Stanford Football Star Receives a Top-5 Edge Rusher Grade

David Bailey was a force on Stanford's defense, and after a strong 2024, he could very well earn considerable NFL interest.

Sep 20, 2024; Syracuse, New York, USA; Stanford Cardinal linebacker David Bailey (right) tackles Syracuse Orange wide receiver Umari Hatcher (5) as cornerback Collin Wright (6) looks on during the second half at the JMA Wireless Dome. Mandatory Credit: Rich Barnes-Imagn Images | Rich Barnes-Imagn Images

It is almost time to start looking ahead to next season. After the Super Bowl in two weeks, all 32 NFL teams will begin preparing for the 2025 campaign, where building a championship worthy roster will be key. The draft is what many look forward to, where young stars look to make a name for themselves as they begin their pro careers.

And with the college season over, Pro Football Focus released grades from the '24 season, showing which players performed the best based on a variety of factors, helping NFL teams really understand which players are the standout ones.

One of the position groups that had its grades released was edge rushers, with Stanford football edge rusher, David Bailey, receiving the fifth-highest PFF grade among Power Four players at his position.

Earning a grade of 90.9, Bailey sits only behind Penn State's Abdul Carter (91.4), Michigan's Josaiah Stewart (91.2), SMU's Elijah Roberts (91.2) and Ole Miss' Princely Umanmielen (91.1). Ending the campaign having amassed a career high in sacks (7) and forced fumbles (5), Bailey caused havoc as a pass rusher this season while also proving how valuable he is as a run stopper.

Highest Graded Edge Rushers from the 2024 Season⭐️ pic.twitter.com/TY37jeeDlj

— PFF College (@PFF_College) January 26, 2025

Beginning his career with Stanford in 2022, Bailey went from being a depth piece as a true freshman to eventually being a cornerstone player for the defense by the time he was a junior. Breaking out as a sophomore, where he had five sacks and 34 tackles, Bailey went into his junior year with high expectations for himself, eager to raise his draft stock and get on some NFL draft boards.

Despite having yet to officially declare for the 2025 draft, Bailey is projected to be selected should he decide to turn pro, with NFL Draft Buzz predicting that he could be a 4th round pick and has him ranked as the 125th overall prospect.

Assuming that Bailey does end up forgoing his final year of eligibility, it would be a big loss for the Cardinal. With Bailey's seven sacks leading the team in '24, the second highest sack total was 3.5 from both Tobin Phillips and Tevarua Tafiti. The season before that, Bailey led the team with five sacks, with the second highest sack total being three from defensive lineman, Anthony Franklin.

Losing Bailey would create a massive hole on the edge that could become priority number one for the spring transfer portal window. However, with Tafiti also having shown major growth throughout his three years, it will be interesting to see if he could be someone to step into Bailey's role and be the force off the edge that Bailey has proven to be.

Bailey could be a welcome addition to any NFL team, and especially putting together a career year despite being in a new conference, he could very well generate a lot of interest and end up in a place where he could be an immediate impact player.