NFL1000: Ranking the Top 1,000 Players Heading into the Regular Season

Who's the best player in the NFL right now?

You probably have a solid answer in your head based on the games you watch, the teams you enjoy and what you know about football.

Now, a different series of questions: Who's the 53rd-best player in the NFL? Who's the 179th? The 375th? The 940th? The 1,000th-best player?

That's where things get murky.

If we want to get more specific, who's the 15th-best quarterback, and is he more valuable than the third-best kicker? If you watch offensive line play, do you have an idea who the 16th-best center might be? How about the 35th-best cornerback based on a standard of evaluation?

That's a big job, and that's what the NFL1000 series will endeavor to answer each week of the 2016 season.

With a 15-person crew of experienced evaluators, we'll comb through the game tape to bring you concise, clear evaluations of every single player in the NFL. We'll tell you which rookies are rising and which undrafted players are coming out of nowhere to make an impact. We'll tell you which players are rising and falling in performance and why.

There is no predetermined narrative with these grades. No mysterious "clutch factor." No tweaked-out quarterback ratings that defy explanation. Our grades are based on pure scouting, and lots of it. We grade the key criteria for each position based on a series of attributes and add in a score for positional importance.

In the case of a tie, our scouts ask "Which player would I want on my team?" and adjust accordingly.

Is it a subjective process? Of course—that's what scouting is, and as we like to say, ties are no fun.

Each player is evaluated and graded by our crack team of scouts, who possess more than 100 combined years of experience in playing, front office work, coaching and media. Cian Fahey, John Middlekauff, Alex Kirby, Mark Schofield, Duke Manyweather, Ethan Young, Joe Goodberry, Charles McDonald, Zach Kruse, Derrik Klassen, Jerod Brown, Ian Wharton, Kyle Posey, Mark Bullock, Chuck Zodda and Doug Farrar have watched tape for months to bring you these grades, and we'll be bringing you player grades based on the game action every week.

Here are the NFL1000 opening grades for the 2016 NFL season.

Methodology

Chuck Cook-USA TODAY Sports

The NFL1000 team of scouts was given a series of important attributes to grade for every player in their positional review. Using a grading scale starting at 0 and going up to anywhere from 10 to 40 based on the position and the attribute, our scouts have graded each player based on their own expertise and countless hours of tape review over the years. Our evaluators were given specific positional assignments based on their proven fields of expertise.

• Doug Farrar: Lead Scout/Centers
• Cian Fahey: Quarterbacks
• John Middlekauff: Running Backs/Fullbacks
• Alex Kirby:- Wide Receivers/Tight Ends
• Mark Schofield: Wide Receivers/Tight Ends
• Duke Manyweather: Offensive Tackles
• Ethan Young: Offensive Guards
• Joe Goodberry: Defensive Ends
• Charles McDonald: Defensive Tackles
• Zach Kruse: 3-4 Outside Linebackers
• Derrik Klassen: 4-3 Outside Linebackers
• Jerod Brown: Inside Linebackers
• Kyle Posey: Cornerbacks
• Ian Wharton: Cornerbacks
• Mark Bullock: Safeties
• Chuck Zodda: Special Teams

For established players, tape review for the NFL1000 project was based primarily on the 2015 season, with performance reviews based on the 2016 preseason, if applicable.

For rookies (check out our weekly Rookie Review), we made our assessments on a player's college tape and as much preseason performance as we could review. Of course, preseason tape can be skewed based on strength of competition, as can college tape, so we've taken that into consideration.

For players who are switching teams and/or positions, we weighed the 2016 preseason a bit more heavily.

We'll adjust for opponent, based on the obvious notion that the cornerback we're grading is doing a better job if he's shutting down Antonio Brown than if he's negating the efforts of a seventh-round rookie receiver who won't make final cuts.

We'll also adjust for players with multiple responsibilities in the course of a game and over the course of time. Think of J.J. Watt or Michael Bennett on the defensive line and how they seamlessly switch from gap to gap. Or how cornerbacks such as Chris Harris and Tyrann Mathieu dominate outside and in the slot. Or how receivers such as Doug Baldwin and Larry Fitzgerald bedevil those cornerbacks from multiple field positions.

That's more important than ever in today's NFL, and we pay attention to it.

We will not adjust for injuries. If a player is underperforming because of an injury, that's part of his performance, fair or unfair, and it needs to be graded accordingly.

Grading any player is a subjective process, but with a series of attributes per position and a specific direction as to what to grade and how, we'll work to make it as definitive as possible.

Quarterbacks

Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images

The 2015 season gave us a glimpse of just how good Cam Newton can be. Now we have to find out where he goes from here. Newton deserved to be the MVP last year. His skill set is as impressive as anyone's, and despite what the stats say, his consistency was second-to-none last year.

Newton is challenging Aaron Rodgers for the mantle of best quarterback in the NFL.

Rodgers still holds that crown despite his down year. Rodgers' numbers last year were a reflection of his supporting cast rather than his play. At 32 years of age, he is closer to his physical prime than Tom Brady, Drew Brees, Tony Romo, Carson Palmer and Philip Rivers. Rodgers' athleticism has always been a mark in his favor against his peers, plus his decision-making and precision as a passer remain exceptional as well.

Newton and Rodgers have distinguished themselves from their peers, but the second tier of starters in the NFL right now is stacked too.

Rivers was trapped on an awful team last year but carried a broken offense every single week. Palmer was right there with Newton as an MVP candidate until he suffered a finger injury late in the year and lost his ability to throw the ball accurately.

Brady had similar struggles late in the season after a lightning-hot start. Romo is one of the best quarterbacks in the league when he's healthy. Few quarterbacks throughout history have executed their offenses the way Brees executes Sean Payton's.

Those old, established players are all on the decline at this stage of their careers. They'll still be among the best in the league at the position because that's just how good they are and have been. It's the other two names in that tier who are really interesting, though.

Andrew Luck had a disastrous 2015 season. He never looked healthy. Even before he was sidelined through injury, he didn't look like he was 100 percent. One of the most talented passers in the league suddenly looked like he was in pain while trying to throw the ball five yards downfield.

Luck is healthy now, even if the Colts had to sideline him during the preseason to protect him, so a return to stardom is expected.

While Luck's season was disastrous from the start, Russell Wilson's got better as the year went on. If he maintains the aggressiveness he played with over the second half of last season, he could find himself atop these rankings in 2017. Wilson is an accurate, intelligent passer who can also make defenders miss more than once in the open field.

If the NFL has a quarterback problem, it's not apparent at the top. Even outside the top 10, when you look through the teens and into the early 20s, there are still quality starters who just need coaching staffs who can build capable supporting casts or fit them into the right schemes for their skill sets.

Individual talent in the NFL at its most important position isn't as big of a problem as it is often made out to be. The problem comes when these players aren't put in position to throw 30 or 40 touchdowns in a season.

NFL1000 won't care if you throw 30 touchdowns in a season, but it will care about how you performed in the process of getting those 30 touchdowns.

Grading Scale

Acc: Accuracy (Graded out of 25)

Arm: Arm Strength (Graded out of 25)

Press: Pressure/Run Threat (Graded out of 20)

Dec: Decision-Making (Graded out of 20)

Pos: Positional Value (Graded out of 10)

Ovr: Top Possible Score of 100

Quarterback Rankings Week 1

Rank	Player	Team	Acc	Arm	Press	Dec	Pos	Ovr
1	Aaron Rodgers	GB	24	23	18	18	10	93
2	Cam Newton	CAR	23	22	18	17	10	90
3	Philip Rivers	SD	23	21	16	19	10	89
4	Andrew Luck	IND	24	23	17	14	10	88
5	Ben Roethlisberger	PIT	22	21	16	18	10	87
6	Drew Brees	NO	20	21	15	19	10	85
7	Carson Palmer	ARI	23	22	14	16	10	85
8	Tom Brady	NE	22	21	13	19	10	85
9	Russell Wilson	SEA	23	24	14	14	10	85
10	Sam Bradford	MIN	24	20	12	14	10	80
11	Eli Manning	NYG	19	20	14	17	10	80
12	Jay Cutler	CHI	20	24	13	11	10	78
13	Marcus Mariota	TEN	20	18	15	14	10	77
14	Ryan Tannehill	MIA	20	18	14	14	10	76
15	Andy Dalton	CIN	19	20	13	14	10	76
16	Jameis Winston	TB	16	21	15	14	10	76
17	Robert Griffin III	CLE	20	22	11	13	10	76
18	Matthew Stafford	DET	18	24	12	11	10	75
19	Derek Carr	OAK	17	24	10	14	10	75
20	Tyrod Taylor	BUF	20	18	13	13	10	74
21	Matt Ryan	ATL	19	18	14	13	10	74
22	Alex Smith	KC	20	18	15	10	10	73
23	Dak Prescott	DAL	19	19	13	12	10	73
24	Blake Bortles	JAX	17	22	12	10	10	71
25	Paxton Lynch	DEN	17	20	10	10	10	67
26	Colin Kaepernick	SF	17	21	9	9	10	66
27	Joe Flacco	BAL	19	18	8	10	10	65
28	Kirk Cousins	WAS	17	16	9	13	10	65
29	Geno Smith	NYJ	17	20	10	8	10	65
30	Luke McCown	NO	19	18	7	11	10	65
31	Mike Glennon	TB	18	19	8	9	10	64
32	Drew Stanton	ARI	15	18	10	10	10	63
33	Brock Osweiler	HOU	15	18	9	10	10	62
34	Case Keenum	LA	19	17	6	9	10	61
35	Brian Hoyer	CHI	18	17	6	10	10	61
36	AJ McCarron	CIN	17	15	8	10	10	60
37	Nick Foles	KC	16	15	7	12	10	60
38	Josh McCown	CLE	16	15	9	9	10	59
39	Blaine Gabbert	SF	16	17	7	9	10	59
40	Ryan Fitzpatrick	NYJ	15	16	9	9	10	59
41	Carson Wentz	PHI	15	19	8	7	10	59
42	Garrett Grayson	NO	14	15	10	10	10	59
43	Landry Jones	PIT	16	17	6	10	10	59
44	Brandon Weeden	HOU	19	18	6	6	10	59
45	Trevor Siemian	DEN	14	17	9	9	10	59
46	Mark Sanchez	DAL	16	17	7	8	10	58
47	Jared Goff	LA	15	15	7	8	10	55
48	Matt Schaub	ATL	15	14	5	9	10	53
49	Jimmy Garoppolo	NE	12	17	5	9	10	53
50	Trevone Boykin	SEA	14	16	7	5	10	52
51	Matt Cassel	TEN	15	14	5	8	10	52
52	Connor Cook	OAK	14	19	4	4	10	51
53	EJ Manuel	BUF	16	14	6	5	10	51
54	Jacoby Brissett	NE	13	16	4	6	10	49
55	Ryan Mallett	BAL	13	16	4	5	10	48
56	Cardale Jones	BUF	11	17	5	5	10	48
57	Shaun Hill	MIN	12	13	5	7	10	47

Notable Omissions/Not Graded This Week

• Tony Romo—back injury
• Teddy Bridgewater—knee injury

Running Backs

Tom Dahlin/Getty Images

While the NFL is a passing league, the old adage that winning in December and January revolves around the run game still rings true. Having a star running back might not be necessary for success, but being able to run the ball will always be a factor that translates to winning games. The running back position is not only driven by stars but also by players on the rise, and it is complemented by many others who have specific roles they excel under for their teams.

Although he is returning from a major injury and will be suspended for the first three games of the 2016 season, Le'Veon Bell is the most complete player at his position. He creates a major mismatch for any linebacker or strong safety in the passing game. Bell has special vision, feet and patience—he's the total package.

On the same level with Bell is arguably the league's greatest genetic freak, Adrian Peterson, who returned to his usual duty of carrying the Vikings offense in 2015. At age 31, he still shows the elite skills that he will need to carry the team after quarterback Teddy Bridgewater was lost for the season to a serious leg injury. Peterson's rare blend of size (6'1", 220 lbs), vision, feet and speed makes him a top-flight player who has yet to show any signs of aging.

I expect two second-year players to become superstars in 2016: Todd Gurley and David Johnson. Gurley proved last season the ACL injury is all forgotten and that his game-breaking speed is still special. The Rams running back is a perfect bell-cow runner and can carry a team that is flawed at the quarterback position. Gurley's explosion and feet are second to none.

After flying under the radar as a third-round pick in 2015, David Johnson showed it all as a rookie, scoring 12 touchdowns (eight running, four receiving) last year. He is poised for a monster season thanks to his ability to run inside and outside and dominate in the passing game. His numbers could almost double in 2016.

There are so many intriguing storylines for backs around the NFL. Can Jamaal Charles rebound from his major knee injury? Can a slimmer Eddie Lacy get back to 2014 form? Can Carlos Hyde have a breakout year under head coach Chip Kelly? Will Latavius Murray hold on to his starting job as younger players on the roster produce?

I would lean toward yes on all of the questions above.

Grading Scale

In: Inside Running (Graded out of 25)

Out: Outside Running (Graded out of 25)

Rec: Receiving (Graded out of 20)

Blk: Blocking (Graded out of 20)

Pos: Positional Value (Graded out of 10)

Ovr: Top Possible Score of 100

Running Back Rankings Week 1

Rank	Player	Team	In	Out	Rec	Blk	Pos	Ovr
1	Adrian Peterson	MIN	24	23	17	15	6	85
2	Le'Veon Bell	PIT	22	21	18	17	6	84
3	David A. Johnson	ARI	20	22	19	16	6	83
4	Jamaal Charles	KC	22	23	18	14	6	83
5	Ezekiel Elliott	DAL	22	22	16	17	6	83
6	Todd Gurley	LA	23	22	16	15	6	82
7	LeSean McCoy	BUF	21	21	18	16	6	82
8	Doug Martin	TB	22	20	16	17	6	81
9	Devonta Freeman	ATL	20	20	18	16	6	80
10	Lamar Miller	HOU	20	22	17	14	6	79
11	Spencer Ware	KC	22	18	15	18	6	79
12	Jonathan C. Stewart	CAR	22	19	15	16	6	78
13	DeAngelo Williams	PIT	21	18	16	17	6	78
14	Mark Ingram	NO	19	18	17	17	6	77
15	Matt Forte	NYJ	19	20	18	14	6	77
16	Carlos Hyde	SF	21	19	15	16	6	77
17	Eddie Lacy	GB	21	18	15	17	6	77
18	Chris Ivory	JAX	20	18	15	17	6	76
19	Giovani Bernard	CIN	18	19	18	15	6	76
20	Jeremy Langford	CHI	21	19	16	14	6	76
21	C.J. Anderson	DEN	18	19	17	15	6	75
22	Arian Foster	MIA	19	17	18	15	6	75
23	Jeremy Hill	CIN	21	18	15	15	6	75
24	C.J. Spiller	NO	17	20	18	14	6	75
25	Frank Gore	IND	19	17	16	17	6	75
26	DeMarco Murray	TEN	18	17	17	17	6	75
27	Derrick Henry	TEN	19	19	15	16	6	75
28	Thomas Rawls	SEA	18	18	16	16	6	74
29	Devontae Booker	DEN	18	18	17	15	6	74
30	Latavius Murray	OAK	18	19	15	15	6	73
31	Danny Woodhead	SD	18	17	18	14	6	73
32	Theo Riddick	DET	16	19	18	14	6	73
33	Darren Sproles	PHI	17	18	18	14	6	73
34	James Starks	GB	18	17	15	17	6	73
35	DeAndre Washington	OAK	17	18	18	14	6	73
36	Melvin Gordon	SD	19	17	16	14	6	72
37	T.J. Yeldon	JAX	18	17	16	15	6	72
38	Andre Ellington	ARI	17	17	17	14	6	71
39	Justin Forsett	BAL	18	17	16	14	6	71
40	Charcandrick West	KC	18	20	14	13	6	71
41	Rashad Jennings	NYG	17	17	15	16	6	71
42	Ryan Mathews	PHI	18	17	15	15	6	71
43	Tevin Coleman	ATL	19	17	14	15	6	71
44	Alfred Morris	DAL	18	17	15	15	6	71
45	Ameer Abdullah	DET	16	18	17	14	6	71
46	Chris D. Johnson	ARI	16	18	16	15	6	71
47	Jordan Howard	CHI	18	18	15	14	6	71
48	LeGarrette Blount	NE	18	16	15	15	6	70
49	Jerick McKinnon	MIN	17	18	15	14	6	70
50	Matt Asiata	MIN	16	16	14	18	6	70
51	Jonathan Williams	BUF	17	17	16	14	6	70
52	Darren McFadden	DAL	17	17	14	15	6	69
53	Matt Jones	WAS	16	16	15	16	6	69
54	Shane Vereen	NYG	15	16	18	14	6	69
55	Christine Michael	SEA	18	17	14	14	6	69
56	Kenneth Dixon	BAL	17	16	14	16	6	69
57	Charles Sims	TB	15	16	17	14	6	68
58	C.J. Prosise	SEA	17	17	15	13	6	68
59	Tyler Ervin	HOU	15	17	16	14	6	68
60	Darius Jackson	DAL	17	16	15	14	6	68
61	Chris Polk	FA	17	15	15	14	6	67
62	Antonio Andrews	TEN	15	16	15	14	6	66
63	Dwayne Washington	DET	15	16	14	15	6	66
64	Keith Marshall	WAS	16	15	14	14	6	65
65	Paul Perkins	NYG	14	15	16	13	6	64
66	Alex Collins	SEA	15	15	14	13	6	63
67	Daniel Lasco	NO	16	14	13	14	6	63
68	Kelvin Taylor	SF	14	14	14	13	6	61

Notable Omissions/Not Graded This Week

• Kenyan Drake—hamstring injury
• Wendell Smallwood—concussion

Fullbacks

Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports

Some say fullback is a dying position, which may have some merit as offenses evolve around rule changes; however, there are still a lot of high-level players at the position. It is a vital position for more than half the teams in the NFL, and fullbacks tend to be core special team guys.

The two most versatile players at the position are the Ravens' Kyle Juszczyk and the Panthers' Mike Tolbert. They can block, carry the ball in certain situations and function out of the backfield as receivers. The Ravens and Panthers depend on these two players in every aspect of the game.

Marcel Reece, who has a receiving background, is the hardest cover out of the backfield given his exceptional hands and route-running ability. The Raiders offense can exploit a mismatch opportunity when a linebacker attempts to cover him in the passing game.

Fullbacks such as Patrick DiMarco, Jalston Fowler and Michael Burton operate as more old-school "line up and hit you" players. Toughness is a key attribute for these players to succeed. Anthony Sherman in Kansas City might be the most underrated player at the position.

Grading Scale

Blk: Blocking (Graded out of 50)

Run: Running (Graded out of 25)

Rec: Receiving (Graded out of 15)

Pos: Positional Value (Graded out of 10)

Ovr: Top Possible Score of 100

Fullback Rankings Week 1

Rank	Player	Team	Blk	Run	Rec	Pos	Ovr
1	Mike Tolbert	CAR	40	19	13	4	76
2	Patrick DiMarco	ATL	45	15	10	4	74
3	Jamize Olawale	OAK	39	19	12	4	74
4	Marcel Reece	OAK	35	20	14	4	73
5	Kyle Juszczyk	BAL	42	14	13	4	73
6	Jalston Fowler	TEN	44	17	8	4	73
7	Roosevelt Nix	PIT	40	17	12	4	73
8	Bruce Miller	FA	43	14	12	4	73
9	Zach Line	MIN	40	18	8	4	70
10	Jay Prosch	HOU	40	14	12	4	70
11	Michael Burton	DET	43	15	8	4	70
12	John Kuhn	NO	43	15	7	4	69
13	Anthony Sherman	KC	42	15	8	4	69
14	Cory Harkey	LA	39	13	13	4	69
15	Jorvorskie Lane	FA	37	13	12	4	66
16	Jerome Felton	FA	42	12	8	4	66
17	Paul Lasike	CHI	38	16	8	4	66
18	Andy Janovich	DEN	40	12	9	4	65
19	Nikita Whitlock	NYG	38	14	8	4	64
20	Tommy Bohanon	FA	33	14	13	4	64
21	Malcolm Johnson	CLE	36	12	11	4	63
22	Will Tukuafu	FA	40	13	6	4	63
23	Dan Vitale	FA	36	12	9	4	61
24	Derek Watt	SD	36	12	9	4	61

Notable Omissions/Not Graded This Week

• Darrel Young
• Tyler Clutts

Wide Receivers

Chuck Cook-USA TODAY Sports

The National Football League may be entering a golden era at the wide receiver position. Young talents such as Odell Beckham Jr., Antonio Brown, Julio Jones, DeAndre Hopkins and Sammy Watkins are capable of game-breaking plays on any given snap. These are the kinds of receivers who can beat a jam at the line of scrimmage, get good separation on their routes with speed or change-of-direction ability, and stretch the defense either horizontally or vertically.

But veteran receivers continue to shine in this league.

Larry Fitzgerald finds a way to contribute in Bruce Arians' vertical offense, whether running dig routes over the middle or helping to set the edge as a blocker in the running game. He also has terrific running partners in Michael Floyd and John Brown.

Dez Bryant will be called upon down in Dallas to help an offense that will rely on rookie QB Dak Prescott, but Bryant's film both from limited work last season and in the preseason demonstrates he is still a difficult receiver to cover. He remains dominant at the catch point. Cole Beasley and Terrance Williams are two more talented route-runners in Dallas, giving Prescott a talented trio as he eases into the NFL.

The rookie class has some interesting names, including Laquon Treadwell with the Vikings and Sterling Shepard with the Giants. These two early-round selections are starting to show true promise.

Similar scenes will play out for two of the AFC's top contenders. As the New England Patriots rely on untested QB Jimmy Garoppolo for their first four games, the route-running ability of Julian Edelman and Danny Amendola will be put to the test.

Out west, the defending Super Bowl champion Denver Broncos open the season with Trevor Siemian under center and hope that the skill sets of Emmanuel Sanders and Demaryius Thomas ease the transition.

When you step back and look at the NFL as a whole, with the prevalence of three-receiver sets and the rules favoring the offense, this is a great time for the passing game. Many of the receivers in the NFL1000 have the ability and traits to break a game open every time they run a route.

Grading Scale

Route: Route Running (Graded out of 25)

Hands: Hands (Graded out of 25)

YAC: Yards After Catch (Graded out of 20)

Blk: Blocking (Graded out of 20)

Pos: Positional Value (Graded out of 10)

Ovr: Top Possible Score of 100

Wide Receiver Rankings Week 1

Rank	Player	Team	Route	Hands	YAC	Blk	Pos	Ovr
1	Julio Jones	ATL	24	24	19	17	8	92
2	Antonio Brown	PIT	24	24	18	16	8	90
3	Dez Bryant	DAL	24	24	18	16	8	90
4	Odell Beckham Jr.	NYG	21	24	19	17	8	89
5	Larry Fitzgerald	ARI	22	23	17	19	8	89
6	Demaryius Thomas	DEN	24	20	18	19	8	89
7	DeAndre Hopkins	HOU	23	23	18	16	8	88
8	Alshon Jeffery	CHI	23	23	19	15	8	88
9	A.J. Green	CIN	24	23	18	15	8	88
10	Sammy Watkins	BUF	25	22	14	18	8	87
11	Jordy Nelson	GB	23	22	16	17	8	86
12	Allen Robinson	JAX	24	23	14	16	8	85
13	Steve Smith Sr.	BAL	22	21	17	17	8	85
14	Brandon Marshall	NYJ	23	22	13	19	8	85
15	Doug Baldwin	SEA	22	21	17	17	8	85
16	John Brown	ARI	22	22	18	15	8	85
17	Jarvis Landry	MIA	22	22	18	15	8	85
18	T.Y. Hilton	IND	24	23	16	13	8	84
19	DeSean Jackson	WAS	23	22	17	13	8	83
20	Kelvin Benjamin	CAR	21	21	16	16	8	82
21	Golden Tate	DET	22	21	19	12	8	82
22	Danny Amendola	NE	22	23	13	16	8	82
23	Julian Edelman	NE	25	19	16	14	8	82
24	Tyler Lockett	SEA	21	21	18	13	8	81
25	Allen Hurns	JAX	22	22	16	13	8	81
26	Vincent Jackson	TB	21	22	16	14	8	81
27	Michael Floyd	ARI	22	23	16	12	8	81
28	Eric Decker	NYJ	24	20	13	16	8	81
29	Jeremy Maclin	KC	23	25	12	12	8	80
30	Stefon Diggs	MIN	22	20	17	13	8	80
31	Randall Cobb	GB	22	22	17	11	8	80
32	Mike Evans	TB	21	23	16	12	8	80
33	Amari Cooper	OAK	23	16	18	15	8	80
34	Keenan Allen	SD	22	23	11	15	8	79
35	Jermaine Kearse	SEA	20	22	17	12	8	79
36	Pierre Garcon	WAS	19	20	16	16	8	79
37	Brandin Cooks	NO	23	20	18	9	8	78
38	Emmanuel Sanders	DEN	24	21	14	11	8	78
39	Michael Crabtree	OAK	23	22	9	16	8	78
40	Marvin Jones	DET	21	21	17	11	8	78
41	Jeremy Kerley	NYJ	19	18	18	15	8	78
42	Rishard Matthews	TEN	21	21	16	12	8	78
43	Tavon Austin	LA	19	20	20	10	8	77
44	Donte Moncrief	IND	18	23	12	16	8	77
45	Anquan Boldin	DET	19	20	14	15	8	76
46	Albert Wilson	KC	16	23	17	12	8	76
47	James Jones	FA	19	20	14	15	8	76
48	Cole Beasley	DAL	21	20	17	9	8	75
49	Mohamed Sanu	ATL	21	20	16	10	8	75
50	Travis Benjamin	SD	20	20	14	13	8	75
51	Steve Johnson	SD	19	20	18	10	8	75
52	Terrance Williams	DAL	20	20	16	11	8	75
53	Torrey Smith	SF	20	20	15	12	8	75
54	Andre Johnson	TEN	19	21	13	14	8	75
55	Kenny Britt	LA	19	20	17	11	8	75
56	Kevin White	CHI	20	18	16	13	8	75
57	Jamison Crowder	WAS	18	18	17	13	8	74
58	Jordan Matthews	PHI	19	20	16	11	8	74
59	Cecil Shorts	TB	18	19	16	13	8	74
60	Dontrelle Inman	SD	18	20	15	13	8	74
61	Devin Funchess	CAR	17	20	16	13	8	74
62	Will Fuller	HOU	18	20	16	12	8	74
63	Kendall Wright	TEN	20	20	12	13	8	73
64	Jarius Wright	MIN	18	19	16	12	8	73
65	Ted Ginn	CAR	19	18	17	11	8	73
66	Taylor Gabriel	ATL	20	19	14	12	8	73
67	Kenny Stills	MIA	19	20	14	12	8	73
68	Davante Adams	GB	20	20	15	10	8	73
69	Sterling Shepard	NYG	19	19	14	13	8	73
70	Braxton Miller	HOU	17	19	15	14	8	73
71	Tajae Sharpe	TEN	19	19	13	14	8	73
72	Jordan Payton	CLE	18	19	13	15	8	73
73	Charone Peake	NYJ	17	19	16	13	8	73
74	Josh Gordon	CLE	16	19	16	13	8	72
75	Andrew Hawkins	CLE	17	22	14	11	8	72
76	Philly Brown	CAR	18	20	16	10	8	72
77	Jordan Norwood	DEN	19	20	13	12	8	72
78	Chris Hogan	NE	21	19	12	12	8	72
79	Nelson Agholor	PHI	19	19	15	11	8	72
80	Nate Washington	FA	20	18	12	14	8	72
81	Seth Roberts	OAK	19	20	13	12	8	72
82	Dwayne Harris	NYG	17	17	17	13	8	72
83	Laquon Treadwell	MIN	19	18	16	11	8	72
84	Willie Snead	NO	19	19	16	9	8	71
85	Ty Montgomery	GB	18	18	17	10	8	71
86	Bryan Walters	JAX	17	23	10	13	8	71
87	Dorial Green-Beckham	PHI	19	19	15	10	8	71
88	Josh Huff	PHI	19	17	16	11	8	71
89	Michael Thomas	NO	19	20	13	11	8	71
90	Malcolm Mitchell	NE	17	18	14	14	8	71
91	Demarcus Robinson	KC	16	19	15	13	8	71
92	Harry Douglas	TEN	17	23	10	12	8	70
93	Mike Wallace	BAL	17	20	14	11	8	70
94	Robert Woods	BUF	19	19	11	13	8	70
95	Justin Hunter	MIA	18	17	15	12	8	70
96	Marquess Wilson	CHI	17	18	15	12	8	70
97	Tyler Boyd	CIN	18	20	13	11	8	70
98	Eddie Royal	CHI	18	17	17	9	8	69
99	Devin A. Smith	NYJ	16	18	15	12	8	69
100	Quincy Enunwa	NYJ	15	17	18	11	8	69
101	Chris Moore	BAL	16	17	15	13	8	69
102	Jakeem Grant	MIA	18	16	15	12	8	69
103	Marc Mariani	TEN	17	18	14	11	8	68
104	Darrius Heyward-Bey	PIT	19	20	12	9	8	68
105	Rueben Randle	FA	17	18	15	10	8	68
106	Markus Wheaton	PIT	20	17	10	13	8	68
107	Aaron Dobson	FA	18	18	13	11	8	68
108	Chris Conley	KC	16	19	14	11	8	68
109	Keith Mumphery	HOU	16	17	12	15	8	68
110	Rashard Higgins	CLE	17	18	13	12	8	68
111	Kamar Aiken	BAL	17	22	8	12	8	67
112	Charles D. Johnson	MIN	18	17	15	9	8	67
113	Josh Bellamy	CHI	16	16	15	12	8	67
114	Quinton Patton	SF	17	15	15	11	8	66
115	Louis Murphy	TB	17	18	14	9	8	66
116	Brandon Coleman	NO	17	18	14	9	8	66
117	Brian Quick	LA	17	16	16	9	8	66
118	Leonte Carroo	MIA	17	18	11	12	8	66
119	Devin Lucien	NE	16	15	14	13	8	66
120	Devin Street	NE	17	16	14	10	8	65
121	Adam Humphries	TB	15	15	14	12	8	64
122	Ryan Grant	WAS	16	18	13	9	8	64
123	Andre Caldwell	FA	15	16	15	10	8	64
124	Andre Roberts	DET	16	16	15	9	8	64
125	Corey Coleman	CLE	20	14	9	13	8	64
126	Pharoh Cooper	LA	16	16	15	9	8	64
127	Tyreek Hill	KC	17	17	12	10	8	64
128	Kenbrell Thompkins	FA	15	20	8	12	8	63
129	Rashad Greene	JAX	17	18	11	9	8	63
130	Kenny Lawler	SEA	16	16	13	10	8	63
131	Donteea Dye	FA	15	16	14	9	8	62
132	Demarcus Ayers	FA	15	15	12	12	8	62
133	Devin Fuller	ATL	16	16	11	11	8	62
134	Ricardo Louis	CLE	15	15	12	10	8	60
135	Trevor Davis	GB	17	15	11	9	8	60
136	Mike Thomas	LA	16	14	13	9	8	60
137	Daniel Braverman	CHI	15	16	11	10	8	60
138	Aaron Burbridge	SF	15	14	13	9	8	59
139	Brandon LaFell	CIN	13	12	13	12	8	58
140	Cody Core	CIN	12	13	14	11	8	58
141	Moritz Boehringer	MIN	15	14	11	9	8	57

Notable Omissions/Not Graded This Week

• Josh Doctson—Achilles injury
• Kolby Listenbee—double sports hernia surgery
• Martavis Bryant—suspended for season

Tight Ends

Kevin Hoffman-USA TODAY Sports

When it comes to the tight end position, the NFL is loaded with talent in every age group, and many of the tight ends happen to be on the same team and working together.

Several pairs of talented tight ends are ready to light up the scoreboard this season. Ever since losing Aaron Hernandez, the Patriots have been searching for a dynamic complement in the pass game for Rob Gronkowski. Have they found it in Martellus Bennett?

After tight ends were heavily featured in Chip Kelly's scheme the past three seasons, how will new Philadelphia head coach Doug Pederson's offense utilize Zach Ertz and Brent Celek in 2016? What about Crockett Gillmore and Maxx Williams, two up-and-coming tight ends who are more than capable of spreading the field and plowing the road in the run game in Baltimore?

Let's not forget to mention the two tight ends in Seattle, Jimmy Graham and Luke Willson, who are an integral part of offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell's attack.

Speaking of Graham, we'll be waiting to see what he looks like after he went down with a season-ending patella injury last November. Can he return to being the elite red-zone target the Seahawks had in mind when they traded for him?

When you talk about elite tight ends, you can't go long without mentioning Antonio Gates, who is 36 years old and still making plays on the field. In fact, the NFL is loaded with guys who are getting up there in years but still have the ability to threaten defensive coordinators on every down. Jason Witten (34), Greg Olsen (31), Delanie Walker (32) and Zach Miller (31) are ready to show they still have plenty left in the tank and their best days are ahead of them.

Then, on the other end of the spectrum, guys such as Gronkowski (27) in New England, Travis Kelce (26) in Kansas City, Tyler Eifert (25) in Cincinnati and Jordan Reed (26) in Washington are just coming into their primes.

Grading Scale

Route: Route Running (Graded out of 20)

Hands: Hands (Graded out of 25)

YAC: Yards After Catch (Graded out of 20)

Blk: Blocking (Graded out of 25)

Pos: Positional Value (Graded out of 10)

Ovr: Top Possible Score of 100

Tight End Rankings Week 1

Rank	Player	Team	Route	Hands	YAC	Blk	Pos	Ovr
1	Rob Gronkowski	NE	18	24	18	24	6	90
2	Jason Witten	DAL	17	22	16	22	6	83
3	Greg Olsen	CAR	18	23	16	19	6	82
4	Jimmy Graham	SEA	18	22	18	17	6	82
5	Jordan Reed	WAS	18	22	17	18	6	81
6	Delanie Walker	TEN	18	23	14	20	6	81
7	Jacob Tamme	ATL	17	19	16	21	6	79
8	Kyle Rudolph	MIN	16	20	14	23	6	79
9	Vernon Davis	WAS	18	19	17	19	6	79
10	Tyler Eifert	CIN	18	20	16	18	6	78
11	Luke Willson	SEA	16	20	16	20	6	78
12	Zach Miller	CHI	17	19	17	18	6	77
13	Antonio Gates	SD	18	22	13	18	6	77
14	Richard Rodgers	GB	17	20	15	19	6	77
15	Crockett Gillmore	BAL	17	19	15	19	6	76
16	Maxx Williams	BAL	15	24	12	19	6	76
17	Travis Kelce	KC	18	21	16	15	6	76
18	Zach Ertz	PHI	15	20	15	19	6	75
19	Virgil Green	DEN	15	24	15	15	6	75
20	Jermaine Gresham	ARI	16	19	16	18	6	75
21	Jared Cook	GB	15	20	13	21	6	75
22	Anthony Fasano	TEN	16	19	12	21	6	74
23	Cameron Brate	TB	15	21	15	17	6	74
24	Brent Celek	PHI	14	19	14	20	6	73
25	Martellus Bennett	NE	16	21	11	19	6	73
26	Coby Fleener	NO	17	19	15	16	6	73
27	Julius Thomas	JAX	18	19	11	18	6	72
28	Charles Clay	BUF	17	20	11	18	6	72
29	Josh Hill	NO	15	19	14	18	6	72
30	C.J. Fiedorowicz	HOU	14	21	10	21	6	72
31	Nick Boyle	BAL	14	22	11	19	6	72
32	Clive Walford	OAK	16	21	10	18	6	71
33	Larry Donnell	NYG	15	19	14	17	6	71
34	Jesse James	PIT	14	21	10	20	6	71
35	Jack Doyle	IND	14	23	10	18	6	71
36	Tyler Kroft	CIN	14	16	15	19	6	70
37	Gary Barnidge	CLE	19	20	11	13	6	69
38	Andrew Quarless	DET	14	17	14	18	6	69
39	Mychal Rivera	OAK	22	16	10	15	6	69
40	Chris Gragg	BUF	15	22	10	16	6	69
41	Dwayne Allen	IND	15	23	11	14	6	69
42	Lee Smith	OAK	13	21	11	18	6	69
43	Hunter Henry	SD	15	18	10	20	6	69
44	Austin Hooper	ATL	14	19	10	20	6	69
45	Jordan Cameron	MIA	17	20	10	15	6	68
46	Eric Ebron	DET	15	16	14	17	6	68
47	Troy Niklas	ARI	12	16	12	21	6	67
48	Tyler Higbee	LA	14	18	10	19	6	67
49	Lance Kendricks	LA	14	16	12	18	6	66
50	David Johnson	PIT	15	20	9	15	6	65
51	Nick Vannett	SEA	13	18	9	19	6	65
52	David Morgan II	MIN	14	17	12	16	6	65
53	John Phillips	DEN	16	21	9	11	6	63
54	Temarrick Hemingway	LA	13	17	9	18	6	63
55	Jerell Adams	NYG	13	15	11	16	6	61
56	Beau Sandland	CAR	14	14	10	16	6	60
57	Thomas Duarte	FA	13	12	15	12	6	58
58	Rico Gathers	DAL	13	15	10	13	6	57

Notable Omissions/Not Graded This Week

• Ladarius Green—PUP list
• Ben Watson—out for season

Left Tackles

Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

It's no surprise that Joe Thomas sits atop the left tackle rankings entering the 2016 season. He has played 8,959 consecutive snaps, and when you turn on his film, it is easy to believe what you are seeing is routine and you are watching the same play on a loop. But the truth is, there is nothing routine about it—we are witnessing greatness on each and every snap from a future first-ballot Hall of Famer.

Not to be outdone, Andrew Whitworth, Trent Williams and Tyron Smith also consistently dominate and provide their teams with elite performance on the left side. Intriguing in its own right is whether the Eagles' Jason Peters can have a bounce-back year in terms of health and provide a consistent anchor to the left side of Philly’s new-look offense.

In his fourth season with the Saints, Terron Armstead has started to grab the attention of many around the NFL. He took a huge step forward in 2015 and was rewarded with a contract extension worth $65.25 million, with $25 million guaranteed.

Grading Scale

Pass: Pass Protection (Graded out of 25)

Run: Run-Blocking (Graded out of 25)

Power: Power (Graded out of 20)

Agl: Agility (Graded out of 20)

Pos: Positional Value (Graded out of 10)

Ovr: Top Possible Score of 100

Left Tackle Rankings Week 1

Rank	Player	Team	Pass	Run	Power	Agl	Pos	Ovr
1	Joe Thomas	CLE	23	23	18	20	8	92
2	Tyron Smith	DAL	23	22	20	18	8	91
3	Trent Williams	WAS	22	23	20	18	8	91
4	Andrew Whitworth	CIN	22	23	19	18	8	90
5	Terron Armstead	NO	23	20	18	20	8	89
6	Jason Peters	PHI	22	20	20	19	8	89
7	Joe Staley	SF	23	21	17	18	8	87
8	Cordy Glenn	BUF	21	21	20	16	8	86
9	Donald Penn	OAK	21	22	20	14	8	85
10	Duane Brown	HOU	21	22	19	15	8	85
11	Ronnie Stanley	BAL	23	20	16	17	8	84
12	Jared Veldheer	ARI	19	20	19	17	8	83
13	Taylor Lewan	TEN	19	21	17	17	8	82
14	Anthony Castonzo	IND	18	21	16	16	8	79
15	David Bakhtiari	GB	20	19	16	16	8	79
16	Jake Matthews	ATL	21	17	15	16	8	77
17	Branden Albert	MIA	18	18	15	18	8	77
18	Russell Okung	DEN	19	19	15	15	8	76
19	Donovan Smith	TB	17	21	16	14	8	76
20	Michael Oher	CAR	19	18	15	15	8	75
21	Kelvin Beachum	JAX	20	17	16	14	8	75
22	Ryan Clady	NYJ	19	16	15	17	8	75
23	Taylor Decker	DET	20	16	16	15	8	75
24	Eric Fisher	KC	19	19	14	14	8	74
25	Greg Robinson	LA	17	17	16	16	8	74
26	King Dunlap	SD	19	16	16	14	8	73
27	Nate Solder	NE	18	15	16	16	8	73
28	Matt Kalil	MIN	15	15	17	17	8	72
29	Charles Leno Jr.	CHI	18	16	14	16	8	72
30	Spencer Drango	CLE	17	16	17	14	8	72
31	Ryan Harris	PIT	18	17	14	14	8	71
32	Ereck Flowers	NYG	14	15	16	16	8	69
33	Jason Spriggs	GB	14	15	15	16	8	68
34	Alejandro Villanueva	PIT	14	14	14	17	8	67
35	LaAdrian Waddle	NE	16	15	14	14	8	67
36	Cornelius Lucas	DET	15	16	12	14	8	65
37	Bradley Sowell	SEA	15	15	13	13	8	64
38	Brandon Shell	NYJ	16	13	13	14	8	64
39	Chris Hairston	SD	16	14	13	12	8	63

Notable Omissions/Not Graded This Week

• None

Right Tackles

Peter G. Aiken/Getty Images

The importance of the right tackle position is often overlooked as it relates to how the general public spotlights left tackles, but any quarterback or running back will tell you that right tackles matter. When you factor in guys like Von Miller, J.J. Watt, and Khalil Mack, who frequently play over the right tackle, there cannot be a significant drop-off in talent between left tackle and right tackle if an NFL offense expects to have success

This offseason saw a few marquee right tackles find new homes. Mitchell Schwartz, who is regarded by our system as the best right tackle in the NFL, signed with the Kansas City Chiefs. Bobby Massie joined the Chicago Bears, and Donald Stephenson signed with the reigning Super Bowl champion Denver Broncos.

With the continued development of Marcus Gilbert, who had a breakout season last year in Pittsburgh, and Ja'Wuan James, who is really coming into his own for Miami, there are a lot of guys to be excited about at the position.

There are a few intriguing storylines at the position heading into the season. The San Francisco 49ers' Anthony Davis, who retired after the 2014 season when he was regarded as the best right tackle in the NFL, is returning to the field. Davis didn't show much rust upon his return, but still found himself in a position battle against Trenton Brown, who had an outstanding preseason. Davis figures to be the starter at right guard when the games count for real.

The biggest storyline at this position could be that the Eagles' Lane Johnson faces a potential 10-game suspension after allegedly registering his second violation of the league's policy on performance-enhancing drugs. What's interesting about his story is that this past offseason the Eagles gave Johnson a five-year contract extension worth up to $63 million that includes $35.5 million guaranteed. It is still unclear if Johnson will be available for Week 1.

Grading Scale

Pass: Pass Protection (Graded out of 25)

Run: Run-Blocking (Graded out of 25)

Power: Power (Graded out of 20)

Agl: Agility (Graded out of 20)

Pos: Positional Value (Graded out of 10)

Ovr: Top Possible Score of 100

Right Tackle Rankings Week 1

Rank	Player	Team	Pass	Run	Power	Agl	Pos	Ovr
1	Mitchell Schwartz	KC	23	23	16	17	7	86
2	Marcus Gilbert	PIT	22	22	17	18	7	86
3	Lane Johnson	PHI	22	22	16	18	7	85
4	Bryan Bulaga	GB	22	22	18	16	7	85
5	Ryan Schraeder	ATL	22	23	16	15	7	83
6	Ja'Wuan James	MIA	22	21	16	16	7	82
7	Bobby Massie	CHI	20	20	17	18	7	82
8	Zach Strief	NO	19	21	18	15	7	80
9	Rob Havenstein	LA	22	17	18	15	7	79
10	Trenton Brown	SF	18	22	18	14	7	79
11	Riley Reiff	DET	19	22	16	14	7	78
12	Morgan Moses	WAS	20	20	17	14	7	78
13	Doug Free	DAL	19	19	19	14	7	78
14	Chris Clark	HOU	17	20	18	15	7	77
15	Joe Barksdale	SD	19	17	16	17	7	76
16	Mike Remmers	CAR	19	19	17	14	7	76
17	Andre Smith Jr.	MIN	20	18	16	15	7	76
18	Derek Newton	HOU	15	22	16	15	7	75
19	Jermey Parnell	JAX	15	19	17	17	7	75
20	Marcus Cannon	NE	20	16	17	15	7	75
21	Donald Stephenson	DEN	19	17	14	17	7	74
22	Halapoulivaati Vaitai	PHI	18	19	16	14	7	74
23	Michael Ola	FA	17	17	14	17	7	72
24	Garry Gilliam	SEA	17	16	15	17	7	72
25	Demar Dotson	TB	18	16	14	17	7	72
26	Jack Conklin	TEN	17	20	14	13	7	71
27	Jordan Mills	BUF	17	18	17	12	7	71
28	Cedric Ogbuehi	CIN	19	15	14	16	7	71
29	Breno Giacomini	NYJ	16	19	16	13	7	71
30	Austin Pasztor	CLE	17	16	16	15	7	71
31	Shon Coleman	CLE	16	16	19	13	7	71
32	Joe Reitz	IND	16	15	18	14	7	70
33	Cameron Fleming	NE	18	17	14	14	7	70
34	Gosder Cherilus	TB	19	14	15	15	7	70
35	Menelik Watson	OAK	17	16	16	14	7	70
36	Austin Howard	OAK	16	17	16	13	7	69
37	Ben Ijalana	NYJ	15	17	16	14	7	69
38	Ricky Wagner	BAL	18	17	13	13	7	68
39	Allen Barbre	PHI	16	15	16	14	7	68
40	Le'Raven Clark	IND	15	15	14	16	7	67
41	Seantrel Henderson	BUF	15	16	17	12	7	67
42	Kyle Murphy	GB	16	16	15	13	7	67
43	Erik Pears	FA	15	16	13	12	7	63
44	T.J. Clemmings	MIN	15	14	12	15	7	63
45	Jah Reid	KC	14	15	13	13	7	62
46	John Theus	SF	14	15	13	13	7	62
47	Marshall Newhouse	NYG	15	12	12	14	7	60

Notable Omissions/Not Graded This Week

• None

Offensive Guards

Rob Carr/Getty Images

The biggest news at the guard position this offseason happened September 3, when the Packers released Josh Sitton, one of the best at his position at the NFL, and saw him sign with the Bears, Green Bay's NFC North rival. With Sitton and Kyle Long, who just signed a lucrative and well-deserved contract extension, Chicago may well have the NFL's best guard tandem. The Packers now have T.J. Lang, a very solid player in his own right, and a projected rotation that will find it tough to match Sitton's consistency.

When it comes to the best at the position, it's tough to argue against Baltimore's Marshal Yanda. Through his nine-year career, Yanda has turned his strength, athleticism, understanding of the game, and pure meanness into a peerless skill set.

If Yanda wants to keep the wolves at bay and maintain that top spot through the 2016 season, he's going to have to fight off a ton of competition, especially among two young guards whose starts are rising very quickly. Zack Martin of the Cowboys has helped establish the league's best offensive line with his own attributes (start with a true nasty streak in the run game), and Carolina's Trai Turner has what it takes to be the best at his position in the game. Drive-blocking, pass sets, pulling, and working his way through a complex run game—Turner took a huge step forward in 2015, and we expect more of the same in 2016.

Look for Oakland's Gabe Jackson and Indianapolis' Jack Mewhort to advance their names in this exciting class of young guards. Veteran stories abound as well. Can Richie Incognito maintain his surprising 2015 season, in which he came back from self-imposed oblivion and managed to impress with a new level of technique? And can Evan Mathis, one of the smartest guys in the league, continue to impress for his third team in three seasons? If he can, the Cardinals may challenge Chicago for the best guard twosome with Mathis and Mike Iupati.

Guard isn't a traditionally glamorous position, but when you look at the salaries these guys are making, you know how valued they are among NFL coaches and executives. We value them here as well, and here's how we see the class heading into the new season.

Grading Scale

Pass: Pass Protection (Graded out of 25)

Run: Run-Blocking (Graded out of 25)

Power: Power (Graded out of 20)

Agl: Agility (Graded out of 20)

Pos: Positional Value (Graded out of 10)

Ovr: Top Possible Score of 100

Offensive Guard Rankings Week 1

Rank	Player	Team	Pass	Run	Power	Agl	Pos	Ovr
1	Marshal Yanda	BAL	22	24	19	16	7	88
2	Zack Martin	DAL	23	24	18	15	7	87
3	Trai Turner	CAR	20	24	20	16	7	87
4	Josh Sitton	CHI	23	20	17	18	7	85
5	Richie Incognito	BUF	21	24	19	13	7	84
6	Evan Mathis	ARI	18	24	16	17	7	82
7	Gabe Jackson	OAK	20	22	17	13	7	79
8	Mike Iupati	ARI	17	23	19	12	7	78
9	Jack Mewhort	IND	21	18	18	14	7	78
10	Andrew Norwell	CAR	19	21	17	14	7	78
11	Clint Boling	CIN	18	20	17	16	7	78
12	T.J. Lang	GB	20	18	16	16	7	77
13	David DeCastro	PIT	20	18	17	15	7	77
14	Kyle Long	CHI	17	19	16	18	7	77
15	Joel Bitonio	CLE	17	18	15	19	7	76
16	Kelechi Osemele	OAK	14	23	17	14	7	75
17	Kevin Zeitler	CIN	17	18	18	15	7	75
18	Mark Glowinski	SEA	17	18	15	18	7	75
19	La'el Collins	DAL	15	19	19	14	7	74
20	Justin Pugh	NYG	19	16	15	16	7	73
21	Brandon Brooks	PHI	20	12	14	20	7	73
22	Alex Boone	MIN	14	18	18	16	7	73
23	Jeff Allen	HOU	17	18	16	14	7	72
24	Anthony Davis	SF	19	17	17	12	7	72
25	Cole Toner	ARI	18	17	15	15	7	72
26	John Miller	BUF	16	16	17	15	7	71
27	John Greco	CLE	18	16	14	16	7	71
28	Joe Thuney	NE	17	16	13	18	7	71
29	Ronald Leary	DAL	18	18	16	12	7	71
30	Ramon Foster	PIT	17	19	17	10	7	70
31	Chris Chester	ATL	14	17	15	17	7	70
32	A.J. Cann	JAX	16	17	16	14	7	70
33	James Carpenter	NYJ	15	17	17	14	7	70
34	Laken Tomlinson	DET	13	16	18	16	7	70
35	Quinton Spain	TEN	15	16	17	15	7	70
36	Laremy Tunsil	MIA	16	13	16	17	7	69
37	Joshua Garnett	SF	14	16	17	15	7	69
38	Stefen Wisniewski	PHI	17	15	16	14	7	69
39	Billy Turner	MIA	15	16	16	15	7	69
40	Rodger Saffold	LA	16	14	15	17	7	69
41	Ali Marpet	TB	11	16	16	18	7	68
42	Denzelle Good	IND	16	15	16	14	7	68
43	Andy Levitre	ATL	15	15	15	15	7	67
44	Brandon Scherff	WAS	16	14	17	13	7	67
45	Christian Westerman	CIN	13	14	17	15	7	66
46	D.J. Fluker	SD	15	14	17	13	7	66
47	Cody Whitehair	CHI	16	13	14	16	7	66
48	Germain Ifedi	SEA	12	17	17	13	7	66
49	Max Garcia	DEN	14	18	17	10	7	66
50	Brandon Fusco	MIN	15	14	14	16	7	66
51	Jonathan Cooper	NE	13	15	17	14	7	66
52	Xavier Su'a-Filo	HOU	13	16	14	16	7	66
53	Connor McGovern	DEN	13	15	13	18	7	66
54	Jamon Brown	LA	14	16	16	12	7	65
55	Alex Lewis	BAL	15	14	15	14	7	65
56	Zane Beadles	SF	16	13	15	14	7	65
57	Spencer Long	WAS	15	14	14	15	7	65
58	Larry Warford	DET	14	17	16	11	7	65
59	Shawn Lauvao	WAS	13	16	16	13	7	65
60	John Urschel	BAL	12	15	15	16	7	65
61	Ted Karras	NE	15	15	15	13	7	65
62	Chance Warmack	TEN	13	16	16	12	7	64
63	Cody Wichmann	LA	14	13	16	14	7	64
64	Tim Lelito	NO	11	16	16	14	7	64
65	Andrew Tiller	SF	15	14	16	12	7	64
66	Ty Sambrailo	DEN	16	13	14	14	7	64
67	Orlando Franklin	SD	16	14	15	12	7	64
68	Mackenzy Bernadeau	FA	14	15	14	13	7	63
69	Andrus Peat	NO	10	14	16	16	7	63
70	Parker Ehinger	KC	14	15	14	13	7	63
71	Jahri Evans	NO	13	16	17	10	7	63
72	Laurent Duvernay-Tardif	KC	13	12	12	19	7	63
73	John Jerry	NYG	14	12	16	14	7	63
74	Luke Joeckel	JAX	14	13	15	14	7	63
75	Hugh Thornton	IND	12	15	16	13	7	63
76	Michael Schofield	DEN	14	16	12	14	7	63
77	Jonotthan Harrison	IND	13	13	14	15	7	62
78	Garrett Reynolds	LA	13	15	15	12	7	62
79	Brian Winters	NYJ	12	13	14	16	7	62
80	Kevin Pamphile	TB	13	13	13	16	7	62
81	Senio Kelemete	NO	12	13	16	14	7	62
82	Oday Aboushi	HOU	14	15	15	11	7	62
83	Joe Haeg	IND	14	12	14	15	7	62
84	Jermon Bushrod	MIA	12	11	15	16	7	61
85	Joe Dahl	DET	13	13	12	16	7	61
86	Wes Schweitzer	ATL	12	15	14	13	7	61
87	Isaac Seumalo	PHI	11	13	15	14	7	60
88	Vladimir Ducasse	FA	11	15	15	12	7	60
89	Sebastian Tretola	TEN	12	14	16	10	7	59
90	Mike Person	ATL	13	11	11	16	7	58
91	Vadal Alexander	OAK	12	14	15	10	7	58
92	Rees Odhiambo	SEA	12	13	13	12	7	57
93	Donavon Clark	SD	11	13	15	10	7	56
94	Dallas Thomas	MIA	10	12	13	13	7	55

Notable Omissions/Not Graded This Week

• J.R. Sweezy—back injury

Centers

Joe Robbins/Getty Images

Center has never been a glamorous position, but when you look at the great offensive lines in NFL history, good luck finding one without a center who was worth his weight in intelligence, toughness and savvy when it came to shifting lines and protection calls.

In today's NFL, where hybrid defenders are the norm and ever-changing pass-rushing and run-stopping schemes are more common than ever, the center's importance is reflective. The NFL's best center, Dallas' Travis Frederick, is the point man for the league's best offensive line, and that's no coincidence. Weston Richburg of the Giants faces a different type of challenge—he's the only true standout on a line that has seen iffy performances despite boasting a lot of first-round picks.

Several up-and-comers look to join the ranks of Frederick and Richburg in the new season. Kansas City's Mitch Morse has all the tools to become an All-Pro. Buffalo's Eric Wood may be the most underrated center (we'll endeavor to change that), and two teams in the NFC North have two good players at the position: Green Bay with Corey Linsley and J.C. Tretter, and Minnesota with Joe Berger and Nick Easton.

Look also for a couple of players who are switching positions: Cleveland's Cameron Erving and Seattle's Justin Britt. Both youngsters have shown impressive development in their short times at NFL center, and with rookies Ryan Kelly and Evan Boehm also showing great potential in the preseason, this position is in good hands for the league's future.

Grading Scale:

Pass: Pass Protection (Graded out of 25)

Run: Run-Blocking (Graded out of 25)

Power: Power (Graded out of 20)

Agl: Agility (Graded out of 20)

Pos: Positional Value (Graded out of 10)

Ovr: Top Possible Score of 100

Center Rankings Week 1

Rank	Player	Team	Pass	Run	Power	Agl	Pos	Ovr
1	Travis Frederick	DAL	23	24	20	17	6	90
2	Weston Richburg	NYG	22	22	18	18	6	86
3	Ryan Kalil	CAR	20	21	15	17	6	79
4	Mike Pouncey	MIA	17	19	17	18	6	77
5	Eric Wood	BUF	19	18	17	17	6	77
6	Jeremy Zuttah	BAL	19	20	16	16	6	77
7	Maurkice Pouncey	PIT	18	19	16	17	6	76
8	Rodney Hudson	OAK	18	21	17	10	6	72
9	JC Tretter	GB	19	18	12	17	6	72
10	Max Unger	NO	18	17	15	16	6	72
11	Corey Linsley	GB	17	19	17	13	6	72
12	Ryan Kelly	IND	17	15	16	18	6	72
13	Mitch Morse	KC	17	18	12	18	6	71
14	Joe Berger	MIN	16	17	16	15	6	70
15	Evan Boehm	ARI	15	17	17	15	6	70
16	Jason Kelce	PHI	18	17	11	17	6	69
17	Nick Mangold	NYJ	16	18	18	10	6	68
18	John Sullivan	FA	16	19	18	9	6	68
19	Ben Jones	TEN	16	19	16	11	6	68
20	Justin Britt	SEA	15	18	13	16	6	68
21	Alex Mack	ATL	15	18	18	10	6	67
22	Khaled Holmes	FA	17	18	16	10	6	67
23	Brian Schwenke	TEN	16	18	15	12	6	67
24	Cameron Erving	CLE	15	16	14	16	6	67
25	David Andrews	NE	16	17	13	14	6	66
26	Brandon Linder	JAX	16	17	13	14	6	66
27	Max Tuerk	SD	16	14	15	15	6	66
28	Matt Slauson	SD	15	18	18	7	6	64
29	Cody Wallace	PIT	12	16	17	13	6	64
30	Matt Paradis	DEN	16	17	10	14	6	63
31	Marcus Martin	SF	13	15	16	12	6	62
32	Patrick Lewis	BUF	15	16	13	12	6	62
33	Joey Hunt	SEA	14	15	14	13	6	62
34	Ted Larsen	CHI	15	15	14	11	6	61
35	Russell Bodine	CIN	14	15	16	8	6	59
36	A.Q. Shipley	ARI	14	16	14	8	6	58
37	Daniel Kilgore	SF	14	15	10	13	6	58
38	Joe Hawley	TB	14	15	16	6	6	57
39	Bryan Stork	FA	13	15	11	12	6	57
40	Josh LeRibeus	FA	14	13	10	13	6	56
41	Kory Lichtensteiger	WAS	12	14	11	13	6	56
42	Tim Barnes	LA	14	13	12	9	6	54
43	Travis Swanson	DET	13	14	11	10	6	54
44	Austin Blythe	IND	12	14	12	8	6	52

Notable Omissions/Not Graded This Week

• Nick Martin—ankle surgery
• Hroniss Grasu—torn ACL 

3-4 Defensive Ends

Thomas B. Shea/Getty Images

Outside of probably the best defensive player in football, 3-4 defensive ends don't get the headlines 4-3 ends do. Today's NFL asks 3-4 ends to play the run with athleticism and length, but most of them kick inside and play defensive tackle on passing downs and need to win with leverage and strength as well. Only the very best offer this type of versatility, and it shows with who graded out as the top 3-4 defensive ends in the NFL.

After all-around badass J.J. Watt, there are Cameron Heyward, Malik Jackson, Calais Campbell and Muhammad Wilkerson. Having an awesome name isn't a requirement—all of these guys also have the required athleticism, length and versatility to be dominant players along the defensive line.

Look for second-year defenders Henry Anderson, Arik Armstead and Leonard Williams to take the next step after posting strong rookie campaigns. However, Williams started playing some nose tackle this preseason and could end up being graded in that category if he sticks. He's so good versus the run that he should hold his own at the nose. That's the type of versatility you look for in these guys.

Grading Scale

Snap: Snap Explosion (Graded out of 15)

Rush: Pass Rush (Graded out of 25)

Run: Run Defense (Graded out of 30)

Tkl: Tackling (Graded out of 20)

Pos: Positional Value (Graded out of 10)

Ovr: Top Possible Score of 100

3-4 Defensive End Rankings Week 1

Rank	Player	Team	Snap	Rush	Run	Tkl	Pos	Ovr
1	J.J. Watt	HOU	15	25	28	17	6	91
2	Jurrell Casey	TEN	14	21	27	15	6	83
3	Mike Daniels	GB	12	21	25	16	6	80
4	Muhammad Wilkerson	NYJ	14	23	22	15	6	80
5	Calais Campbell	ARI	13	21	24	16	6	80
6	Sheldon Richardson	NYJ	13	21	23	14	6	77
7	Cameron Heyward	PIT	12	20	24	14	6	76
8	Derek Wolfe	DEN	12	19	23	16	6	76
9	Jaye Howard	KC	12	19	23	13	6	73
10	Malik Jackson	JAX	13	22	18	13	6	72
11	Leonard Williams	NYJ	11	17	23	15	6	72
12	Joey Bosa	SD	13	17	22	12	6	70
13	Timmy Jernigan	BAL	9	17	24	13	6	69
14	Stephon Tuitt	PIT	10	18	22	13	6	69
15	Allen Bailey	KC	10	16	22	14	6	68
16	Corey Liuget	SD	9	17	22	13	6	67
17	Vinny Curry	PHI	13	20	16	12	6	67
18	Arik Armstead	SF	8	16	21	15	6	66
19	Henry Anderson	IND	10	15	20	15	6	66
20	DaQuan Jones	TEN	7	12	24	16	6	65
21	Mario Edwards Jr.	OAK	12	15	18	14	6	65
22	DeForest Buckner	SF	11	15	20	13	6	65
23	Karl Klug	TEN	11	18	16	13	6	64
24	Jared Crick	DEN	9	15	20	14	6	64
25	Jonathan Bullard	CHI	12	14	18	14	6	64
26	Robert Nkemdiche	ARI	12	16	19	11	6	64
27	Chris I. Baker	WAS	8	15	19	15	6	63
28	John Hughes	CLE	8	17	20	12	6	63
29	Quinton Dial	SF	8	12	24	13	6	63
30	Frostee Rucker	ARI	10	15	18	13	6	62
31	Kendall Reyes	WAS	10	15	19	12	6	62
32	Vance Walker	DEN	8	14	19	14	6	61
33	Kendall Langford	IND	9	13	20	13	6	61
34	Xavier Cooper	CLE	12	16	15	12	6	61
35	Chris Jones	KC	11	15	17	12	6	61
36	Datone Jones	GB	10	13	16	15	6	60
37	Jarvis Jenkins	NYJ	10	15	16	14	6	60
38	Dean Lowry	GB	10	14	16	13	6	59
39	Lawrence Guy	BAL	10	13	17	12	6	58
40	Bronson Kaufusi	BAL	10	15	15	12	6	58
41	Ricky Jean Francois	WAS	9	12	18	12	6	57
42	Denico Autry	OAK	9	13	16	13	6	57
43	Justin Ellis	OAK	7	10	20	14	6	57
44	Will Sutton	CHI	12	13	15	11	6	57
45	Ricardo Mathews	PIT	8	12	18	12	6	56
46	Mike Pennel	GB	10	11	16	12	6	55
47	Taylor Hart	SF	7	12	17	13	6	55
48	Letroy Guion	GB	7	12	17	12	6	54
49	Leger Douzable	BUF	7	10	17	13	6	53
50	Mitch Unrein	CHI	9	10	15	13	6	53
51	Carl Nassib	CLE	10	12	13	12	6	53
52	Tony Jerod-Eddie	SF	8	10	16	12	6	52
53	Devon Still	HOU	9	10	13	12	6	50
54	Billy Winn	DEN	8	8	12	11	6	45

Notable Omissions/Not Graded This Week

• Desmond Bryant—torn pectoral 

4-3 Defensive Ends

Norm Hall/Getty Images

Ezekiel Ansah and Michael Bennett are the league's premier pass-rushers at 4-3 defensive end. Both men are athletic and strong, have violent hands and can play the run and pass equally. Ansah is still developing, and that should be scary for opposing defenses.

Keep an eye on Trey Flowers in New England; he might be the breakout defensive end in 2016. He has had a good preseason in his second year, and with his positional versatility, he should see plenty of snaps for the Patriots. He isn't the quickest or strongest, but Flowers finds a way to consistently pressure the quarterback.

I'm also looking for Jason Pierre-Paul to recapture his previous form after he severely injured his hand in 2015 and returned with mixed results when healthy. He looked sharper in preseason, and I expect him to have a good year.

Lastly, I'm looking for Kony Ealy to take the next step for Carolina. After an impressive Super Bowl performance, Ealy has higher expectations and could boost the pass rush for an already good Panthers defense. He was originally thought of as an interior nickel rusher, but he has shown he can win on the edge, which could make him a dynamic rusher.

Grading Scale

Rush: Pass Rush (Graded out of 25)

Run: Run Defense (Graded out of 25)

Snap: Snap Explosion (Graded out of 20)

Tkl: Tackling (Graded out of 20)

Pos: Positional Value (Graded out of 10)

Ovr: Top Possible Score of 100

4-3 Defensive End Rankings Week 1

Rank	Player	Team	Rush	Run	Snap	Tkl	Pos	Ovr
1	Michael Bennett	SEA	21	23	17	16	7	84
2	Ezekiel Ansah	DET	23	19	19	15	7	83
3	Olivier Vernon	NYG	22	17	18	16	7	80
4	Robert Quinn	LA	20	16	19	16	7	78
5	Brandon Graham	PHI	20	20	15	16	7	78
6	Cliff Avril	SEA	20	16	19	14	7	76
7	Carlos Dunlap	CIN	21	19	14	15	7	76
8	Chandler Jones	ARI	16	21	14	17	7	75
9	Jabaal Sheard	NE	18	17	16	16	7	74
10	Robert Ayers	TB	19	18	14	16	7	74
11	Cameron Jordan	NO	17	22	12	16	7	74
12	Rob Ninkovich	NE	17	20	12	18	7	74
13	Cameron Wake	MIA	19	15	18	15	7	74
14	Dante Fowler	JAX	19	14	18	16	7	74
15	William Hayes	LA	16	20	12	18	7	73
16	Everson Griffen	MIN	19	17	15	15	7	73
17	Frank Clark	SEA	18	16	17	15	7	73
18	Connor Barwin	PHI	18	17	16	14	7	72
19	Jerry Hughes	BUF	19	14	19	12	7	71
20	Dwight Freeney	ATL	21	13	18	12	7	71
21	Danielle Hunter	MIN	14	16	17	16	7	70
22	Devin Taylor	DET	16	14	16	14	7	67
23	Brian Robison	MIN	12	20	10	17	7	66
24	Kony Ealy	CAR	18	15	12	13	7	65
25	Michael D. Johnson	CIN	13	18	12	15	7	65
26	Trey Flowers	NE	15	16	13	14	7	65
27	Noah Spence	TB	16	13	17	12	7	65
28	Vic Beasley	ATL	16	12	17	12	7	64
29	Charles Johnson	CAR	14	17	14	12	7	64
30	Randy Gregory	DAL	15	14	16	12	7	64
31	Jason Pierre-Paul	NYG	13	17	12	14	7	63
32	Mario Williams	MIA	17	13	14	12	7	63
33	Shaq Lawson	BUF	17	13	13	13	7	63
34	Emmanuel Ogbah	CLE	14	15	13	14	7	63
35	Shilique Calhoun	OAK	17	11	18	10	7	63
36	DeMarcus Lawrence	DAL	15	14	14	12	7	62
37	Jared Odrick	JAX	13	17	11	14	7	62
38	Matt Judon	BAL	13	13	15	14	7	62
39	Jason D. Jones	MIA	14	16	11	13	7	61
40	Kasim Edebali	NO	14	12	14	14	7	61
41	Adrian Clayborn	ATL	12	16	12	13	7	60
42	Charles Tapper	DAL	12	13	14	14	7	60
43	Chris Long	NE	12	15	12	13	7	59
44	Yannick Ngakoue	JAX	16	13	12	11	7	59
45	Ronald Blair	SF	12	13	15	12	7	59
46	Kevin Dodd	TEN	13	13	12	13	7	58
47	Stephen Weatherly	MIN	12	12	15	12	7	58
48	Alex McCalister	PHI	14	10	17	10	7	58
49	Kerry Wynn	NYG	8	17	10	15	7	57
50	George Johnson	TB	14	12	13	11	7	57
51	Howard Jones	TB	15	10	14	11	7	57
52	Anthony Zettel	DET	10	16	11	13	7	57
53	Ryan Davis	FA	13	11	14	11	7	56
54	Bobby Richardson	NO	10	14	11	14	7	56
55	Jacquies Smith	TB	15	9	15	10	7	56
56	Trevor Bates	IND	12	11	14	12	7	56
57	Andre Branch	MIA	11	12	13	12	7	55
58	Darryl Tapp	NO	12	11	13	12	7	55
59	Mario Addison	CAR	12	11	12	11	7	53
60	Ryan Delaire	CAR	11	11	12	12	7	53
61	Terrence Fede	MIA	11	12	12	11	7	53
62	Derrick Shelby	ATL	10	12	11	12	7	52
63	William Gholston	TB	7	14	8	14	7	50
64	Wallace Gilberry	DET	11	12	8	12	7	50
65	Kroy Biermann	FA	8	14	8	13	7	50
66	Eugene Sims	LA	9	11	10	12	7	49

Notable Omissions/Not Graded This Week

• None 

Defensive Tackles

Jeff Curry-USA TODAY Sports

Defensive line play is highly valued in the NFL right now. The league is littered with great athletes and technically sound players at the position. Leading that group is Rams superstar Aaron Donald, who's been a premier player in the league over the past two seasons. His freakish athleticism, awareness and sound technique allow him to dominate any offensive lineman he faces.

Behind him in that elite group are Philadelphia's Fletcher Cox and Cincinnati's Geno Atkins. The latter has been a phenomenal 3-technique for the Bengals throughout his career, and Cox is making the switch to 3-technique under new defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz, where he's thrived this preseason.

Behind those three, there are familiar names in Gerald McCoy, Kawann Short and Ndamukong Suh. Short enjoyed a breakout season in 2015, posting 11 sacks for a stalwart Panthers front seven. Suh started off slowly last season but was his dominant self Weeks 7-16.

The Rams have an incredible group of defensive tackles with Michael Brockers and Dominique Easley filling in behind Donald. Easley has struggled through some unfortunate injury luck, but his talent has never been in question.

An underrated unit is the Vikings trio of Linval Joseph, Sharrif Floyd and Tom Johnson. Joseph has established himself as one of the best nose tackles in the game, while Floyd has been a disruptive presence at 3-technique when healthy.

A few underrated defensive tackles in the league right now are Atlanta's Grady Jarrett, Dallas' Jack Crawford, Buffalo's Corbin Bryant, Jacksonville's Roy Miller and San Diego's Brandon Mebane. All played well last season and should stand out more in increased roles this year. Two second-year players who need big seasons are Danny Shelton of the Cleveland Browns and Jordan Phillips of the Miami Dolphins. Both struggled as rookies.

Grading Scale

Snap: Snap Explosion (Graded out of 25)

Rush: Pass Rush (Graded out of 25)

Run: Run Defense (Graded out of 25)

Tkl: Tackling (Graded out of 15)

Pos: Positional Value (Graded out of 10)

Ovr: Top Possible Score of 100

Defensive Tackle Rankings Week 1

Rank	Player	Team	Snap	Rush	Run	Tkl	Pos	Ovr
1	Aaron Donald	LA	24	24	23	15	6	92
2	Fletcher Cox	PHI	23	24	22	15	6	90
3	Geno Atkins	CIN	23	23	23	14	6	89
4	Ndamukong Suh	MIA	22	22	23	15	6	88
5	Kawann Short	CAR	23	21	24	13	6	87
6	Gerald McCoy	TB	23	22	21	14	6	86
7	Dontari Poe	KC	22	19	23	14	6	84
8	Marcell Dareus	BUF	21	19	23	14	6	83
9	Michael Brockers	LA	19	19	24	14	6	82
10	Malcom Brown	NE	19	19	22	15	6	81
11	Brandon J. Williams	BAL	19	16	24	15	6	80
12	Linval Joseph	MIN	18	16	25	15	6	80
13	Kyle D. Williams	BUF	19	20	21	14	6	80
14	Dominique Easley	LA	23	19	18	13	6	79
15	Sharrif Floyd	MIN	21	19	20	13	6	79
16	Alan Branch	NE	19	17	22	15	6	79
17	Nick Fairley	NO	21	18	20	13	6	78
18	Damon Harrison	NYG	18	14	25	15	6	78
19	Bennie Logan	PHI	18	17	23	14	6	78
20	Johnathan Hankins	NYG	19	18	20	15	6	78
21	Roy Miller	JAX	18	15	23	15	6	77
22	Haloti Ngata	DET	18	17	21	15	6	77
23	Corbin Bryant	BUF	19	18	20	13	6	76
24	Ian Williams	SF	18	15	23	14	6	76
25	Tom Johnson	MIN	20	19	18	12	6	75
26	Paul Soliai	CAR	17	13	24	15	6	75
27	Grady Jarrett	ATL	19	18	19	13	6	75
28	Brandon Mebane	SD	18	15	23	13	6	75
29	Tyrone Crawford	DAL	18	17	20	14	6	75
30	Tyson Alualu	JAX	20	17	18	14	6	75
31	Akiem Hicks	CHI	17	18	19	14	6	74
32	Star Lotulelei	CAR	18	17	20	13	6	74
33	Jonathan Babineaux	ATL	20	16	17	15	6	74
34	Henry Melton	DEN	21	19	16	12	6	74
35	Vince Wilfork	HOU	15	16	22	15	6	74
36	Ra'Shede Hageman	ATL	20	13	20	14	6	73
37	Rodney Gunter	ARI	16	17	19	15	6	73
38	Caraun Reid	SD	17	18	18	14	6	73
39	Eddie Goldman	CHI	17	16	20	14	6	73
40	Clinton McDonald	TB	19	18	16	13	6	72
41	Jack Crawford	DAL	18	18	17	13	6	72
42	Sylvester Williams	DEN	16	16	20	13	6	71
43	Cedric Thornton	DAL	17	15	20	13	6	71
44	Robert Nkemdiche	ARI	20	15	17	13	6	71
45	Domata Peko	CIN	16	16	18	14	6	70
46	Akeem Spence	TB	17	16	18	13	6	70
47	Jay Bromley	NYG	17	15	18	13	6	69
48	Ahtyba Rubin	SEA	16	14	19	14	6	69
49	Kenny Clark	GB	18	15	17	13	6	69
50	Zach Kerr	IND	16	14	17	15	6	68
51	Kyle Love	CAR	15	14	20	12	6	67
52	Jarran Reed	SEA	16	15	17	13	6	67
53	Vernon Butler	CAR	19	13	18	11	6	67
54	Earl Mitchell	MIA	15	17	16	12	6	66
55	Cullen Jenkins	WAS	17	15	16	12	6	66
56	Michael B. Bennett	JAX	16	15	15	14	6	66
57	Tyson Jackson	ATL	16	13	18	13	6	66
58	David Parry	IND	14	13	18	14	6	65
59	A'Shawn Robinson	DET	15	14	18	12	6	65
60	Maliek Collins	DAL	17	15	14	13	6	65
61	Abry Jones	JAX	15	14	17	12	6	64
62	Dan Williams	OAK	13	14	19	12	6	64
63	Tony McDaniel	SEA	16	14	16	12	6	64
64	Jordan Hill	SEA	15	13	16	13	6	63
65	Tyeler Davison	NO	16	13	16	12	6	63
66	Jihad Ward	OAK	16	16	14	11	6	63
67	Adolphus Washington	BUF	14	15	16	12	6	63
68	Javon Hargrave	PIT	16	14	15	12	6	63
69	Adam Gotsis	DEN	14	16	15	12	6	63
70	Terrance Knighton	FA	15	13	16	12	6	62
71	Danny Shelton	CLE	13	14	16	12	6	61
72	Beau Allen	PHI	13	14	18	10	6	61
73	Sheldon Day	JAX	14	13	16	12	6	61
74	D.J. Reader	HOU	14	12	18	11	6	61
75	Jordan Phillips	MIA	13	14	16	11	6	60
76	John Jenkins	NO	15	11	15	13	6	60
77	Austin Johnson	TEN	13	15	13	12	6	59
78	Vincent Valentine	NE	12	14	15	11	6	58
79	Hassan Ridgeway	IND	13	15	13	11	6	58
80	Quinton Jefferson	SEA	14	14	12	11	6	57
81	Darius Latham	OAK	13	12	14	12	6	57
82	Markus Kuhn	FA	14	11	13	12	6	56
83	Nick Hayden	FA	12	13	14	11	6	56
84	Andrew Billings	CIN	14	11	13	12	6	56
85	Dwan Edwards	FA	13	11	13	12	6	55
86	Mike Purcell	SF	13	11	15	10	6	55
87	Al Woods	TEN	13	11	14	10	6	54
88	David Onyemata	NO	13	11	12	11	6	53
89	Matt Ioannidis	WAS	12	13	12	10	6	53

Notable Omissions/Not Graded This Week

• Sheldon Rankins—injured reserve
• Sealver Siliga—injured reserve

3-4 Outside Linebackers

George Gojkovich/Getty Images

We've entered a golden age of 3-4 rush linebackers. Khalil Mack, Von Miller and Justin Houston have Hall of Fame-caliber talent and elite production, while other young rushers such as Aaron Lynch and Jadeveon Clowney could be ready to make the jump into the upper tier of game-plan wreckers.

The top three at the position are firmly in place, with Mack coming off an All-Pro season, Miller now the highest-paid defensive player and reigning Super Bowl MVP, and Houston only two years removed from a 22-sack season.

As long as the 3-4 defense remains prevalent in the NFL, rush linebacker will be a prime position with immense value. As the 2016 regular season nears, it's clear the NFL is stacked at the position with a strong combination of established stars, emerging young talent and veteran stalwarts.

Grading Scale

Rush: Pass Rush (Graded out of 25)

Run: Run Defense (Graded out of 25)

Cvg: Coverage (Graded out of 15)

Tkl: Tackling (Graded out of 25)

Pos: Positional Value (Graded out of 10)

Ovr: Top Possible Score of 100

3-4 Outside Linebacker Rankings Week 1

Rank	Player	Team	Rush	Run	Cvg	Tkl	Pos	Ovr
1	Khalil Mack	OAK	24	24	13	23	7	91
2	Von Miller	DEN	24	22	13	23	7	89
3	Justin Houston	KC	23	23	11	23	7	87
4	Pernell McPhee	CHI	22	22	9	21	7	81
5	Clay Matthews	GB	20	21	13	20	7	81
6	DeMarcus Ware	DEN	20	21	10	22	7	80
7	Aaron Lynch	SF	21	19	13	20	7	80
8	Jadeveon Clowney	HOU	20	23	7	23	7	80
9	Whitney Mercilus	HOU	21	20	8	22	7	78
10	Ryan Kerrigan	WAS	21	20	9	20	7	77
11	Tamba Hali	KC	21	19	9	20	7	76
12	James Harrison	PIT	19	20	10	20	7	76
13	Brian Orakpo	TEN	19	19	10	20	7	75
14	Melvin Ingram	SD	21	19	7	20	7	74
15	Willie Young	CHI	18	17	10	19	7	71
16	Aldon Smith	OAK	20	18	8	18	7	71
17	Trent Murphy	WAS	19	17	9	18	7	70
18	Shaquil Barrett	DEN	18	17	9	19	7	70
19	Jerry Attaochu	SD	17	19	10	17	7	70
20	Markus Golden	ARI	19	17	9	18	7	70
21	Trent Cole	IND	18	17	9	18	7	69
22	Preston Smith	WAS	19	17	8	17	7	68
23	Lamarr Houston	CHI	16	18	8	19	7	68
24	Nate Orchard	CLE	18	16	9	17	7	67
25	Arthur Moats	PIT	17	16	10	17	7	67
26	Leonard Floyd	CHI	17	17	9	17	7	67
27	Kamalei Correa	BAL	15	17	10	18	7	67
28	Dadi Nicolas	KC	17	16	10	17	7	67
29	Elvis Dumervil	BAL	16	17	8	18	7	66
30	Robert Mathis	IND	19	15	8	17	7	66
31	Julius Peppers	GB	17	17	8	17	7	66
32	Nick Perry	GB	17	18	5	19	7	66
33	Ahmad Brooks	SF	15	18	7	19	7	66
34	Joe Schobert	CLE	16	15	11	17	7	66
35	Sam Acho	CHI	15	18	9	16	7	65
36	John Simon	HOU	18	17	9	14	7	65
37	Shane Ray	DEN	17	16	8	17	7	65
38	Erik Walden	IND	16	17	7	18	7	65
39	Kyler Fackrell	GB	15	16	9	18	7	65
40	Derrick Morgan	TEN	16	16	8	17	7	64
41	Joshua Perry	SD	13	15	11	18	7	64
42	Paul Kruger	NO	18	15	7	16	7	63
43	Calvin Pace	FA	16	17	6	17	7	63
44	Jonathan Newsome	FA	15	15	9	17	7	63
45	Jordan Jenkins	NYJ	16	14	9	17	7	63
46	Eli Harold	SF	15	17	6	17	7	62
47	Alex Okafor	ARI	15	16	6	18	7	62
48	Jarvis Jones	PIT	15	17	8	15	7	62
49	Armonty Bryant	CLE	16	16	7	16	7	62
50	David Bass	TEN	17	15	7	16	7	62
51	Courtney Upshaw	ATL	12	18	5	18	7	60
52	Lamarr Woodley	FA	12	15	7	19	7	60
53	Za'Darius Smith	BAL	13	15	7	17	7	59
54	Kyle Emanuel	SD	14	13	9	16	7	59

Notable Omissions/Not Graded This Week

• Bud Dupree—injured reserve

4-3 Outside Linebackers

Brace Hemmelgarn-USA TODAY Sports

As NFL defenses continue to shift more and more toward shutting down opposing passing attacks, linebackers who can cover or rush the passer are becoming increasingly more important. Linebackers are more valuable when they can be three-down players, and it's no coincidence that those types of players top this list. Versatility is the name of the game.

Heading into his third year in the league, Anthony Barr has quickly become the ideal NFL linebacker. He's fast, aggressive and instinctive. Barr is aware of the 21 other moving parts on any given play, allowing him to regularly put himself in the best position to make plays. Players as young as Barr (24) rarely display the confidence that he does. When Barr sees a play developing, there is no hesitation in his movements. He clicks and closes in a heartbeat, often resulting in big plays, whether that be a tackle for loss, a sack or a defended pass. There is nothing that Barr can't do.

The unsung hero of this group is Dont'a Hightower. His teammate, Jamie Collins, tends to garner more of the attention (and for good reason, as he is also a top-five player at his position), but Hightower makes the New England defense work. There is not a linebacker in the league who is as destructive to offensive linemen as Hightower. He attacks the line of scrimmage and blows up blockers, forcing plays back to his teammates. Hightower is not a flashy player who racks up gaudy stats, but it is his understanding of opposing offenses and ability to facilitate that enables the other 10 Patriots defenders to make explosive plays. Hightower is the man behind the scenes who makes the movie work. He is the executive producer of the Patriots defense.

Though it seems Bruce Irvin has been swept under the rug since he failed to be a full-time pass-rushing threat in Seattle, he is one of the more interesting outside linebackers in the league. Like the two aforementioned players, Irvin can do it all, though he does so from a different alignment. In Oakland, Irvin will play more like a 3-4 outside linebacker like he did in Seattle—a position that will ask him to rush off the edge, hold the perimeter in the run game, and defend the flats and boundary as a coverage player. Irvin provides an explosive pass rush off the edge, both as a pure speed threat and as a speed-to-power player.

As a run defender, Irvin is wildly underrated. He can set the edge and force plays back inside, or he can shed blockers to make plays himself. He is a nimble player in tight areas and has a crafty way of finding his way to the ball-carrier. Irvin is also a quality coverage player, though he never gets credit for it. He can hold down the flats to prevent players from getting past the sticks. If his man carries up the sideline, Irvin has no problem turning and running with him. Though Irvin does not tend to line up in a traditional alignment for his position, he has a versatile skill set that allows him to be a playmaker on any down and distance.

Grading Scale

Cvg: Coverage (Graded out of 25)

Run: Run Defense (Graded out of 25)

Rush: Pass Rush (Graded out of 15)

Tkl: Tackling (Graded out of 25)

Pos: Positional Value (Graded out of 10)

Ovr: Top Possible Score of 100

4-3 Outside Linebacker Rankings Week 1

Rank	Player	Team	Cvg	Run	Rush	Tkl	Pos	Ovr
1	Anthony Barr	MIN	24	22	14	23	6	89
2	Thomas Davis	CAR	22	24	12	23	6	87
3	Dont'a Hightower	NE	21	23	13	22	6	85
4	Jamie Collins	NE	22	22	12	21	6	83
5	Sean Lee	DAL	21	22	10	22	6	81
6	K.J. Wright	SEA	20	21	10	23	6	80
7	Malcolm Smith	OAK	20	21	11	20	6	78
8	Lavonte David	TB	17	21	11	23	6	78
9	Bruce Irvin	OAK	18	20	12	20	6	76
10	Vontaze Burfict	CIN	14	21	12	23	6	76
11	Shaq Thompson	CAR	16	22	11	21	6	76
12	Mychal Kendricks	PHI	18	20	13	19	6	76
13	DeAndre Levy	DET	22	17	11	20	6	76
14	Mark Barron	LA	17	20	10	20	6	73
15	Karlos Dansby	CIN	19	16	11	20	6	72
16	Telvin Smith	JAX	14	20	10	21	6	71
17	Myles Jack	JAX	17	18	9	21	6	71
18	Nigel Bradham	PHI	20	17	7	20	6	70
19	Daryl Smith	TB	22	20	6	15	6	69
20	Akeem Ayers	IND	13	20	9	20	6	68
21	Neiron Ball	OAK	18	15	11	18	6	68
22	Philip Wheeler	ATL	14	19	7	18	6	64
23	Chad Greenway	MIN	15	17	6	20	6	64
24	A.J. Klein	CAR	15	18	8	16	6	63
25	Devon Kennard	NYG	12	17	11	17	6	63
26	Josh Bynes	DET	18	17	6	15	6	62
27	Kevin Pierre-Louis	SEA	17	17	6	16	6	62
28	Vincent Rey	CIN	11	18	7	18	6	60
29	A.J. Hawk	FA	12	19	7	16	6	60
30	Najee Goode	FA	13	15	7	18	6	59
31	Michael Morgan	SEA	11	15	10	15	6	57
32	Barkevious Mingo	NE	12	13	9	17	6	57
33	Jonathan Casillas	NYG	14	16	6	15	6	57
34	Jelani Jenkins	MIA	16	13	6	15	6	56
35	Thurston Armbrister	DET	10	16	8	16	6	56
36	De'Vondre Campbell	ATL	13	15	6	15	6	55
37	Sean Weatherspoon	ATL	13	15	6	14	6	54
38	Dan Skuta	JAX	8	15	10	15	6	54
39	Jonathan Freeny	NE	12	14	6	16	6	54
40	Koa Misi	MIA	11	15	6	16	6	54
41	Paul Dawson	FA	10	16	6	15	6	53
42	Emmanuel Lamur	MIN	9	16	7	14	6	52
43	Damien Wilson	DAL	10	14	6	16	6	52
44	Joplo Bartu	FA	10	15	6	15	6	52
45	Andrew Gachkar	DAL	11	13	6	15	6	51
46	Neville Hewitt	MIA	15	10	6	14	6	51
47	Mark Herzlich	NYG	15	12	4	14	6	51
48	Jatavis Brown	SD	10	14	7	14	6	51
49	Jake Ganus	FA	12	13	5	13	6	49
50	Cameron Lynch	FA	10	13	6	13	6	48
51	Kyle Wilber	DAL	8	14	5	15	6	48
52	Spencer Paysinger	MIA	10	12	5	15	6	48
53	Justin Durant	DAL	12	12	5	12	6	47
54	Kamu Grugier-Hill	PHI	14	10	5	12	6	47
55	J.T. Thomas	NYG	8	13	6	13	6	46
56	Ramon Humber	BUF	11	12	5	12	6	46
57	Antwione Williams	DET	8	13	5	14	6	46
58	Cory James	OAK	10	12	5	13	6	46
59	Devante Bond	TB	8	11	7	12	6	44

Notable Omissions/Not Graded This Week

• Jaylon Smith—knee injury
• Steven Daniels—shoulder injury

Inside Linebackers

Matthew Emmons-USA TODAY Sports

It's Luke Kuechly's world, and the rest of us are just living in it. Few inside linebackers are on Kuechly's level with any given ability, and nobody is combining those skills into a transferable package as well as Kuechly. Whether covering tight ends up the seam, meeting lead blockers in the gap or chasing running backs to the sideline, Kuechly is a true three-down linebacker and the only one in the National Football League who is playing routinely above average. The Carolina Panthers have cracked the proverbial code in finding an inside linebacker who doesn't need to leave the field on third down.

Behind Kuechly is a group of linebackers who can do one thing quite well, or show flashes of being complete players, but have failed to dominate week in and week out. Players such as San Francisco's NaVorro Bowman can return to All-Pro form but are dealing with injuries, team changes or the loss of strong teammates. The fluctuating performances of inside linebackers throughout the preseason have left defenses looking nearly unrecognizable as teams are forced to run varied looks and often resort to nickel packages as a base defense. Isolating specific traits from multiple players is the difference between fielding a top defense and looking incompetent each week. The result is twofold, with coaches often deciding how they'd least like their inside linebackers to be exploited.

Entering the regular season, the top inside linebackers consist of a group of varied abilities. Kuechly's gold standard has set impossible expectations for others throughout the league, but with rosters limited on Sundays, coaches have to utilize players who can be versatile in multiple packages. The majority of the inside linebackers today fall into an average group of players who have inconsistent technique and, as a result, inconsistent results. In any given week, someone may make an impressive play to be noticed. Conversely, he might be targeted for his inefficiencies.

An intriguing player to note for the upcoming season is Baltimore Raven Zach Orr. A third-year linebacker who went undrafted out of North Texas, Orr has earned the starting spot next to C.J. Mosley in Baltimore after beating out Arthur Brown throughout the preseason. Orr has the benefit of playing next to Mosley and outside linebacker Terrell Suggs, two players who comfortably rush the passer. Orr is stout and aggressive, with good coverage skills that make him immensely valuable when the Ravens bring immediate pressure. Orr had nine tackles throughout the first three preseason games and showed well-rounded athleticism and versatility. He begins the season in the middle of the pack but could end his year in the top 10 with continued development.

Grading Scale

Pass: Pass Defense (Graded out of 25)

Run: Run Defense (Graded out of 35)

Rush: Pass Rush (Graded out of 15)

Tkl: Tackling (Graded out of 15)

Pos: Positional Value (Graded out of 10)

Ovr: Top Possible Score of 100

Inside Linebacker Rankings Week 1

Rank	Player	Team	Pass	Run	Rush	Tkl	Pos	Ovr
1	Luke Kuechly	CAR	24	33	14	14	6	91
2	Jerrell Freeman	CHI	21	32	12	14	6	85
3	Danny Trevathan	CHI	22	31	12	14	6	85
4	C.J. (Clint) Mosley	BAL	20	31	13	13	6	83
5	Bobby Wagner	SEA	21	31	12	13	6	83
6	Derrick O. Johnson	KC	18	31	13	13	6	81
7	Brandon M. Marshall	DEN	20	29	12	13	6	80
8	NaVorro Bowman	SF	15	32	13	14	6	80
9	Deone Bucannon	ARI	24	27	11	12	6	80
10	Wesley Woodyard	TEN	21	30	10	10	6	77
11	Denzel Perryman	SD	18	30	11	12	6	77
12	Paul Posluszny	JAX	15	30	11	14	6	76
13	Alec Ogletree	LA	18	30	11	11	6	76
14	Zach Brown	BUF	17	30	11	11	6	75
15	Christian Jones	CHI	19	26	11	12	6	74
16	Rolando McClain	DAL	16	30	11	11	6	74
17	Benardrick McKinney	HOU	18	29	9	12	6	74
18	Ryan Shazier	PIT	19	27	11	11	6	74
19	Zach Orr	BAL	20	25	11	12	6	74
20	Tahir Whitehead	DET	17	28	10	12	6	73
21	Ben Heeney	OAK	20	25	12	10	6	73
22	Brian Cushing	HOU	13	30	10	13	6	72
23	Kevin Minter	ARI	17	28	8	13	6	72
24	Eric Kendricks	MIN	16	27	11	12	6	72
25	Jasper Brinkley	FA	16	29	10	11	6	72
26	Craig Robertson	NO	21	25	10	10	6	72
27	Gerald Hodges	SF	17	25	10	13	6	71
28	David Harris	NYJ	14	28	10	13	6	71
29	Stephen Tulloch	PHI	13	27	12	13	6	71
30	Avery Williamson	TEN	17	26	9	12	6	70
31	Jordan A. Hicks	PHI	16	25	10	13	6	70
32	Stephone Anthony	NO	15	27	12	10	6	70
33	Mason Foster	WAS	15	28	11	10	6	70
34	Preston Brown	BUF	17	25	10	11	6	69
35	Chris Kirksey	CLE	15	25	10	13	6	69
36	B.J. Goodson	NYG	16	26	10	11	6	69
37	D'Qwell Jackson	IND	15	26	9	12	6	68
38	Sam Barrington	KC	17	25	9	11	6	68
39	Nick Vigil	CIN	17	25	9	11	6	68
40	Antonio Morrison	IND	18	24	8	12	6	68
41	Blake Martinez	GB	17	27	8	10	6	68
42	Su'a Cravens	WAS	19	25	9	9	6	68
43	Will Compton	WAS	15	24	11	11	6	67
44	Manti Te'o	SD	17	24	10	10	6	67
45	Ray-Ray Armstrong	SF	16	25	10	10	6	67
46	Kentrell Brothers	MIN	16	26	9	10	6	67
47	Kelvin Sheppard	NYG	16	25	10	9	6	66
48	Lawrence Timmons	PIT	16	24	8	12	6	66
49	Kwon Alexander	TB	16	24	9	11	6	66
50	Michael Wilhoite	SF	15	25	8	12	6	66
51	Kiko Alonso	MIA	17	26	7	10	6	66
52	Todd Davis	DEN	14	26	10	10	6	66
53	Justin March	KC	17	25	8	10	6	66
54	Elandon Roberts	NE	17	26	9	8	6	66
55	Keenan Robinson	NYG	15	23	8	13	6	65
56	Shea McClellin	NE	14	24	10	11	6	65
57	Alani Fua	ARI	14	25	9	11	6	65
58	James Laurinaitis	NO	15	24	8	12	6	65
59	Jonathan Anderson	CHI	14	26	9	10	6	65
60	Erin Henderson	NYJ	16	23	10	10	6	65
61	Tyler Matakevich	PIT	16	25	7	11	6	65
62	Darron Lee	NYJ	18	24	8	9	6	65
63	Paul Worrilow	ATL	14	28	8	8	6	64
64	Rey Maualuga	CIN	13	26	8	11	6	64
65	Scooby Wright III	CLE	16	23	11	8	6	64
66	Anthony Hitchens	DAL	16	21	9	11	6	63
67	Perry Riley	FA	15	23	8	10	6	62
68	Deion Jones	ATL	17	22	8	9	6	62
69	Demario Davis	CLE	14	24	8	9	6	61
70	Sio Moore	IND	17	20	8	10	6	61
71	Jake Ryan	GB	14	25	7	9	6	61
72	Nate Palmer	TEN	14	22	8	10	6	60
73	DeMeco Ryans	FA	12	23	8	10	6	59
74	Josh Forrest	LA	15	22	9	7	6	59
75	Curtis Lofton	FA	11	22	8	10	6	57
76	Nate Irving	FA	14	20	8	8	6	56

Notable Omissions/Not Graded This Week

• Reggie Ragland—knee injury
• Joe Walker—torn ACL 

Cornerbacks

Troy Wayrynen-USA TODAY Sports

The life of an NFL cornerback is as difficult as that of any position, as the injection of otherworldly athletes at wide receiver hasn't stopped despite rule changes favoring the offense even more. The list is small when discussing the NFL's elite cornerbacks, as the cream of the crop blends premier physical traits with precise attention to detail. The list of the finest cornerbacks is once again headlined by familiar faces.

The Arizona Cardinals boast two of the most versatile and unique cornerbacks in Tyrann Mathieu and Patrick Peterson. Mathieu's ability to seamlessly line up at safety, slot and boundary cornerback is a critical piece of their talented defense. As he returns from a torn ACL, he must again prove himself after a setback.

Peterson took a massive step forward in 2015 as he learned to control his diabetes and refined his footwork. Instead of being known as a physical specimen, he's as well-rounded as almost any corner in the league as he enters his sixth season. He's on the heels of longtime greats and potential Hall of Famers in New York Jets cornerback Darrelle Revis and Seattle Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman.

Revis has seen a dip in his athleticism over the last two seasons, but he's still a standout in the secondary because of his physicality and intelligence. He's not to be taken lightly by any opponent despite being 31 years old. But his reign as the NFL's best came to an end in 2015.

Young stars such as Atlanta Falcons corner Desmond Trufant, Kansas City Chiefs corner Marcus Peters and New Orleans Saints corner Delvin Breaux headline the new era of up-and-comers who hope to become stalwarts at the position for the foreseeable future. While interceptions help establish dominance, it's the play-to-play consistency that'll strike fear into the opposition from targeting these cornerbacks.

Grading Scale

Cvg: Coverage (Graded out of 30)

React: Reaction/Recovery (Graded out of 30)

Slot: Slot (Graded out of 20)

Tkl: Tackling (Graded out of 10)

Pos: Positional Value (Graded out of 10)

Ovr: Top Possible Score of 100

Cornerback Rankings Week 1

Rank	Player	Team	Cvg	React	Slot	Tkl	Pos	Ovr
1	Tyrann Mathieu	ARI	27	27	19	10	9	92
2	Chris Harris Jr.	DEN	27	26	19	9	9	90
3	Darrelle Revis	NYJ	26	27	18	10	9	90
4	Patrick Peterson	ARI	27	28	18	7	9	89
5	Richard Sherman	SEA	25	28	17	9	9	88
6	Desmond Trufant	ATL	27	25	18	8	9	87
7	Bradley Roby	DEN	25	25	17	9	9	85
8	Marcus Peters	KC	25	28	14	7	9	83
9	Jimmy Smith	BAL	26	25	15	7	9	82
10	Darius Slay	DET	26	21	17	7	9	80
11	Jason Verrett	SD	24	25	15	7	9	80
12	Delvin Breaux	NO	25	21	16	8	9	79
13	Jeremy Lane	SEA	24	20	18	6	9	77
14	Ronald Darby	BUF	23	24	14	6	9	76
15	Trumaine Johnson	LA	23	21	16	7	9	76
16	Sean Smith	OAK	26	22	12	7	9	76
17	Josh Norman	WAS	25	22	12	7	9	75
18	Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie	NYG	22	23	15	5	9	74
19	Janoris Jenkins	NYG	21	23	15	6	9	74
20	Malcolm Butler	NE	22	23	14	5	9	73
21	Adam Jones	CIN	20	22	15	7	9	73
22	Bashaud Breeland	WAS	23	21	15	5	9	73
23	Sam Shields	GB	21	20	16	6	9	72
24	Orlando Scandrick	DAL	19	21	16	7	9	72
25	Stephon Gilmore	BUF	22	24	10	6	9	71
26	Casey Hayward	SD	20	18	17	7	9	71
27	Robert Alford	ATL	20	19	17	6	9	71
28	Kyle Fuller	CHI	20	20	15	6	9	70
29	Nolan Carroll	PHI	20	19	15	6	9	69
30	Jimmie Ward	SF	18	17	17	7	9	68
31	Kareem Jackson	HOU	18	15	19	7	9	68
32	Quandre Diggs	DET	17	16	18	7	9	67
33	Vernon Hargreaves	TB	17	19	17	5	9	67
34	Jalen Ramsey	JAX	17	18	14	8	9	66
35	Tramaine Brock	SF	18	16	15	6	9	64
36	Terence Newman	MIN	19	14	16	6	9	64
37	Johnathan Joseph	HOU	20	18	11	6	9	64
38	Kyle Arrington	BAL	16	15	16	8	9	64
39	Prince Amukamara	JAX	18	16	11	9	9	63
40	Damarious Randall	GB	18	16	14	6	9	63
41	Lamarcus Joyner	LA	13	17	16	8	9	63
42	Bryce Callahan	CHI	17	16	15	6	9	63
43	James Bradberry	CAR	17	14	15	8	9	63
44	Captain Munnerlyn	MIN	16	13	17	7	9	62
45	Trae Waynes	MIN	17	14	17	5	9	62
46	MacKensie Alexander	MIN	16	16	16	5	9	62
47	Aqib Talib	DEN	18	17	10	7	9	61
48	Vontae Davis	IND	18	17	12	5	9	61
49	Tracy Porter	CHI	15	15	16	6	9	61
50	Trevin Wade	NYG	15	16	15	6	9	61
51	Pierre Desir	SD	17	15	13	6	9	60
52	Jalen Mills	PHI	14	15	16	6	9	60
53	Xavier Rhodes	MIN	19	12	13	6	9	59
54	Patrick Robinson	IND	18	15	13	4	9	59
55	Eric Rowe	NE	15	17	11	7	9	59
56	Brent Grimes	TB	17	18	12	3	9	59
57	Juston Burris	NYJ	16	17	12	5	9	59
58	Alterraun Verner	TB	13	15	16	5	9	58
59	Tramon Williams	CLE	17	17	10	5	9	58
60	Bene Benwikere	CAR	12	14	16	7	9	58
61	Perrish Cox	TEN	14	14	15	6	9	58
62	Brandon Flowers	SD	15	16	13	5	9	58
63	Sean Davis	PIT	13	15	13	8	9	58
64	DeShawn Shead	SEA	13	16	12	7	9	57
65	Ross Cockrell	PIT	17	15	11	5	9	57
66	Kyle Wilson	NO	15	13	15	5	9	57
67	Kevin A. Johnson	HOU	16	17	9	6	9	57
68	Darius Butler	IND	13	15	14	6	9	57
69	Eli Apple	NYG	16	13	14	5	9	57
70	Cyrus Jones	NE	14	15	14	5	9	57
71	Will Blackmon	WAS	16	14	12	5	9	56
72	Kenneth Acker	KC	14	13	14	6	9	56
73	Sterling Moore	NO	14	14	15	4	9	56
74	Buster Skrine	NYJ	14	16	12	5	9	56
75	KeiVarae Russell	KC	16	14	12	5	9	56
76	Kalan Reed	TEN	14	16	12	5	9	56
77	Logan Ryan	NE	13	14	12	7	9	55
78	Leon Hall	NYG	14	12	13	7	9	55
79	Nickell Robey	BUF	15	11	14	6	9	55
80	Jalen Collins	ATL	14	13	12	6	9	54
81	Nevin Lawson	DET	14	14	12	5	9	54
82	Will Redmond	SF	15	13	14	3	9	54
83	Rashard Robinson	SF	14	13	15	3	9	54
84	Byron Maxwell	MIA	17	14	8	5	9	53
85	Jayron Hosley	FA	12	14	12	6	9	53
86	Justin Bethel	ARI	13	14	14	3	9	53
87	Xavien Howard	MIA	13	12	11	8	9	53
88	Daryl Worley	CAR	12	13	13	6	9	53
89	Zack Sanchez	CAR	11	14	15	4	9	53
90	William Gay	PIT	15	12	11	5	9	52
91	Dre Kirkpatrick	CIN	15	15	8	5	9	52
92	Davon House	JAX	13	14	11	5	9	52
93	Jamar Taylor	CLE	12	11	13	7	9	52
94	William Jackson	CIN	15	14	10	4	9	52
95	Kendall Fuller	WAS	14	11	13	5	9	52
96	Tavon Young	BAL	12	13	11	7	9	52
97	Eric Murray	KC	12	13	12	6	9	52
98	Harlan Miller	ARI	12	13	12	6	9	52
99	Phillip Adams	FA	12	12	13	4	9	50
100	Anthony Brown	DAL	11	14	12	4	9	50
101	Bobby McCain	MIA	12	11	12	5	9	49
102	K'Waun Williams	FA	12	11	11	6	9	49
103	Johnthan Banks	TB	13	12	10	5	9	49
104	Brandon Williams	ARI	13	11	12	4	9	49
105	Maurice Canady	BAL	13	12	10	5	9	49
106	David Amerson	OAK	13	16	7	3	9	48
107	Trumaine McBride	FA	10	11	12	6	9	48
108	Leodis McKelvin	PHI	14	10	10	5	9	48
109	Artie Burns	PIT	13	13	9	4	9	48
110	Justin Coleman	NE	11	13	9	5	9	47
111	Antonio Cromartie	IND	15	12	7	4	9	47
112	Mike Jenkins	ARI	11	9	13	5	9	47
113	Lardarius Webb	BAL	11	12	11	4	9	47
114	Kevon Seymour	BUF	11	11	12	4	9	47
115	Aaron Colvin	JAX	12	10	10	5	9	46
116	Cary Williams	FA	12	10	9	6	9	46
117	Jerraud Powers	BAL	12	10	10	5	9	46
118	Jude Adjei-Barimah	TB	9	11	13	4	9	46
119	Chris Culliver	MIA	13	10	10	4	9	46
120	Sherrick McManis	CHI	10	11	12	4	9	46
121	T.J. Carrie	OAK	10	10	11	5	9	45
122	Prince Charles Iworah	SF	12	9	10	5	9	45
123	Dwayne Gratz	JAX	11	12	8	4	9	44
124	Shareece Wright	BAL	12	9	10	4	9	44
125	Neiko Thorpe	FA	11	11	9	4	9	44
126	D.J. White	KC	11	10	8	6	9	44
127	Tyler Patmon	FA	9	10	11	4	9	43
128	Blidi Wreh-Wilson	FA	10	9	8	7	9	43
129	D.J. Hayden	OAK	9	11	9	4	9	42
130	Jordan Lucas	MIA	10	10	8	5	9	42
131	Morris Claiborne	DAL	10	10	8	4	9	41
132	Coty Sensabaugh	LA	8	10	10	4	9	41
133	Brice McCain	TEN	8	9	10	4	9	40
134	E.J. Biggers	FA	8	10	8	4	9	39
135	Brandon Carr	DAL	9	9	7	4	9	38
136	Trey Caldwell	CLE	7	8	8	5	9	37
137	LeShaun Sims	TEN	8	7	7	5	9	36
138	Greg Toler	WAS	7	5	7	5	9	33
139	Antwon Blake	TEN	7	7	5	3	9	31

Notable Omissions/Not Graded This Week

• None

Free Safeties

Brace Hemmelgarn-USA TODAY Sports

Free safety might be the most underrated position simply because they spend most of the time off camera on the TV broadcast. But they shouldn't be forgotten about completely, as they are incredibly important. Everyone knows of the elite guys such as Earl Thomas, Devin McCourty and Harrison Smith, but there are a few other interesting players to keep an eye on going into the season.

One of the safety partnerships many are eager to see is in Philadelphia. The Eagles signed Rodney McLeod to join Malcolm Jenkins in the secondary. Jenkins was the free safety in Philadelphia last season but often played closer to the line of scrimmage in a strong safety role. McLeod should take over the deep-coverage responsibilities and, in theory, provide a solid partner with a complementary skill set to Jenkins.

The retirement of Charles Woodson raises an interesting storyline. Oakland replaced him with free-agent Reggie Nelson, who should slot in well on paper but may struggle to replace the leadership and presence Woodson had. By signing with Oakland, Nelson left a hole to be filled in Cincinnati. The Bengals have depth at the position and should be able to promote from within, but it's impossible to say just how well a player will perform in an increased role until he actually does it.

Eric Reid's play for the 49ers has seen him rise to the cusp of the top group of free safeties in the league. Expect him to improve this season and firmly grasp a spot near the top of these rankings. Texans safety Andre Hal is another one who could improve after a promising season last year. Meanwhile, the likes of Chicago and Atlanta have questions to answer at the free safety position.

Grading Scale

Cvg: Coverage (Graded out of 30)

Rec: Recovery (Graded out of 30)

Slot: Slot/LB (Graded out of 10)

Tkl: Tackling (Graded out of 20)

Pos: Positional Value (Graded out of 10)

Ovr: Top Possible Score of 100

Free Safety Rankings Week 1

Rank	Player	Team	Cvg	Rec	Slot	Tkl	Pos	Ovr
1	Earl Thomas	SEA	27	29	7	18	8	89
2	Devin McCourty	NE	28	26	8	18	8	88
3	Harrison Smith	MIN	26	26	8	18	8	86
4	Malcolm Jenkins	PHI	27	23	9	16	8	83
5	Rodney McLeod	PHI	24	27	5	18	8	82
6	Eric Reid	SF	24	26	6	17	8	81
7	Darian Stewart	DEN	23	24	7	17	8	79
8	DeAngelo Hall	WAS	22	22	8	17	8	77
9	Andre Hal	HOU	23	23	6	16	8	76
10	Reggie Nelson	OAK	23	21	6	17	8	75
11	Tashaun Gipson	JAX	22	25	8	12	8	75
12	Michael Griffin	FA	22	22	7	16	8	75
13	Marcus Gilchrist	NYJ	22	22	7	15	8	74
14	Jairus Byrd	NO	22	21	6	17	8	74
15	Darian Thompson	NYG	22	20	7	17	8	74
16	Ricardo Allen	ATL	22	21	5	17	8	73
17	Kurt Coleman	CAR	19	23	6	16	8	72
18	Duron Harmon	NE	21	22	5	16	8	72
19	Ha Ha Clinton-Dix	GB	21	21	5	17	8	72
20	Jordan Poyer	CLE	21	20	6	17	8	72
21	Vonn Bell	NO	21	19	7	17	8	72
22	Micah Hyde	GB	19	21	7	16	8	71
23	Eric Weddle	BAL	23	18	7	14	8	70
24	Shawn Williams	CIN	18	19	7	18	8	70
25	Mike C. Adams	IND	19	18	8	17	8	70
26	Rashad Johnson	TEN	21	18	5	15	8	67
27	Antrel Rolle	FA	19	17	7	16	8	67
28	Glover Quin	DET	19	18	5	17	8	67
29	Rahim Moore	FA	18	19	4	18	8	67
30	Byron Jones	DAL	20	21	6	12	8	67
31	Michael Thomas	MIA	18	19	5	16	8	66
32	Bradley McDougald	TB	18	18	6	16	8	66
33	J.J. Wilcox	DAL	19	19	5	15	8	66
34	Kevin Byard	TEN	18	18	6	16	8	66
35	Adrian Amos	CHI	18	17	6	16	8	65
36	Robert Golden	PIT	16	18	7	16	8	65
37	DeAndre Houston-Carson	CHI	17	17	6	17	8	65
38	Michael Mitchell	PIT	17	18	6	15	8	64
39	Tyvon Branch	ARI	17	16	6	17	8	64
40	Ron Parker	KC	18	18	6	14	8	64
41	Kendrick Lewis	BAL	17	19	5	15	8	64
42	Bacarri Rambo	FA	17	19	6	14	8	64
43	T.J. Green	IND	18	18	6	14	8	64
44	Justin Simmons	DEN	18	17	6	15	8	64
45	Antoine Bethea	SF	16	16	7	16	8	63
46	Chris Conte	TB	17	17	4	16	8	62
47	Chris Prosinski	CHI	15	16	6	16	8	61
48	Dashon Goldson	ATL	19	17	4	13	8	61
49	Kavon Frazier	DAL	16	16	5	16	8	61
50	Walt Aikens	MIA	16	16	5	13	8	58
51	Ed Reynolds	CLE	15	16	5	13	8	57
52	Larry Asante	FA	14	15	4	14	8	55
53	Sergio Brown	FA	14	15	5	12	8	54

Notable Omissions/Not Graded This Week

• None 

Strong Safeties

Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports

Eric Berry is one of the two best safeties in football. He does everything well—playing single high, covering the slot, running with athletic tight ends down the seam, hitting like a truck while being able to wrap up and factoring into the run game. He and Seattle's Kam Chancellor are the two clear headline players of the strong safety group. While they deserve their recognition, they shouldn't overshadow some other strong performers.

Reshad Jones quietly had an exceptional season last year with the Dolphins, ranking fourth in the NFL in tackles with 135, an incredible effort from the strong safety position. Similarly, Tony Jefferson flew under the radar in Arizona's fantastically talented secondary. Both are solid, well-rounded players who should be reliable performers for their teams this season.

Elsewhere, Jacksonville will hope that the arrival of Tashaun Gipson at free safety will allow Johnathan Cyprien to stay at his more natural strong safety position. The Jaguars struggled to find the right combination at safety last season, often switching Cyprien between both roles. Perhaps focusing on just one role will help the 2013 second-round pick reach his potential.

Grading Scale

Cvg: Coverage (Graded out of 25)

Rec: Recovery (Graded out of 25)

Slot: Slot/LB (Graded out of 20)

Tkl: Tackling (Graded out of 20)

Pos: Positional Value (Graded out of 10)

Ovr: Top Possible Score of 100

Strong Safety Rankings Week 1

Rank	Player	Team	Cvg	Rec	Slot	Tkl	Pos	Ovr
1	Eric Berry	KC	24	23	19	18	6	90
2	Kam Chancellor	SEA	22	22	18	19	6	87
3	Reshad Jones	MIA	22	21	18	19	6	86
4	T.J. Ward	DEN	20	21	17	17	6	81
5	Morgan Burnett	GB	19	20	17	18	6	80
6	George Iloka	CIN	19	21	16	18	6	80
7	Tony Jefferson	ARI	18	19	18	18	6	79
8	Calvin Pryor	NYJ	17	19	18	17	6	77
9	Kenny Vaccaro	NO	17	20	17	16	6	76
10	Quintin Demps	HOU	18	18	16	17	6	75
11	Barry Church	DAL	18	18	17	16	6	75
12	Karl Joseph	OAK	19	18	16	16	6	75
13	Isa Abdul-Quddus	MIA	17	18	16	17	6	74
14	David Bruton	WAS	17	17	17	17	6	74
15	Patrick Chung	NE	17	18	15	17	6	73
16	Corey Graham	BUF	17	16	17	17	6	73
17	Eddie Pleasant	HOU	17	16	17	17	6	73
18	Dwight Lowery	SD	17	16	16	17	6	72
19	Jaquiski Tartt	SF	17	17	15	16	6	71
20	Da'Norris Searcy	TEN	16	16	15	17	6	70
21	Roman Harper	NO	17	16	15	16	6	70
22	Keanu Neal	ATL	17	16	16	15	6	70
23	Miles Killebrew	DET	16	16	15	17	6	70
24	K.J. Dillon	HOU	16	18	14	16	6	70
25	Deon Bush	CHI	17	17	14	16	6	70
26	Landon Collins	NYG	15	16	17	16	6	70
27	William Moore	FA	15	14	17	17	6	69
28	Andrew Sendejo	MIN	16	16	16	15	6	69
29	Donte Whitner	FA	16	14	16	16	6	68
30	Daimion Stafford	TEN	15	16	15	16	6	68
31	Derrick Kindred	CLE	15	16	15	16	6	68
32	Jayron Kearse	MIN	17	15	16	14	6	68
33	Marqui Christian	ARI	17	15	14	15	6	67
34	Will Parks	DEN	15	15	16	13	6	65
35	Will Allen	FA	15	14	15	14	6	64
36	Kemal Ishmael	ATL	15	15	13	14	6	63
37	Jimmy Wilson	FA	14	15	15	13	6	63
38	John Cyprien	JAX	15	14	14	13	6	62
39	Clayton Fejedelem	CIN	14	15	14	13	6	62
40	Taylor Mays	FA	13	14	13	15	6	61
41	James Ihedigbo	FA	13	14	14	14	6	61
42	T.J. McDonald	LA	15	13	15	12	6	61
43	Jahleel Addae	SD	13	14	13	14	6	60
44	Brandon Meriweather	FA	13	13	14	13	6	59
45	Robert Blanton	BUF	13	13	13	14	6	59
46	Josh Evans	FA	13	15	12	12	6	58

Notable Omissions/Not Graded This Week

• Will Hill—10-game suspension
• Kyshoen Jarrett—right shoulder nerve damage
• Trenton Robinson—torn pectoral

Kickers

Bob DeChiara-USA TODAY Sports

The 2015 NFL season saw one of the biggest changes in the kicking game in recent history with the extra point being lengthened from 20 to 33 yards. A play that was successful 99.3 percent of the time in 2014 saw its accuracy dip to 94.2 percent on the longer extra points. While many people feared kickers would struggle on field goals as a result of reduced confidence, the 84.5 percent field-goal accuracy last season was actually a 0.5 percent improvement.

Leading the way in the preseason rankings are Dan Bailey of the Dallas Cowboys and Stephen Gostkowski of the New England Patriots, who are the only two kickers above 80 in the NFL1000 rankings. Bailey and Gostkowski have established themselves with extended track records of excellence and are head and shoulders above any other kickers on this list. The next tier down features Steven Hauschka, looking to build more consistency on extra points, and Justin Tucker, who is trying to bounce back from a 2015 filled with long-distance woes and has a new contract with a record amount of guaranteed money for a kicker.

Question marks this year can be found with Brandon McManus, who needs to prove his dramatic improvement in 2015 was not a fluke, as well as Blair Walsh, attempting to move past the disappointment of his costly miss in the 2015 playoffs. Greg Zuerlein of the Los Angeles Rams also has some serious questions regarding his accuracy, though six of his 10 misses came from 50-plus yards. Lastly, Dan Carpenter of the Bills and Jason Myers of the Jaguars look to improve on their disappointing performance on longer extra points last year, with both drawing the ire of their fanbases because of their inconsistency.

One of only two true rookies expected to start in Week 1 is Roberto Aguayo, the second-round pick of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and a player of focus this preseason. While Aguayo had his struggles, he finished the preseason 8-of-10 on field goals and 7-of-8 on extra points, slightly below-average numbers, though he showed significant improvement in the final two weeks, with no misses during that time.

Other young kickers to watch are Chandler Catanzaro of the Cardinals and Chris Boswell of the Steelers, who both have the ability to move into the upper echelon of NFL kickers but need to display more consistency from week to week.

Grading Scale

Pwr: Kick Power (Graded out of 40)

Acc: Kick Accuracy (Graded out of 40)

Tkl: Tackling (Graded out of 10)

Pos: Positional Value (Graded out of 10)

Ovr: Top Possible Score of 100

Kicker Rankings Week 1

Rank	Player	Team	Pwr	Acc	Tkl	Pos	Ovr
1	Stephen Gostkowski	NE	35	37	5	3	80
2	Dan Bailey	DAL	34	38	5	3	80
3	Steven Hauschka	SEA	35	31	6	3	75
4	Justin Tucker	BAL	38	28	6	3	75
5	Dustin Hopkins	WAS	32	31	7	3	73
6	Matt Prater	DET	28	35	5	3	71
7	Josh Brown	NYG	25	37	6	3	71
8	Ryan Succop	TEN	30	32	5	3	70
9	Brandon McManus	DEN	33	28	5	3	69
10	Phil Dawson	SF	30	30	5	3	68
11	Graham Gano	CAR	33	25	7	3	68
12	Chris Boswell	PIT	27	31	7	3	68
13	Adam Vinatieri	IND	27	32	5	3	67
14	Robbie Gould	FA	29	28	6	3	66
15	Mason Crosby	GB	27	30	5	3	65
16	Chandler Catanzaro	ARI	31	25	5	3	64
17	Blair Walsh	MIN	29	26	5	3	63
18	Mike Nugent	CIN	28	26	6	3	63
19	Jason Myers	JAX	33	20	7	3	63
20	Josh Lambo	SD	31	20	8	3	62
21	Andrew Franks	MIA	32	22	5	3	62
22	Caleb Sturgis	PHI	30	24	5	3	62
23	Nick Folk	NYJ	25	28	5	3	61
24	Cairo Santos	KC	26	26	6	3	61
25	Sebastian Janikowski	OAK	29	23	5	3	60
26	Connor Barth	CHI	28	24	5	3	60
27	Dan Carpenter	BUF	28	22	6	3	59
28	Nick Novak	HOU	23	27	5	3	58
29	Roberto Aguayo	TB	26	24	5	3	58
30	Travis Coons	FA	22	25	5	3	55
31	Matt Bryant	ATL	25	21	5	3	54
32	Greg Zuerlein	LA	30	10	5	3	48
33	Kai Forbath	FA	25	9	7	3	44

Notable Omissions/Not Graded This Week

• None

Punters

Al Bello/Getty Images

The top of the punting rankings has a name that might not be familiar to many football fans but should be after his performance last year. Brett Kern of the Tennessee Titans holds down the top spot and is the only punter with a score of at least 80 in our initial rankings. Kern displayed phenomenal distance control and a big leg, and also showed above-average hang time in 2015. Perennial upper-echelon punters Pat McAfee, Sam Koch and Sam Martin occupy the next three spots, with each of them having strong campaigns as well.

Britton Colquitt, recently cut by the Denver Broncos and signed by the Cleveland Browns, finds himself in fifth. Though his contract made him expendable in Denver, his performance in the second half of last season and in the Super Bowl propelled him to heights he has not seen before in his career. But he needs to prove he can perform in that fashion over a longer period of time. Also cut in the preseason, Mike Scifres is our 11th-ranked punter and will likely find himself work before the end of the year because of his accuracy and ball placement.

Thomas Morstead, Tress Way and Drew Butler all have significant question marks surrounding their game, with Morstead and Way tied for the worst accuracy and distance control in the league with Shane Lechler and Butler having arguably the weakest leg out of any NFL punter. Scifres may find his way into one of these spots before the season is done.

The standout young gun in this year's class is Drew Kaser, who has the ability to be an upper-tier punter this year. His track record at Texas A&M was outstanding, and his preseason work shows an uncanny ability to pin teams within their 10-yard line, with end-over-end punts stopping on a dime on a consistent basis. He has every tool necessary to be an elite punter early in his career; he simply needs to prove it.

Rookies Riley Dixon and Lachlan Edwards also appear to have starting jobs to open the season. Dixon showed improvement throughout the preseason and has the potential to be a league-average punter this year, though Edwards has significant work to do in terms of consistency and leg strength to get there.

Grading Scale

Dist: Kick Distance (Graded out of 20)

Hang: Kick Hang Time (Graded out of 20)

Acc: Kick Accuracy (Graded out of 45)

Tkl: Tackling (Graded out of 5)

Pos: Positional Value (Graded out of 10)

Ovr: Top Possible Score of 100

Punter Rankings Week 1

Rank	Player	Team	Dist	Hang	Acc	Tkl	Pos	Ovr
1	Brett Kern	TEN	18	17	39	3	3	80
2	Pat McAfee	IND	16	16	37	5	3	77
3	Sam Koch	BAL	15	15	40	4	3	77
4	Sam Martin	DET	14	15	40	4	3	76
5	Britton Colquitt	CLE	12	15	41	3	3	74
6	Jon Ryan	SEA	16	16	36	3	3	74
7	Andy Lee	CAR	17	15	35	3	3	73
8	Bryan Anger	TB	16	16	33	5	3	73
9	Ryan Allen	NE	15	13	37	4	3	72
10	Matt Bosher	ATL	17	14	33	3	3	70
11	Mike Scifres	FA	14	14	36	3	3	70
12	Jordan Berry	PIT	12	13	37	4	3	69
13	Chris Jones	DAL	14	13	35	3	3	68
14	Johnny Hekker	LA	16	15	29	5	3	68
15	Drew Kaser	SD	15	15	32	3	3	68
16	Dustin Colquitt	KC	15	14	32	3	3	67
17	Pat O'Donnell	CHI	12	14	34	3	3	66
18	Marquette King	OAK	13	15	32	3	3	66
19	Kevin Huber	CIN	14	16	30	3	3	66
20	Colton Schmidt	BUF	15	14	30	3	3	65
21	Jacob Schum	GB	11	15	33	3	3	65
22	Brad Nortman	JAX	15	16	28	3	3	65
23	Brad Wing	NYG	14	13	29	4	3	63
24	Matt Darr	MIA	17	15	24	4	3	63
25	Riley Dixon	DEN	13	15	29	3	3	63
26	Donnie Jones	PHI	14	14	28	3	3	62
27	Shane Lechler	HOU	16	16	24	3	3	62
28	Jeff Locke	MIN	10	13	32	3	3	61
29	Bradley Pinion	SF	12	14	29	3	3	61
30	Ryan Quigley	FA	10	13	31	3	3	60
31	Tress Way	WAS	14	14	24	4	3	59
32	Drew Butler	ARI	10	15	27	3	3	58
33	Tim Masthay	FA	11	11	29	3	3	57
34	Thomas Morstead	NO	13	13	24	3	3	56
35	Lachlan Edwards	NYJ	9	11	25	3	3	51

Notable Omissions/Not Graded This Week

• None