PFF Names Quenton Nelson A Top-Five Player, Three Other Ex-Irish In Top 50
Pro Football Focus and its grading system have oozed praise for Notre Dame guard Quenton Nelson since he played his first NFL game two seasons ago.
He was a PFF second-team All-Pro as a rookie in 2018 and a first-teamer in 2019 for the Indianapolis Colts. In revealing its 2019 All-Pro teams, PFF noted Nelson was “playing like the best guard in football” by the end of his first year.
His ranking in the 2020 PFF50, the outlet’s ranking of the 50 best NFL players regardless of position or value, is the latest PFF honor he has earned since becoming the No. 6 pick of the 2018 NFL Draft.
Nelson is ranked the No. 4 player and the top offensive lineman in the league. He is behind Los Angeles Rams defensive tackle Aaron Donald, Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes and Atlanta Falcons wide receiver Julio Jones.
Elsewhere, former Notre Dame safety and current Minnesota Viking Harrison Smith was No. 35 on the list and former Irish offensive lineman Zack Martin (Dallas Cowboys) was No. 46. Nelson's former Notre Dame teammate and current Baltimore Ravens left tackle Ronnie Stanley is ranked No. 48.
“Nelson is the rare player who brings everybody together,” PFF analyst Sam Monson wrote. “Whether you study tape exclusively, data exclusively, dots exclusively or any combination thereof, everybody agrees Nelson is a superstar. In just his second season in the league, he earned a 91.2 overall PFF grade, didn’t surrender a sack and was a dominant force as a run blocker.
“Nelson was a bona fide star early in his college career, and there’s a good chance he could get even better in 2020 and beyond.”
The next offensive lineman in the PFF50, Chiefs tackle Mitchell Schwartz appeared 19 spots after Nelson.
PFF gave Nelson an elite 90.8 pass-blocking grade and a similarly stout 82.2 run-blocking grade. Nelson was the second-highest graded offensive lineman in the NFL last year, behind Philadelphia Eagles guard Brandon Brooks, who is ranked 34th.
Nelson committed three penalties all season and allowed just 20 pressures. Only two of those resulted in the quarterback being hit. He was one of eight guards in 2019 to allow 20 or fewer pressures and one of nine offensive linemen to allow zero sacks, per PFF.
Nelson’s presence has helped elevate the Colts offensive line from a liability before he was drafted into one of the league’s best units. His teammate, left tackle Anthony Castonzo, was a PFF second-team All-Pro in 2019. PFF’s grading system gave the Colts' line the second-highest run blocking mark in the NFL last year.
The Colts ranked fifth in carries per game, seventh in rushing yards per game, fifth in rushing plays of at least 20 yards and 11th in yards per carry. Their line helped elevate the play of three primary running backs who were each day-three draft picks.
Smith has been a starter at safety for the Vikings since they took him in the first round in 2012. In 2017, he had the third-highest grade of any NFL player and his 98.8 overall grade was the highest in PFF history for a safety. He was a member of PFF’s All-Decade Team.
“Smith has been the player who makes Mike Zimmer’s defense go in Minnesota,” Monson wrote. “Smith is the foundation stone around which every coverage shell the Vikings run can be built; he is the movable piece that allows everybody else to slot into the role to which they are best suited.
“His consistency at a position where play often fluctuates has been remarkable. He has never had a full season of play that earned an overall PFF grade lower than 75.0, and he has four seasons at 85.0 or above.”
Martin was Notre Dame’s four-year starter at left tackle, but moved to guard when the Cowboys drafted him at No. 16 overall in 2014. He is a six-time All-Pro and became the league’s highest-paid guard in 2018, signing a six-year, $84 million contract with $40 million guaranteed.
“Few players have been as consistently excellent as Martin since he entered the league,” Monson wrote. “Five of his six starting seasons have seen him earn an overall PFF grade of at least 85.9, and the sixth was 79.1. Last season, he allowed no sacks at all, was flagged just twice all year and earned a solid run-blocking grade. He has now been penalized just five times in four seasons.”
Stanley, the No. 6 overall pick like Nelson, has started every game of his career since coming into the NFL in 2016. He was an All-Pro in 2019 for the first time in his career.
“Just a season ago, Stanley posted one of the most absurd stat lines in PFF history. He surrendered just six total pressures [and no sacks] all season long,” Monson wrote. “He was doubtlessly helped by Baltimore’s run-heavy system and Lamar Jackson’s unique threat at quarterback, but even in adverse pass-protecting situations, Stanley’s grade and production remained elite.
“He is making a hard run at [Green Bay Packers tackle] David Bakhtiari’s crown as the league’s best pass-blocker.”
The PFF50 is assembled with different criteria than PFF’s 101 best players of 2019, on which Nelson was No. 11 and the third lineman behind Brooks and Saints tackle Ryan Ramczyk.
PFF says its 50 best players list is “a product of evaluating every player on every play of each NFL season. ... This list is not about how valuable players are, but rather about how good they are, regardless of position. A guard, cornerback, receiver or even a running back has just as good a chance to appear on this list as a quarterback does.”
The list “started from the standpoint of a multiyear look at their grading before making adjustments based on situation, relevant injuries and new circumstances that could change a player's future outlook. Sample size was factored in as well as any suggestion of decline from players reaching the latter stages of their careers.”
----
• Talk about it inside Rockne’s Roundtable
• Watch our videos and subscribe to our YouTube channel
• Subscribe to our podcast on iTunes
• Learn more about our print and digital publication, Blue & Gold Illustrated.
• Follow us on Twitter: @BGINews, @BGI_LouSomogyi, @Rivals_Singer, @PatrickEngel_, @ToddBurlage and @AndrewMentock.
• Like us on Facebook.