Free Agency 2020: Defensive Line Dripping with Depth

Pass rushers are worth their weight in gold, and these big guys can bring the heat.

Author:
Bill Huber
Publish date:
Mar 12, 2020 9:41 PM EDT

GREEN BAY, Wis. – Perhaps subject to change based on the ratification of a new collective bargaining agreement and the ramifications from the COVID-19 virus, NFL free agency will start on Monday with the so-called legal-tampering period – when teams can officially begin negotiations with free agents – and continue on Wednesday, when the signing period begins at 3 p.m. With that, here is our preview of the top 10 free-agent defensive linemen. (Age at the start of the new league-year is in parentheses.)

FIRST, THE PACKERS’ OUTLOOK

Kenny Clark is a rock but help is badly needed. After a Pro Bowl season, a long-term and lucrative extension seems only a matter of time. Clark finished second on the team with 89 tackles and matched his career high with six sacks. Among the 83 defensive linemen who rushed the passer at least 200 times, Clark finished sixth in ProFootballFocus.com’s pass-rushing productivity, which measures sacks, hits and hurries per pass-rushing snap. Among the 63 defensive linemen who played at least 200 snaps of run defense, Clark finished seventh in PFF’s run-stop percentage, a metric that measures impact tackles. Clark was the only interior defensive lineman in the NFL to finish in the top 16 in both stats.

However, Dean Lowry underperformed following a contract extension, former third-round pick Montravius Adams remains a nonfactor, fifth-round rookie Kingsley Keke barely played and former undrafted free agent Tyler Lancaster played too many snaps.

OUR TOP 10

D.J. Reader, Houston (25): A fifth-round pick in 2016, Reader has started 45 of a possible 48 games his past three seasons. A mountain of a man at 6-foot-3 and 347 pounds, he is coming off the best season of his career, with career-high totals of 2.5 sacks, 52 tackles, six tackles for losses and 13 quarterback hits (compared to 11 hits the previous three years combined). According to PFF, of the 83 defensive linemen with 200-plus pass rushes, Reader showed that he is more than just a two-down run-stopper by ranking 15th in its pass-rushing productivity metric. According to SIS, his average tackle was made 2.3 yards downfield and he missed two tackles (2.8 percent). In PFF’s run-stop percentage, he finished third of the 63 defensive linemen with 200-plus run-defending snaps.

Leonard Williams, N.Y. Giants (25): The sixth pick of the 2015 draft by the Jets, Williams was traded to the Giants last year. In five seasons, he has 17.5 sacks and 34 tackles for losses in his career. He’s missed just one game in his career. He had career highs of seven sacks and 68 tackles in 2016 but had only a half-sack and 46 tackles last year. According to PFF, of the 83 defensive linemen with 200-plus pass rushes, Williams tied for 15th in its pass-rushing productivity metric. According to SIS, his average tackle was made 2.7 yards downfield – his first season worse than 1.8 – and he missed two tackles (7.4 percent). In PFF’s run-stop percentage, he finished 41st of the 63 defensive linemen with 200-plus run-defending snaps.

Javon Hargrave, Pittsburgh (27): A third-round pick in 2016, Hargrave has started 52 times and played in 63 of a possible 64 games. He’s been consistently excellent, including a career-high 6.5 sacks in 2018 and a career-high 60 tackles in 2019. According to PFF, of the 83 defensive linemen with 200-plus pass rushes, Hargrave ranked third in its pass-rushing productivity metric. According to Sports Info Solutions, his average tackle was made 2.8 yards downfield and he missed six tackles (9.7 percent). In PFF’s run-stop percentage, he finished 46th of the 63 defensive linemen with 200-plus run-defending snaps.

Shelby Harris, Denver (28): The Milwaukee native was a first-time starter last year and took full advantage with six sacks, 49 tackles and nine passes defensed – all career highs. In five seasons, he has 14 sacks and 24 tackles for losses; 13 sacks and 23 TFLs came the past three seasons. According to PFF, of the 83 defensive linemen with 200-plus pass rushes, Harris ranked 23rd in its pass-rushing productivity metric. According to SIS, his average tackle was 2.0 yards downfield and he missed one tackle (2.0 percent). In PFF’s run-stop percentage, he finished 40th of the 63 defensive linemen with 200-plus run-defending snaps.

Jordan Phillips, Buffalo (27): A second-round pick by Miami in 2015, Phillips had 6.5 sacks and 17 quarterback hits in his first four seasons. Last year, his first full season with the Bills, he had 9.5 sacks and 16 quarterback hits. He also had career highs of 31 tackles and 13 tackles for losses. According to PFF, of the 83 defensive linemen with 200-plus pass rushes, Phillips ranked 19th in its pass-rushing productivity metric. According to SIS, his average tackle was made 1.4 yards downfield – a great number but actually the worst of his past five season – and he missed four tackles (12.1 percent). Had he met our 200-snap threshold, he would have finished 59th of the 63 defensive linemen in PFF’s run-stop percentage.

Gerald McCoy, Carolina (32): The name of the game is rushing the passer. McCoy remains a top-notch rusher. He had five sacks and 13 quarterback hits, his first year with the Panthers. That makes it eight consecutive seasons with at least five sacks and 13 hits. He’s a six-time Pro Bowler who has missed eight games the past eight seasons. According to PFF, of the 83 defensive linemen with 200-plus pass rushes, McCoy tied for eighth in its pass-rushing productivity metric. According to SIS, his average tackle was made 1.2 yards downfield and he missed five tackles (11.6 percent). In PFF’s run-stop percentage, he finished 35th of the 63 defensive linemen with 200-plus run-defending snaps.

Jarran Reed, Seattle (27): A second-round pick in 2016, Reed had a monster 2018 with 10.5 sacks, 12 tackles for losses and 24 quarterback hits. It’s a blip-on-the-radar kind of year, though. In his other three seasons combined, Reed had five sacks, five TFLs and 20 quarterback hits. In 10 games last year – he was suspended for six games for domestic violence – he had two sacks and no additional TFLs. According to PFF, of the 83 defensive linemen with 200-plus pass rushes, Reed ranked 49th in its pass-rushing productivity metric. According to SIS, his average tackle was made 2.3 yards downfield and he missed five tackles (15.2 percent). His missed tackle rate has topped 10 percent each of the past three seasons. Had he met our 200-snap threshold, he would have finished 49th of the 63 defensive linemen in PFF’s run-stop percentage.

Michael Pierce, Baltimore (27): Pierce, a 340-pound nose tackle, went from undrafted free agent to standout. Last year, he started 14 games and recorded 35 tackles. He has only 3.5 sacks and 13 tackles for losses in his career. According to PFF, of the 83 defensive linemen with 200-plus pass rushes, Pierce ranked 59th in its pass-rushing productivity metric. According to SIS, his average tackle was made 1.9 yards downfield and he missed two tackles (5.6 percent). Had he met our 200-snap threshold, he would have finished ninth of the 63 defensive linemen in PFF’s run-stop percentage.

Derek Wolfe, Denver (30): Despite missing the final four games with an elbow injury, Wolfe had a career-high seven sacks. He has at least 12 quarterback hits in three of his past five seasons. He’s played more than 14 games in only three of his eight seasons, including a four-game suspension in 2015. According to PFF, of the 83 defensive linemen with 200-plus pass rushes, Wolfe ranked 21st in its pass-rushing productivity metric. According to SIS, his average tackle was made 2.2 yards downfield and he missed two tackles (5.4 percent). In PFF’s run-stop percentage, he finished 42nd of the 63 defensive linemen with 200-plus run-defending snaps.

Maliek Collins, Dallas (25): A third-round pick in 2016, Collins has started 55 games and missed only three in four seasons. He had 20 tackles and four sacks in 2019, a fourth consecutive year of solid production. According to SIS, his average tackle was made 1.2 yards downfield and he missed three tackles (13.0 percent). In 2018, his average tackle came 0.1 yards downfield. According to PFF, of the 83 defensive linemen with 200-plus pass rushes, Collins ranked 17th in its pass-rushing productivity metric. In PFF’s run-stop percentage, he finished 59th of the 63 defensive linemen with 200-plus run-defending snaps.