with his preseason performance.

Second is Cody Whitehair, who flirted with the idea of taking over the starting center role for the Bears after an injury to Hroniss Grasu. Some botched snaps led to him kicking back to guard, where he has shown amazing athleticism as a starter.

The last offensive lineman on our list is Joe Thuney, who may help make up for the fact that the New England Patriots didn't have a first-round pick to spend in 2016. Thuney, a third-round pick, has locked up the left guard spot with the Patriots after starting three straight preseason games with the team.

Defensive Linemen and Edge Defenders

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Chiefs DL Chris Jones

Edge defenders: Matt Judon (Baltimore Ravens), Noah Spence (Tampa Bay Buccaneers)

Interior defensive linemen: Chris Jones (Kansas City Chiefs), Javon Hargrave (Pittsburgh Steelers)

While we tried to only include players who are starting or have a chance to start on this list, it's hard to overlook the contributions that Matt Judon of the Baltimore Ravens has made this offseason, even if it is against lesser opponents.

Judon leads rookies outright in sacks with three over three games, plus his 14 combined tackles rank third among rookies. Judon, a fifth-round pick out of Division II's Grand Valley State, isn't close to seeing first-team time in Baltimore, but it's clear that his talent is outplaying his position on the depth chart this preseason.

The next edge defender after Judon is Noah Spence, a second-round FCS prospect who was taken by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Spence hasn't put up impressive numbers, but in a weak edge class, which has featured an absent Joey Bosa and an injured Shaq Lawson, just seeing the field as a quality player on the first- or second-string teams is enough to land you on this list.

Spence isn't a starting in Tampa Bay, but you see the team trying to ease him into that role by playing him as a nickel pass-rusher on the first string, kicking 2016 free-agent signing Robert Ayers from defensive end to defensive tackle in its 4-3 scheme. Spence has a defined role on the team and should make an impact in the regular season.

On the defensive interior, we have two high-quality rotational players. Chris Jones of Kansas City has taken over every game he has played in, turning the Seattle Seahawks' first-string offensive linemen into mush. On paper, he looks like Jets Pro Bowler Muhammad Wilkerson, and so far this preseason the shoe fits.

The other interior lineman is Javon Hargrave, who was an under tackle at South Carolina State but is looking to compete for the Pittsburgh Steelers' starting job throughout this season. Hargrave has not only looked good as an explosive defensive lineman, but he has done well dropping into coverage, which is incredibly important for a fire zone-heavy defense.

Off-Ball Linebackers

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Falcons LB Deion Jones

Linebackers: Deion Jones (Atlanta Falcons), Jeremy Cash (Carolina Panthers), Myles Jack (Jacksonville Jaguars)

The top three linebackers on our list all have some sort of hybrid background to them, which makes sense if you consider how the NFL is trending.

The top rookie linebacker of the preseason has been Deion Jones, who was drafted in the second round out of LSU and is listed at 6'1" and 222 pounds. He's closer to a safety's size than a true middle linebacker's prototypical size, but that hasn't stopped him from registering 10 tackles and a start this preseason.

The Atlanta Falcons' front seven needs a complete rebuild, and there is hope that Jones can contribute as a 16-game starter early on.

After Jones, another linebacker who can make an impact in 2016 is Carolina's Jeremy Cash.

Cash was a safety at Duke who surprisingly fell out of the draft after registering hundreds of tackles for the Blue Devils. Carolina's scheme is built around linebackers covering a lot of field, and Cash's conversion to the position leads to scheme and talent fitting like a glove. In the first two games of the preseason, Cash posted eight tackles.

The last linebacker on our list is Myles Jack, who fell into the laps of the Jacksonville Jaguars as a second-round pick after a long draft cycle. Jack has received reps in the team's nickel defense looks, including in the red zone, when he's played like a Tampa 2 middle linebacker.

Defensive Backs

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Buccaneers CB Vernon Hargreaves

Cornerbacks: Vernon Hargreaves (Tampa Bay Buccaneers), Mackensie Alexander (Minnesota Vikings)

Safeties: Vonn Bell (New Orleans Saints), Darian Thompson (New York Giants)

No defensive back has been more impressive this preseason than Vernon Hargreaves. The former Florida Gator, the second defensive back off the board, has moved from a nickel role to a full-time starting role this preseason.

As a starter, Hargreaves' two interceptions this preseason lead rookies, and his five pass breakups rank him fourth among his class. Another cornerback who has had great success this preseason is Mackensie Alexander of the Minnesota Vikings, a second-round pick who is performing well but is buried in the deep Mike Zimmer-coached depth chart.

Alexander was smashed this draft cycle with concerns regarding his ball skills, as he didn't record an interception in his college career with the Clemson Tigers, but he, like Hargreaves, has also had a hand on two interceptions through three games. His six pass deflections rank him second among rookies, and he's also recorded 10 tackles, putting him in the top 10 in the rookie class.

In three games with the New Orleans Saints, backup safety Vonn Bell has been able to record an amazing 17 tackles. Bell was drafted in the second round as a future replacement for either Jairus Byrd or Kenny Vaccaro—both have been unable to fulfill their contract value with the Saints and have deals that are quickly expiring.

Bell isn't a starter yet, but he will be, and the Saints seem to have a starting-caliber safety in their back pocket.

A safety who will start this season is Darian Thompson of the New York Giants.

Thompson fell to the third round of the draft, but his George Iloka-like skills made him an easy projection into the NFL. He can do everything, and he's one of the few safeties in college football who was asked to play in every facet of the game while at Boise State.

In the first two preseason games of the season, the only matches Thompson was active for, he was the team's starting safety opposite Landon Collins.