B/R NFL 1000: Live Q&A, Debates and Reaction from Our Experts

The Los Angeles' Justin Herbert hasn't proven anything to be counted among the league's best quarterbacks, right? The arguments are as predictable as they are lazy.

Herbert's performance during the 2025 campaign bordered on Herculean when taking the Chargers' entire situation into consideration. The two-time Pro Bowl signal-caller had to take on as much playing-making responsibility as any quarterback in the league last year. He lined up behind a patchwork offensive line, which performed as poorly as expected. Defenses sacked Herbert 54 times—which ranked third-most in the league. The number would have been significantly higher if not for the quarterback's mobility to avoid pressure and shrug off defenders at times.

All the while, Herbert showed a level of poise and toughness that simply can't be denied. He's capable of layering throws to every level, with the arm-strength to drive any pass into tight windows. His combination of size and athleticism make him extremely difficult to count out of any play.

But the idea he hasn't "won anything" places too much emphasis on team wins and postseason success instead of evaluating the individual's performance.

Last season, both of Herbert's starting offensive tackles suffered season-ending injuries. Left tackle Rashawn Slater didn't play a single game. Guard Mekhi Becton signed in free agency only to find himself in and out of the lineup due to injuries. The squad lacked a 1,000-yard rusher and receiver. Greg Roman once again failed to devise a NFL-caliber passing attack, hence why he's no longer the Chargers' offensive play-caller. Ultimately, the team let the quarterback down, not the other way around.

Clearly, the Los Angeles Rams' Matthew Stafford and Buffalo Bills' Josh Allen deserve their rankings as the NFL's top two quarterbacks. Stafford is simply playing the game at the highest level from a mental standpoint. Allen, meanwhile, is the game's most naturally gifted quarterback, which allows him to shoulder the Bills' offense.

From that point, no one played better than Herbert last season. Plus, he should benefit greatly from significant offseason investments in the offensive line, running back Omarion Hampton getting healthy and Mike McDaniel's hire as offensive coordinator.

Conversely, questions linger about other quarterbacks.

Patrick Mahomes suffered a major injury late in the 2025 campaign, while already showing some regression to that point. Joe Burrow once again dealt with injuries last year. The Cincinnati Bengals' signal-caller may be the league's most accurate passer, but durability is a significant concern. Lamar Jackson is the greatest dual-threat in NFL history. He certainly hasn't shown enough as a pocket passer to elevate the Baltimore Ravens above Herbert and the Chargers' standing. The New England Patriots' Drake Maye needs to stack another elite season on top of last year's performance.

The B/R projections are based on who theses quarterbacks are today. It's easy to envision Herbert as a top-three option, with the opportunity for the Chargers to emerge as an AFC contender this fall.

The Green Bay Packers' Tucker Kraft was the NFL's best tight end before a Week 9 injury ended his campaign. To repeat, Kraft had emerged as the game's best tight end before a torn ACL derailed his breakthrough season.

Brock Bowers is an exceptional offensive weapon. He deserves all the credit he gets for being a threat in the passing game as the Las Vegas Raiders' No. 1 target. Clearly, those individuals around the league see him as a premier threat.

"As far as route running, separation, zone instincts, yards-after-catch ability combination—he's better than the field in those areas," an NFL coordinator told ESPN's Jeremy Fowler. "A down year won't change that."

Bowers was slowed by a PCL injury and bone bruise during the 2025 campaign, thus his numbers took a hit and he wasn't as effective in the open field. A bounce-back should be expected this fall.

The same can be said of Kraft since he was taken off the physically-unable-to-perform list and began to practice this week. The Packers tight end also holds three advantages over Bowers (as well as the Arizona Cardinals' Trey McBride).

First, the 2023 third-round draft pick is special after the catch, as the league's most explosive tight end with the ball in his hands. Second, he's a bigger, more physical option. Finally, Kraft is a better all-around blocker.

The San Francisco 49ers' George Kittle remains TE1, according to the B/R Scouting Department, because he's so good in both phases. A healthy Kraft could realistically take over the spot at some point during the 2026 campaign.

The NFL has trended toward "position-less" players on the defensive side of the ball. Play-callers understand they benefit if they're not beholden to specific personnel groupings dependent on the situation. Instead, the league looks for individuals who can stay on the field, because their skill sets allows them to be used in a variety of manners.

The Los Angeles Chargers' Derwin James is the poster boy for a defensive chess piece. Last season, the five-time Pro Bowl selection played at least 125 snaps over the slot, in the box, at free safety and even near the line of scrimmage. Ultimately, he was designated as a nickel corner, because the majority of his snaps (38 percent) occurred when aligning over the slot.

A similar argument can be made for the Houston Texans' Jalen Pitre. The 27-year-old defender isn't as versatile, though he spent a significant amount of time last season working in the box. Pitre may not be as recognizable as others on Houston's star-studded defense, but his 74 total tackles ranked fourth on the team, while defending 12 passes and tying for the team-lead with four interceptions.

At 6'3" and 220-pounds, the Seattle Seahawks' Nick Emmanwori certainly doesn't look like a traditional nickel defender. Even so, he revolutionized Seattle's defensive approach with his ability to work from the slot, where he spent 45.3 percent of his time as a rookie.

Hybrid players, like James, create a gray area where their actual position isn't easily determined. Ironically, that same fluidity creates a more valuable piece as part of a defensive unit. For the purposes of these rankings, a defensive back's most common alignment is where their designation fell.

Injuries often muddy an evaluation, particularly for some star players. The San Francisco 49ers' Fred Warner and Nick Bosa find themselves at the top of that list, with the expectation they'll return to form this fall.

Once again, injury situations were taken on a case-by-case basis. Neither Bosa nor Warner made it to Halloween before their 2025 season came to close. In Bosa's case, he tore an ACL in Week 3. Warner went down with a dislocated and broken ankle three weeks later. The timing of these injuries serves as a silver lining.

Both were medically cleared for the start of training camp.

Prior to the injury, Warner served as the standard-bearer for off-ball linebackers. He had been named a first-team All-Pro during four the previous five seasons. Similarly, Bosa was a regular in the NFL Defensive Player of the Year conversation, having won the award in 2022.

Of the two, Bosa is the bigger concern since he's also was dinged during the '24 campaign, hence why Warner is graded higher and still found among B/R's top 13 players. Although Bosa is still 28 years old and posted nine sacks in 2024 despite missing three games. The five-time Pro Bowl defensive end should be helped by the fact last year's first-round draft pick, Mykel Williams, will also be back from injury, the Niners traded for interior pass-rusher Osa Odigizhuwa this offseason and the team added more pass-rush help with the third-round selection of Romello Height.

Bosa should continue on his trajectory as a legitimate difference-maker, thus quieting any questions about where he's ranked (fifth) among the league's best edge-defenders.

Father Time remains undefeated, but the celestial body shows up at different times depending on the individual. No reason exists to automatically downgrade a quality football player simply because he's on the wrong side of 30.

Among B/R's NFL 1000, a quarter of the players ranked in the Top 100 are already 30 or older. Ageism definitely exists in professional sports. Many want to automatically downgrade individuals simply because of the number. However, their continued play doesn't always warrant such discussions.

The Los Angeles Rams' Myles Garrett (turns 31 later this year) and Philadelphia Eagles' Lane Johnson (36) are ranked No. 1 and 2 overall even as older veterans. Neither has seen their play dip. The Washington Commanders' Laremy Tunsil (32), Indianapolis Colts' Quenton Nelson (30) and San Francisco 49ers' Trent Williams (38) remain dominant performers. The Pittsburgh Steelers' Cam Heyward has continually performed as an elite interior defender (37). Matthew Stafford (38) is the NFL's reigning MVP and he's coming off the best season of his illustrious career.

Are there long-time veterans who are trending downward? Of course.

The Kansas City Chiefs' Travis Kelce (36) falls outside of the Top 100 at this point in his career. Though he's still counted among the Top 150, because he remains quite capable of getting open and providing a reliable target for Patrick Mahomes even though the tight end lost some of his explosive traits.

Similarly, Bobby Wagner (36) remains the top unsigned free agent. Don't be surprised when a potential contender calls to have the 10-time Pro Bowl linebacker join its roster, because he remains one of the game's smartest defenders and an elite run-defender. He's simply not as good in coverage anymore.

Obviously, a reliance on veterans decreases the window of potential success. However, plenty of quality football players over the age of 30 can still contribute at a high level and shouldn't be discounted simply because of how many candles were on their last birthday cake.

This forum won't be used to make the obvious joke that kickers and punters aren't football players. As coaches always say, "Special teams are one third of the game."

Specialists are critical components to any roster and reliability is a huge factor in their evaluation. However, their impact is definitely outsized compared to their overall contributions. Just ask John Harbaugh when he relied on a rookie kicker to keep the Baltimore Ravens' season alive and the subsequent miss basically cost the head coach his job.

Keep the following in mind: The Seattle Seahawks' Jason Myers and Houston Texans' Ka'ami Fairbairn attempted a season-high 48 field goals during the previous campaign. Myers, who was the league's scoring champion in 2025, also attempted 48 extra points. He contributed 125 kickoffs as well. In total, Myers was on the field for 221 snaps during the regular season.

For comparison, over 1,000 position players contributed more snaps last season.

Beyond the very best at their respective positions—the Dallas Cowboys' Brandon Aubrey among kickers, the Minnesota Vikings' Will Reichard as a first-team All-Pro and Seattle's Michael Dickson as the top punter—specialists simply aren't on the field enough to warrant stronger consideration among the top half of the B/R NFL 1000.

At first blush, the Los Angeles Rams' acquisition of Myles Garrett created a fervor with his new team automatically taking the lead as the favorite to win Super Bowl LXI. After all, Garrett is the game's best player.

Upon further evaluation, the gap between the two sides of the deal may have been larger than initially expected.

Obviously, the Cleveland Browns were dead set on landing a quality, young centerpiece as part of the deal, which they got with the addition of Jared Verse. The 2024 NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year is only 25 years old, with a pair of Pro Bowl appearances in his first two seasons. The former first-round pick provided the type of high-end return that was necessary to pry Garrett from his long-time home.

Although, the difference between Garrett and Verse at this stage of their careers is significant. Garrett remains in the prime of his career after a record-setting campaign. He is a legitimate impact difference-maker that opponents must account for on everyone single snap. The two-time NFL Defensive Player of the Year could, somehow, be even better with the Rams because of an upgraded supporting cast—which doesn't even include Aaron Donald, who may still unretire.

Meanwhile, no one denies Verse's talent or what he's done to date. However, he struggles to finish, has yet to record eight sacks in a season and still needs to grow in certain areas. He ranked as Bleacher Report's 10th edge-defender and 128th overall player. Verse can improve and still be miles aways from Garrett's status.

The Browns allowed an all-time great to leave because of organizational incompetence that didn't allow the franchise to take full advantage of his presence. Verse provided a nice return. But he's a sizable downgrade in this particular scenario. Plus, Cleveland fully understands that extra draft picks don't equate to winning football.

Throughout the evaluation process, a heavy emphasis was placed on being a complete performer.

For example, the San Francisco 49ers' George Kittle stands as Bleacher Report's TE1, because he can dominate as a pass-catcher and as a blocker. He's a complete contributor, unlike others at his position. (For those wondering, the previous comment explains why the Las Vegas Raiders' Brock Bowers' isn't higher on the site's rankings.)

In Brian Burns' case, he may be a top sack-artist, but he's leaves a lot to be deserved as an every-down performer.

The three-time Pro Bowl selection posted a career-high 16.5 sacks during the 2025 campaign, which ranked second behind Myles Garrett's record-setting total. At the same, the 28-year-old veteran is not strong at the point of attack, lacks impact as a run-defender and struggles to finish plays, particularly when trying to tackle running backs. Burns can be a quality contributor when working from the backside of a play or he's unblocked. But he's far more effective when he can pin his ears back and get after opposing quarterbacks.

To be fair, Burns' best quality remains highly valuable. He's simply not a dominant all-around player and his effectiveness becomes greatly minimized when opponents attack him directly.

Sheer dominance deserves to be acknowledged. While the NFL is a quarterback-driven, skill position-heavy league, Johnson is easily one of the league's top pure football players regardless of position.

"Johnson gets less help than any NFL right tackle by a wide margin and is head-and-shoulders above them all in pass protection," Thorn stated. "Furthermore, he's closer to the Detroit Lions' Penei Sewell as a run-blocker than Sewell is to Johnson in pass protection. The six-time Pro Bowl honoree has been at this level for many years, too."

Thorn added, "If pass-pro is the most difficult part of playing O-line, specifically one-on-one, Johnson is better in that area than anyone on either side of the line."

Offensive tackle is considered a premium position, because it keeps the quarterback upright. In today's game, right and left tackles are basically interchangeable because of how reliant squads tend to be on the passing game.

Johnson may be 36 years old, with an extensive injury history, but he's better at his job, particularly the most important aspect, than nearly everyone else in the league at theirs.

The NFL 1000 was a monthslong undertaking with the bulk of the evaluations falling on the shoulders of four individuals.

Dame Parson highlighted the quarterbacks and offensive skill positions, except for tight end. Brandon Thorn addressed the offensive trenches, individually breaking down each of the five positions. On defense, Matt Holder handled the front seven. Along the back end, as well as tight end, Daniel Harms addressed those positions.

The primary directive was to evaluate each of the league's players based on where they currently stand. B/R's scouts initially did so through a blind evaluation process. Each worked individually to get the truest grade without being influenced by the thought process of others. Ultimately, they all came together and a board was fleshed out based on those evaluations. The group worked off an internal board, which turned out to be the primary tiers found in the final product.

Obviously, nuance is needed in many instances. For example, the Jacksonville Jaguars' Travis Hunter was evaluated as cornerback and wide receiver, while given a final overall grade. An injury's effect on the grade was determined on a case-by-case basis, often viewed through the lens of where those individuals currently stand in their recovery.

As for specific position designations, those could be a floating target based on a player's specific usage. Either they were determined by the primary position they're expected to play this fall—for example, the Detroit Lions' Penei Sewell moving from right to left tackle—or the highest rate of snap deployment from a season ago. The latter became specifically important for defensive backs and even tight ends, which are broken up into different categories.

In the end, individuals with the same grades were differentiated through roundtable discussions between the entire B/R Scouting Department.