Stalwart385
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I happened to notice 3 recent articles from PFF. Saints players were ranked highly in all three.
1. NEW ORLEANS SAINTS: LT TERRON ARMSTEAD AND RT RYAN RAMCZYK
It’s hard to find many faults in Ramczyk’s game. He recently ranked 26th on this year’s edition of PFF50 — highlighting the 50 best players in the NFL heading into the 2020 season — and there’s a real case for him being the best tackle in the NFL just three years into his career. No tackle had a higher PFF grade than Ramczyk this past regular season (90.9), and he has yet to record a pass-blocking or run-blocking grade below 75.0 for a season since the Saints drafted him in the first round out of Wisconsin. He figures to be among the best at the position for years to come in New Orleans.
Armstead joins him as one of the best pass-blockers in the NFL. Over the past five regular seasons, the only three tackles with 2,000 or more offensive snaps and a better pass-blocking grade than Armstead (91.4) are David Bakhtiari, Joe Thomas and Andrew Whitworth. He has recorded pass-blocking grades of 80.0 or higher in each of those seasons, including 85.0 or higher in four of five years. That kind of stability is easy to take for granted, but it shouldn’t be. The Saints, without question, have two of the best tackles in the NFL.
Best offensive tackle duos in the NFL ahead of the 2020 season | NFL News, Rankings and Statistics | PFF
The New Orleans Saints' duo of Ryan Ramczyk and Terron Armstead headline the best offensive tackle pairings entering the 2020 NFL season.
www.pff.com
3. NEW ORLEANS SAINTS: CAMERON JORDAN AND MARCUS DAVENPORT
Jordan absolutely should be mentioned in every conversation about the league’s best edge defenders. The only three edge rushers in the NFL with 90.0-plus grades in 2016, 2017 and 2018 were Jordan, Von Miller and Khalil Mack. He was one of just three players at the position with run-defense and pass-rush grades above 80.0 during the 2019 regular season, joining Mack and T.J. Watt.
The Saints’ decision to trade up and draft Davenport 14th overall in the 2018 NFL Draft wasn’t a popular one nationally. He put some of those doubts behind him with a strong second season, though. Davenport’s 84.1 overall grade through 14 weeks of the 2019 season ranked 15th among 108 qualifying edge defenders. He graded out as one of the best run defenders at the position, and he was one of just 16 edge rushers with 50 or more quarterback pressures through Week 14. A foot injury cut his season short, but there is plenty of reason to be optimistic about what 2020 has in store for the UTSA product.
Best edge defender duos in the NFL ahead of the 2020 season | NFL News, Rankings and Statistics | PFF
The San Francisco 49ers' Nick Bosa and Dee Ford headline the best edge defender pairings entering the 2020 NFL season.
www.pff.com
4. ALVIN KAMARA, NEW ORLEANS SAINTS
By his own admission, Kamara played “on one leg” and at “75%” last season. He still averaged 0.22 missed tackles forced per touch — sixth among running backs on this list. If that is what he looks like at less than 100%, it’s hard to justify keeping him too far down the ranks. Kamara might have the best balance of any running back in the NFL, something that shows up again and again on the tape as he bounces off would-be tacklers. Since entering the league in 2017, his 157 total broken tackles as both a runner and receiver rank third among all players. A healthy Kamara in 2020 should once again mean a dangerous weapon at the running back position for New Orleans.
Ranking the NFL's 32 starting running backs by elusiveness | NFL News, Rankings and Statistics | PFF
Some running backs choose to run over defenders, while others look to avoid contact altogether. Cleveland Browns running back Nick Chubb headlines the NFL's best at doing so.
www.pff.com