Bracie Smathers
Footballguy
Incredibly in-depth rating of the top 60 inside linebackers by Matt Miller.
He does a great job.
Waay too detailed and lengthy to cut-and-paste the entire list of 60 that begins with the 60th rated inside linebacker going up to the 1st guy so I'll clip the bottom-ten and the top-ten.
You'll have to go to the link for the rest.
Really good job by Matt even if you will disagree with where some of the players are ranked.
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2016694-br-nfl-1000-top-60-inside-linebackers
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He does a great job.
Waay too detailed and lengthy to cut-and-paste the entire list of 60 that begins with the 60th rated inside linebacker going up to the 1st guy so I'll clip the bottom-ten and the top-ten.
You'll have to go to the link for the rest.
Really good job by Matt even if you will disagree with where some of the players are ranked.
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2016694-br-nfl-1000-top-60-inside-linebackers
Top 10 of the to-60 NFL inside linebackersB/R NFL 1000: Top 60 Inside Linebackers
By Matt Miller , NFL Draft Lead Writer
Apr 8, 2014
metric is based on scouting each player and grading the key criteria for each position. The criteria are weighted according to importance on a 100-point scale.
Potential is not taken into consideration, nor are career accomplishments.
Inside linebackers are judged on run defense (30 points), pass-rush skills (10), coverage (20), tackling (40) and all of the technique, athletic ability and football intelligence needed to play the position.
In the case of ties, our team asked, "Which player would I rather have on my team?" and set the rankings accordingly.
Subjective? Yes. But ties are no fun.
Each player was scouted by me and a team of experienced evaluators with these key criteria in mind. The following scouting reports and grades are the work of months of film study from our team.
All statistics from Pro Football Focus (subscription required). Players' heights, weights and seasons from NFL.com.
Bottom 10 of the top-60 NFL inside linebackers
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60. Paris Lenon, Broncos
54/100
At 35 years of age entering the 2013 season, Paris Lenon (6'2", 240 lbs, 12 seasons) understood that he was no longer an every-down linebacker. In his part-time role for the Denver Broncos, Lenon proved to be a capable run defender but a liability in pass coverage. He wasn’t a dominant run defender because he played too high when trying to take on blockers. He clearly didn’t have the legs to play in space anymore, so it’s no surprise that he was used so sparingly.
59. London Fletcher, Redskins55/100
London Fletcher (5'10", 242 lbs, 16 seasons), who is nearly certain to retire, had a sterling career in the NFL. In his prime, the undersized linebacker relied on his intelligence, awareness and consistent technique to be effective. Those traits never left him, but at 38 years of age, he no longer had the physical ability to be effective in 2013. Fletcher was picked on in coverage and missed too many tackles both in space and in tight.
58. David Hawthorne, Saints55/100
David Hawthorne (6'0", 246 lbs, six seasons) was primarily a run-stopping linebacker for the New Orleans Saints. He proved to have all the ability to be one of the best run-stopping linebackers in the NFL, but his consistency from snap to snap wasn’t impressive. When his hand usage and leverage were good, he was able to ride blockers toward the football. However, too often he was too slow to locate the football, which allowed offensive linemen to get position on him. Hawthorne is a liability in pass coverage.
57. Joe Mays, Texans57/100
Joe Mays’ (5'11", 244 lbs, six seasons) range as a run defender doesn’t stretch from sideline to sideline. But when he reads the play well, he can be effective between the numbers. Mays missed too many tackles and isn’t exceptionally strong when working through contact to find the football. He shows good awareness and can be relied upon when given relatively simple assignments in pass coverage. Mays needs to be a more consistent tackler to have real value as a two-down linebacker.
56. Donald Butler, Chargers58/100
Donald Butler (6'1", 242 lbs, four seasons) endured a rough season in 2013, but it should also be noted that he wasn’t always put in the best position to succeed. Butler is an ineffective pass-rusher, yet he was asked to blitz on 17.2 percent of his team’s snaps against passing plays. Outside of his usage, Butler is an outstanding athlete who must improve his technique both in coverage and against running plays. The talent is clearly there, but he needs to be more consistent.
55. DeMario Davis, Jets
58/100
As you’d expect with any Rex Ryan linebacker, DeMario Davis (6'2", 239 lbs, two seasons) is a hard-nosed, aggressive football player. When coming forward, Davis is good at getting through blocks and locating the football. However, when engaged quickly, he struggled to get off blocks and missed too many tackles. As a two-down linebacker, Davis isn’t dominant enough to mask his limitations in coverage. He lacks the agility or awareness to be consistently effective in space.
54. Akeem Dent, Falcons58/100
The most impressive aspect of Akeem Dent’s (6'1", 239 lbs, three seasons) skill set is his hand usage against blockers. He is quick to engage blockers and places his hands well to gain leverage. However, his most impressive trait also shows off his least because he doesn’t have the strength to create clean avenues to the ball-carrier. In coverage, Dent has enough awareness and agility to be effective in tight spaces, but he will be exposed when asked to cover in the flat or alone in the middle of the field.
53. Craig Robertson, Browns59/100
In theory, Craig Robertson (6'1", 234 lbs, two seasons) should have been a good fit with Browns defensive coordinator Ray Horton. Robertson is able to turn and run in space—something Horton’s linebackers need to be able to do. However, Robertson’s body control and awareness exposed him in coverage, while he offered little as a pass-rusher. Robertson is quick to close to the line of scrimmage on run plays, but that aggressiveness sometimes exposes him to play-action. He lacks the ideal size to consistently take on blockers, but he gets the most out of his physical prowess more often than not.
52. Rey Maualuga, Bengals59/100
Rey Maualuga (6'2", 255 lbs, five seasons) clearly improved in 2013 after a disastrous 2012 campaign. He didn’t turn into a superstar player, but that says more about where he was in 2012. Maualuga was quicker (and seemingly lighter) in 2013, which allowed him to be effective at times in pass coverage. He went from being a complete liability to being an inconsistent, limited player in coverage. As a run defender, Maualuga missed too many tackles to be considered a valuable two-down linebacker.
51. Jon Bostic, Bears59/100
It’s unlikely that the Chicago Bears drafted Jon Bostic (6'1", 245 lbs, one season) because of his ability to shut down running backs. With that in mind, the Bears would have expected some growing pains with the young linebacker during his rookie season. They likely didn’t expect him to be as bad as he was, though. Bostic plays with his head down and is too aggressive when attacking contact. He doesn’t locate the running back because his technique and awareness are so bad. In coverage, Bostic showed off all the physical talent of a player who could develop into one of the best cover linebackers in the NFL.
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