Bleacher Report's Expert Consensus NFL All-Pro Team
The 2018 NFL season has come and gone, and while 12 fortunate teams have moved on to the postseason, for most of the league's players, another year has come to an end.
This is a time of reflection on the NFL calendar—of looking back at the season that was, even as we look to the playoffs and Super Bowl that will be, of pinpointing and recognizing the best performances of the 2018 campaign.
Part of that is the selection of Pro Bowl and All-Pro teams. The former has already been announced, and soon organizations like the Associated Press and Pro Football Writers of America will offer their takes on the best players of 2018 by naming their All-Pro teams.
We're all about joining in the fun here at Bleacher Report, so B/R NFL analysts Brent Sobleski, Brad Gagnon and Gary Davenport have combined forces and tallied their own vote for the NFL's best at each position.
Here's their collective take on the cream of the crop. The pick of the litter.
The Bleacher Report Expert Consensus NFL All-Pro team.
Quarterback
1 of 13
Patrick Mahomes, Kansas City Chiefs (3 votes)
The most important position in football might be the biggest no-brainer of the entire B/R All-Pro team.
Because while there are other NFL quarterbacks having great seasons (Drew Brees, Philip Rivers), no signal-caller is having a season quite like Patrick Mahomes in Kansas City.
After passing for 281 yards and two touchdowns in the season-ending win over the Oakland Raiders, Mahomes entered some rarefied air in his second NFL season.
With 5,097 passing yards, Mahomes became the seventh player in NFL history to pass for more than 5,000 yards in a season. Mahomes also threw 50 touchdown passes—a feat only Peyton Manning (2013) and Tom Brady (2007) have accomplished in the past.
Manning is the only other player to have done both in the same year in his record-shattering season with the Denver Broncos. But where Manning was a grizzled veteran nearing the end of his career, Mahomes is just 23 and playing in his first season as a starter. We haven't seen a quarterback this good this young since Dan Marino.
If Mahomes isn't named the league MVP at next month's NFL honors, it will be a massive upset.
Running Back/Flex
2 of 13
RB: Todd Gurley, Los Angeles Rams (3 votes)
Todd Gurley didn't lead the NFL in rushing in 2018, but a pretty strong argument can be made that the fourth-year pro is the best in the game at his position.
Before sitting out the final two games of the season with a knee injury, Gurley appeared headed toward a second straight season with over 2,000 total yards. He averaged a career-high 4.9 yards a carry in 2018, scored 21 total touchdowns and was a big factor in the MVP race for a second consecutive season.
"The Rams have one of the league's most potent offenses," Davenport said. "But the engine that drives that offense isn't quarterback Jared Goff. It's Gurley, who is an elite talent in every facet of the game. Power, speed, hands in the passing game—Gurley has it all."
FLEX: Saquon Barkley, RB, New York Giants (2 votes)
Prior to the 2018 season, only two rookie running backs in NFL history surpassed 2,000 total yards in their first season—Edgerrin James and the great Eric Dickerson.
Those backs have company now.
Barkley's 2,000-yard season wasn't the only history the No. 2 overall pick made in his first season. His 91 receptions set a record for rookie running backs, and he was the first rookie to top 1,200 yards rushing and 600 yards receiving since Billy Sims in 1980.
There were some other deserving candidates, like Carolina Panthers running back Christian McCaffrey, but at the end of the day, Gagnon believed Barkley was an easy call.
"The rookie ended up leading the NFL in scrimmage yards," he wrote, "while only Gurley and Alvin Kamara scored more touchdowns. McCaffrey was a slightly more effective receiver, but Barkley had a significant edge over him, Kamara and arguably even Ezekiel Elliott on the ground."
Others receiving votes: Christian McCaffrey, RB, Carolina Panthers (1 vote)
Tight End/Fullback
3 of 13
TE: George Kittle, San Francisco 49ers (2 votes)
It's not hard to see why this vote was a two-horse race. The two horses involved both held the NFL's single-season yardage record for a tight end.
The deciding factor is that one player held the record for about an hour before the other broke it.
Travis Kelce of the Kansas City Chiefs had a phenomenal season, reeling in 103 catches for 1,336 yards and 10 scores. But by virtue of his 43-yard catch-and-run touchdown against the Los Angeles Rams, George Kittle of the San Francisco 49ers finished with 1,377 yards—and the record.
"The tight end vote came down to two players: Kittle and Travis Kelce," Sobleski said. "The Kansas City Chiefs tight end broke the single-season receiving yardage record only to be topped by Kittle by the end of Sunday's play. Furthermore, Kittle is a better blocker at the point of attack."
Kittle also did his damage catching passes from the likes of C.J. Beathard and Nick Mullens, while Kelce had the advantage of playing with Patrick Mahomes.
That makes the former's achievement all the more impressive.
Others receiving votes: Travis Kelce, Kansas City Chiefs (1 vote)
FB: Kyle Juszczyk, San Francisco 49ers (3 votes)
The fullback position is going the way of the videocassette, but there are still some NFL teams that employ one.
Among those who do, the gold standard is easily Kyle Juszczyk of the 49ers.
Juszczyk's statistics are nothing to jump up and down about; the 27-year-old touched the ball just 38 times all season long.
But as has long been the case for fullbacks, Juszczyk's impact goes beyond the box score, and for the 49ers to finish 13th in the NFL in rushing despite being ravaged by injuries in the backfield speaks very well to his ability as a lead blocker.
.jpg?w=256 "Browns Football")
Wide Receiver
4 of 13
WR1: Michael Thomas, New Orleans Saints (2 votes)
The New Orleans Saints spent much of the 2018 season as one of the best teams in the NFL and were spurred to those heights by a high-octane offense.
The No. 1 receiver for that offense, Michael Thomas, has staked his claim to the title of the best wideout in the National Football League.
Over the last three NFL seasons, the list of wide receivers who have been more productive than Thomas is very short. Three years with at least 92 receptions (and an average of 107). Three years with at least 1,100 rushing yards. And 23 touchdown catches.
The 2018 season was Thomas' best yet. The former Ohio State standout led the NFL with 125 receptions and set a Saints franchise record with 1,405 receiving yards.
So, yeah, he's pretty good.
Others receiving votes: Julio Jones, Atlanta Falcons (1 vote)
WR2: DeAndre Hopkins, Houston Texans (2 votes)
It's incredibly hard to narrow it down to just two All-Pro receivers. Guys are going to be left off the list.
JuJu Smith-Schuster of the Pittsburgh Steelers had 111 catches and over 1,400 yards. The Green Bay Packers' Davante Adams also had 111 catches and found the end zone 13 times.
Neither of those pass-catchers received a single vote.
However, in Sobleski's opinion, there's just no way you can assemble a 2018 All-Pro team and not have DeAndre Hopkins of the Houston Texans as one of the starting receivers.
"Julio Jones may remain the standard from a physical standpoint, and Antonio Brown's production over a multi-year stretch can't be matched, but Hopkins developed into the game's best wide receiver," he said. "The Houston Texans target was the only receiver to finish top five overall in receptions, receiving yardage, receiving touchdowns, 20-yard catches and first-down receptions. He didn't drop a single pass, either."
It's hard to argue with math.
Others receiving votes: Antonio Brown, Pittsburgh Steelers (1 vote)
Offensive Tackle
5 of 13
LT: David Bakhtiari, Green Bay Packers (3 votes)
Not much went right for Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers in 2018, but one thing's for sure: Blame for the bad year can't be laid at the feet of veteran tackle David Bakhtiari.
In fact, per Wes Hodkiewicz of the team's website, Rodgers was effusive in his praise of the guy who watches his blind side.
"He's an All-Pro. I think he has Hall of Fame potential. He's an incredible player," the quarterback said. "He's been a rock for us. When he's over there, you feel really comfortable with him locking down pass rushers throughout the game. He's played through some injuries, (but) he's had a fantastic season again and obviously having him out there has been great."
There was no argument from the analysts here at Bleacher Report, who were unanimous in picking Bakhtiari to man the LT spot on this All-Pro squad.
RT: Mitchell Schwartz, Kansas City Chiefs (2 votes)
One of the NFL's cold realities is that left tackle is a much more high-profile position than the counterparts on (for most teams) the strong side. As Brooke Pryor wrote for the Kansas City Star, Schwartz is well aware of it.
"It's been that way for a while in terms of recognition, in terms of pay," Schwartz said. "It's probably the biggest divide in terms of pay from one side to the other. That's just another thing that kind of is what it is. You're appreciated by people who know what's going on."
Schwartz may have only been named an alternate for the Pro Bowl, but after holding down the strong side for the AFC's No. 1 seed, the seventh-year veteran was a first-team selection here, where the tackle positions are (rightfully) split.
Others receiving votes: Rob Havenstein, Los Angeles Rams (1 vote)
Offensive Guard
6 of 13
LG: Joel Bitonio, Cleveland Browns (2 votes)
Before the 2018 season began, the Cleveland Browns toyed with the idea of kicking left guard Joel Bitonio outside to tackle.
It's a good thing they didn't. Not because Bitonio would necessarily have been a terrible tackle, but because he wound up playing guard as well as anyone in the NFL.
As Michael Renner pointed out at Pro Football Focus in naming Bitonio to PFF's All-Pro team, Bitonio turned in the best season of his five-year career in 2018, allowing just a single sack all season long—and that didn't come until Week 15.
Rookie Quenton Nelson of the Indianapolis Colts received a single vote here from Davenport.
"The Colts made the playoffs in 2018 largely because one of the NFL's worst O-lines from a year ago turned into one of the league's best," he said. "The No. 6 overall pick was the catalyst for that reversal of fortune."
But it's Bitonio who got the nod on the left side.
Others receiving votes: Quenton Nelson, Indianapolis Colts (1 vote)
RG: Marshal Yanda, Baltimore Ravens (2 votes)
The Baltimore Ravens rode one of the NFL's best rushing attacks to the AFC North title in 2018, and the man who leads the charge opening holes for the Ravens is longtime standout guard Marshal Yanda.
Yanda was named to his seventh Pro Bowl in 12 seasons in 2018, and he told reporters, per Todd Karpovich of the Associated Press, that he's enjoyed getting his jersey dirty this season.
"We love this kind of football. It's ground and pound, smash-mouth football," Yanda said. "We get stronger as the game gets longer, and we relish that."
Per Gagnon, Yanda's play this year is that much more impressive when you consider the veteran lost much of the 2017 campaign to injury.
"It was fair to wonder," he said, "if the 34-year-old would ever be the same after missing most of the 2017 season due to an ankle injury, but he hardly missed any snaps all season and was again dominant while paving the way for one of the most improved, unique and run-oriented offenses we've seen in years."
Others receiving votes: Shaq Mason, New England Patriots (1 vote)
Center
7 of 13
Jason Kelce, Philadelphia Eagles (3 votes)
It's as annually dependable as the dawn of the new year. When the Pro Bowl teams are announced each season, there's at least one name left off the list that leaves people just shaking their heads.
In 2018, that name was Jason Kelce.
Despite having arguably the best season of his career in 2018, Kelce was overlooked. Frankly, it shouldn't even have come as a surprise. The same thing happened in 2017, when he was named a first-team All-Pro but left off the Pro Bowl roster.
"Kelce being snubbed by the Pro Bowl goes a long way toward explaining that game's credibility problem with some," Davenport said. "Kelce's as dependable as he is versatile—equally adept at opening holes for running backs and keeping his quarterback clean. With Travis Frederick out most of the 2018 season, Kelce's an easy call as the gold standard at his position."
Edge-Rusher
8 of 13
ER1: Khalil Mack, OLB, Chicago Bears (2 votes)
The Chicago Bears are the champions of the NFC North, and that's due in part to a punishing defense that harkens back to the "Monsters of the Midway" of Chicago's past.
That defense added one substantial piece in 2018.
Actually, that's the understatement of the year.
From the moment he arrived in the Windy City, Khalil Mack was every bit the unblockable terror he was with the Oakland Raiders. Mack had strip-sacks in each of his first four games with the team, and Bears linebacker Danny Trevathan told Dan Wiederer of the Chicago Tribune that Mack's impact on the Chicago defense was seismic.
"The man absolutely changed the face of our defense," Trevathan said. "We carried that momentum like, 'Yeah, we've got some dawgs now. Let's go!'"
He'll get no argument from Gagnon.
"Despite missing two games," he wrote, "and being severely limited in at least one other due to an ankle injury, Mack was one of just four players in the NFL with 12-plus sacks and six-plus forced fumbles. He's the primary reason the Bears went from worst to first in the NFC North."
Others receiving votes: Von Miller, OLB, Denver Broncos (1 vote)
ER2: J.J. Watt, DE, Houston Texans (3 votes)
He's baaaack.
After losing most of the last two seasons to injuries, there was some question as to whether the Houston Texans' J.J. Watt would ever recapture the form that made him one of just two players in NFL history to be named Defensive Player of the Year three times.
That question has been answered affirmatively and emphatically.
Were it not for the otherworldly season turned in by a player we'll be hearing from shortly, Watt would be one of the leading candidates for DPOY again in 2018. The 29-year-old was once again a nightmare for opposing offenses this year, piling up 61 tackles, 16 sacks and a career-high seven forced fumbles.
"Aaron Donald will win Defensive Player of the Year," Davenport said. "And Andrew Luck will probably swoop in and swipe Comeback Player of the Year honors. But a lack of shiny doodads doesn't take anything away from the season Watt had, or the fact that he has regained his position as one of the very best defensive players in the NFL."
Interior Defensive Lineman
9 of 13
IDL1: Aaron Donald, DT, Los Angeles Rams (All the votes ever)
It's Aaron Donald's world. The rest of us are just living in it.
The reigning NFL Defensive Player of the Year made it clear from Day 1 of the 2018 season he had no intention of relinquishing that award. By the time the dust settled, it was crystal clear he would not.
Donald didn't just have a good season. Or a great season. He went absolutely wild, flirting with the single-season sack record before finishing the year with 59 tackles, a jaw-dropping 20.5 sacks and four forced fumbles.
"We live in a Golden Age of defensive players," Davenport said. "Donald, Khalil Mack and J.J. Watt are all generational talents. Assuming they stay healthy, all three will one day have busts in Canton. But given how Donald's playing right now, it's impossible to say that he isn't the guy. The man. The big kahuna. The best defensive player in the NFL—and maybe the best player regardless of position."
IDL2: Chris Jones, DE, Kansas City Chiefs (2 votes)
Defensive end Chris Jones of the Kansas City Chiefs is the biggest surprise star on the Bleacher Report All-Pro team.
To say that Jones exploded in 2018 doesn't do his breakout season justice. After tallying 8.5 sacks over the first two years of his career combined, Jones erupted for 15.5. Only Aaron Donald and J.J. Watt had more.
That's pretty good company to be mentioned in.
As Sobleski pointed out, it's not just that Jones piled up a ton of sacks. He was also robotically consistent. Every. Single. Week.
"One stat sums up Jones' emergence as an elite defender," Sobleski said. "The Chiefs defensive lineman set an NFL record this season by registering a sack in 11 straight contests."
With Jones and Donald on the inside and Watt and Mack on the edge, opposing quarterbacks would probably just refuse to take the field out of self-preservation.
That would be a wise course of action.
Others receiving votes: Fletcher Cox, DT, Philadelphia Eagles (1 vote)
Linebacker
10 of 13
LB1: Bobby Wagner, MLB, Seattle Seahawks (3 votes)
As Todd Milles reported for the Dallas Morning News, Wagner didn't just have another great season. He had a historic one.
"Wagner not only finished fourth in the NFL in tackles (138), but also led the league with the fewest missed tackles (one), according to PFF," he wrote. "The seventh-year pro from Utah State is the only defensive player to miss fewer than 1 percent of his total tackle attempts since the statistic started being kept in 2006."
That missed tackle didn't come until Week 16, per PFF's Michael Renner.
"The main reason the Seahawks defense remained strong without the Legion of Boom? Wagner, who was the only player in the NFL with more than 125 tackles and more than 10 passes defended," Gagnon said. "He also forced a pair of fumbles while recording a pick-six and a sack in a dominant campaign."
LB2: Luke Kuechly, MLB, Carolina Panthers (3 votes)
There are some constants in the universe. Death. Taxes. And Luke Kuechly playing the linebacker position as well as anyone in the NFL.
For the seventh time in as many seasons, Kuechly posted triple-digit tackles in 2018. In addition to those 130 total tackles (93 of which were solos), he added two sacks, two forced fumbles and an interception.
From the moment Kuechly stepped onto the field as a rookie back in 2012, he's been the gold standard at his position in the NFL.
That didn't change this season.
LB3: Darius Leonard, OLB, Indianapolis Colts (2 votes)
It's not all that hard to figure out why Darius Leonard's name is included here.
All you have to do is scope out the NFL's stat leaders.
In his first NFL season, Leonard posted a jaw-dropping 163 total tackles, including 111 solos. Both of those numbers led the league, and his total tackle production was nearly 20 stops higher than the league's second-leading tackler.
But wait! There's more!
In addition to leading the NFL in tackles, Leonard also pitched in seven sacks, four forced fumbles and a pair of interceptions. He was all over the field all season long for the playoff-bound Colts.
Others receiving votes: Leighton Vander Esch, ILB, Dallas Cowboys (1 vote)
Cornerback
11 of 13
CB1: Stephon Gilmore, New England Patriots (2 votes)
In today's pass-happy NFL, good cornerbacks are worth their weight in gold. They are also very well compensated for those efforts.
However, as Sobleski pointed out, the $13 million annually the New England Patriots invested in Stephon Gilmore before the 2017 season looks like a relative bargain after the 28-year-old put up an All-Pro-caliber effort in 2018.
"The Patriots certainly got what they paid for when the organization gave Gilmore a five-year, $65 million contract before last season," Sobleski said. "Offenses learned to avoid his coverage. When targeted, the Patriots' top corner defended 20 passes, which trailed the Chicago Bears' Kyle Fuller by one for the league lead."
And Gilmore's not lacking for confidence. As Henry McKenna reported for Patriots Wire, Gilmore didn't say he was the best at his position in the NFL.
But he didn't say he wasn't, either.
"I don't like to talk about myself. You know that. So film don't lie. I'll let other people say that," Gilmore said.
Others receiving votes: Byron Jones, Dallas Cowboys (1 vote)
CB2: Kyle Fuller, Chicago Bears (2 votes)
Last offseason, the Bears matched the four-year, $56 million offer sheet that Kyle Fuller signed with the Green Bay Packers—a deal that sent a few eyebrows up around the NFL.
Just as with Gilmore, it appears to have been money well spent.
All Fuller did in his fourth active NFL season (after spending the 2016 campaign on injured reserve) was lead the NFL in both passes defensed (21) and interceptions (seven), fortifying the secondary for one of the league's top defenses.
"The interceptions are great," Davenport said, "but that can be a fluky stat that varies wildly from one season to the next. However, 2018 was the second season in a row that Fuller topped 20 passes defensed, which speaks to his propensity for making timely plays on the ball in coverage.
Per JJ Stankevitz of NBC Sports Chicago, Fuller's play hasn't gone unnoticed around the NFL.
"A great player, he's got great situational understanding, great ball skills to be able to finish and somebody that has certainly made a lot of plays," Los Angeles Rams coach Sean McVay said. "I got a lot of respect for him."
It wasn't unnoticed here, either.
Others receiving votes: Patrick Peterson, Arizona Cardinals (1 vote)
SCB: Desmond King, Los Angeles Chargers (3 votes)
The slot cornerback position is more important than ever in today's NFL. And in 2018, no one played that spot better than Desmond King of the Los Angeles Chargers.
As Michael Renner reported for PFF, King shined in coverage all season long. His 22 coverage stops were tops among all corners, and only 22 of his 78 targets resulted in first downs.
King wasn't shy about getting dirty in run support, topping 60 total tackles. With three interceptions and a forced fumble, he showed a good nose for the football. He was also one of the better return men in the game, although here that's more happy bonus than qualification.
Safety
12 of 13
S1: Jamal Adams, New York Jets (3 votes)
In the 2017 NFL draft, the New York Jets made LSU's Jamal Adams the No. 6 overall pick in the hopes he'd become a difference-maker on the back end.
After a so-so rookie season, Adams fulfilled that promise in 2018.
In a year where not a lot went right for the Jets defensively, Adams was a bright spot. He amassed 115 total tackles and made a dent in the big-play department, too, adding 3.5 sacks, three forced fumbles and a pick.
"Whether it was in coverage or run support," Davenport said, "Adams played as well as any safety in the league in 2018. He had star potential coming out of Louisiana State, but I'll confess to having my doubts about him after an underwhelming rookie season. His performance this year put those doubts to rest. Adams had his light-bulb moment, and this is not the last time we'll list him among the best players in football."
S2: Eddie Jackson, Chicago Bears (2 votes)
This makes three Bears defenders on the Bleacher Report All-Pro team, and frankly a pretty good case could be made for some others (linebacker Roquan Smith, defensive end Akiem Hicks) who didn't quite make the cut.
However, Jackson's candidacy is about much more than the logo on the side of his helmet. In just his second season, the former Crimson Tide star has emerged as one of the pre-eminent ball-hawking safeties in the NFL, pacing all players at his position in interceptions with six.
Jackson and Kyle Fuller had more interceptions between them than over half of the NFL's teams in 2018.
"The second-year playmaker proved his ball-hawking rookie season was no fluke," Gagnon said, "as he was the only player in football with five-plus interceptions and multiple forced fumbles in 2018. He also scored twice, giving him nearly as many career touchdowns (three) as second-year wide receiver and 2017 No. 5 overall pick Corey Davis (four)."
Others receiving votes: Derwin James, Los Angeles Chargers (1 vote)
Special Teams
13 of 13
K: Aldrick Rosas, New York Giants (2 votes)
The New York Giants had a miserable season offensively, but the team's 6'3", 221-pound kicker wasn't to blame. On his way to a Pro Bowl bid, the second-year pro hit on all but one of his 33 field-goal attempts, including every kick he tried from inside 50 yards.
Others receiving votes: Jason Myers, New York Jets (1 vote)
P: Michael Dickson, Seattle Seahawks (3 votes)
Dickson's been outstanding for the Seahawks as a rookie, setting team records for punting average (48.2) and net punting (42.5) while blasting one punt of at least 50 yards or longer in all but one contest. That punting average ranked second in the NFL, while Dickson's net average was sixth. Twenty-eight of the Aussie's punts were downed inside the 20.
KR: Andre Roberts, WR, New York Jets (2 votes)
Roberts was one of two return men in the NFL to top 1,000 total yards on kick returns, posting a league-leading 1,174 yards on 40 returns. The ninth-year journeyman averaged 29.4 yards per return (second among players with more than 20 returns) and brought a kick back 99 yards for a score against the Green Bay Packers in December.
Others receiving votes: Darius Jennings, WR, Tennessee Titans (1 vote)
PR: Jakeem Grant, WR, Miami Dolphins (2 votes)
There wasn't a more feared punt returner in the NFL in 2018 than Grant, who led all players with multiple punt returns with an average of 16.3 yards a pop. Grant had three returns of 20 or more yards (including a 71-yard score) and didn't wave his hand over his head much—he called for a fair catch just six times all season.
Others receiving votes: Desmond King II, CB, Los Angeles Chargers (1 vote)
ST: Matthew Slater, WR, New England Patriots (3 votes)
Slater's a wide receiver in only the loosest sense—in 11 seasons with the Patriots, the 33-year-old has caught all of one pass. The Pats don't keep Slater around for his pass-catching chops, though—he's carved out a long career by being the best special teams coverage player of the past decade. This year was no different.
.jpg?w=480 "Browns Football")
.png?w=600 "NFL Free-Agent Tracker ✍️"){kind=tracking}
.jpg?w=600 "Best NFL Free Agents 📞")
.png?w=600 "2027 NFL Mock Draft 🔮")