Nevertheless, a Detroit Lion was left off of PFF’s ranking of the best players under 25.
Even though the Detroit Lions dominated, one player stood out as a major omission from PFF’s list of the best players under25.It would be an understatement to say that the Detroit Lions dominated the list with five players on it when Pro Football Focus released their list of the top-25 players under the age of 25 this week. No other team had more than three players on the list, although we can argue over the precise placement of the Lions’ players (Amon-Ra St. Brown over Garrett Wilson? Sam LaPorta at No. 19? Jahmyr Gibbs at No. 21?).
Even with Brad Holmes, general manager of the Lions, having done so much in the draft, PFF still passed over one of the team’s best young players on that under-25 list.As a rookie last season, Brian Branch assumed command of the Lions’ nickel corner position. Despite missing two games, he was seventh on the team in tackles (74) and led the team in pass breakups
(13) in addition to having three interceptions and seven tackles for loss.
Pro Football Network named Branch one of the top-10 cornerbacks in the game under 25 years old earlier this offseason. To be fair to PFF, just three of the cornerbacks on PFN’s roster—Patrick Surtain II, Trent McDuffie, and Sauce Gardner—made their position-wide ranking of the top 25 players under the age of twenty-five.However…According to PFF’s own data, Brian Branch was not included in the under-25 list.
Branch was ranked as the 14th best cornerback in the NFL last season by PFF’s overall rating (78.9). His coverage grade of 77.7 was in the top 25, while his run defense grade of 83.9 was sixth best at the position. It was difficult to duplicate that kind of all-around influence.
Surtain was not removed off the list despite having one relatively poor year (69.0 overall grade and 64.7 coverage grade), as three of the four cornerbacks who made the top players under-25 list (Gardner, McDuffie, and Derek Stingley) had better overall and coverage marks than Branch did the previous year.Being a slot corner most of the time as a rookie undoubtedly cost Branch some points, and he would have definitely placed in the honorable mention category if there had been one. However, it’s concerning when an outlet’s own data essentially verifies that someone on a list they created was overlooked. And given their current pool of youthful talent, the Lions will likely continue to dominate PFF’s “top-25 under 25 list” for some time to come.
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Pro Football Focus gives the Lions’ offseason practice an excellent grade.
Pro Football Focus claims that the Detroit Lions performed admirably throughout their summer.With the signingquarterback Jared Goff to a contract extension, the Detroit Lions have essentially completed their offseason’s major lifting.
After the league’s main transactions were completed, Trevor Sikkema of Pro Football Focus graded each team during the offseason. The work that the Lions accomplished particularly impressed him.”The Lions had an incredible offseason, adding a lot while cutting back on injuries. They signed free agents D.J. Reader, Carlton Davis, Marcus Davenport, and Kevin Zeitler in place of C.J. Gardner-Johnson and Jonah Jackson. Terrion Arnold, Christian Mahogany, Mekhi Wingo, Sione Vaki, Giovanni Manu, and Ennis Rakestraw Jr. were then drafted. They were flawless. They also re-signed Penei Sewell, Amon-Ra St. Brown, and Jared Goff. Their window for the Super Bowl is still open.”
The Lions proved (actually, confirmed) that their Super Bowl window is open while receiving Sikkema’s lone A+ grade. The idea as a whole represents a significant shift.The Lions’ PFF offseason grade is an indication of their progress.
General manager Bob Quinn oversaw the Lions’ front office four years ago, and head coach Matt Patricia had unmistakable influence over any decisions made (or not made). Given “Quintricia’s” propensity for making equally large errors in the draft and free agency, there didn’t seem to be any cause for optimism going forward. We don’t really want to go through that suffering again, although we could list them all. The fact that Patricia could not manage to finish three complete seasons as the Lions’ head coach is still astounding.
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