3 Patriots Make Bottom Half of PFF's Top 101 Players of 2019 Season
On Tuesday, PFF released the first half of their top 101 players of 2019, which recognizes and ranks the best players in the league from this past season. The first half of their list was numbers 52-101. On that list were three New England Patriots players, all of which coincidentally enough will be free agents this offseason.
Here are the three Patriots players that made the first half of PFF's list, their ranking on the list, and what PFF had to say about them:
91) Joe Thuney (LG)
"The Patriots' offensive line took a major step back this season, but one player who went in the other direction was left guard Joe Thuney, who built on a couple of solid seasons to post the best overall PFF grade of his career. Thuney narrowly missed out on topping the 80.0 threshold in terms of overall grade and had the best single-game of his season in the playoffs as the team fell to the Titans in the wild-card round. Thuney was excellent as a pass blocker, allowing just one sack all season, his only one over the past two seasons combined."
84) Devin McCourty (S)
"There are few players as metronomically consistent as Patriots safety Devin McCourty. This represents the eighth time he has appeared on the Top 101, and only Drew Brees has appeared on the list more times since we have been running it. McCourty earned a PFF coverage grade of 88.3 over the course of the season, including the playoffs, and he tallied five interceptions as well as two pass breakups. He also added a pair of forced fumbles and was once again one of the Pats' most reliable defenders, even if the team's 2019 defense was one of the best they have ever fielded."
59) Kyle Van Noy (LB)
"Kyle Van Noy put together a career year for the New England Patriots on the edge this season. His overall PFF grade of 84.2 was the highest of his career by almost 15 grading points, and the 60 total pressures he recorded over the entire season was 13 more than his previous career-high. Van Noy became a true impact pass-rusher and had 122 more pass-rush attempts than any other season of his career, making the most of those opportunities and proving he can be a high-level pass-rusher as he closes in on his 30th birthday."
Those three players making PFF's list foreshadows the hard decisions the Patriots have to make this offseason. Chances are, they won't be able to re-sign all three of those players, let alone two of them. Thuney and Van Noy could demand a big contract when they hit free agency, which means there's a strong chance they will be playing elsewhere in 2020. But there is a chance that Van Noy could take somewhat of a hometown discount in order to stay in New England. McCourty, however, is the most likely out of all three to stay with the Patriots based on his age and longevity with the team.
If Thuney and Van Noy don't stay with the Patriots, then New England has two huge holes on their depth chart that they will need to fill. With a projected $28 million in salary cap space next season, the potential re-signing of Tom Brady, and the need for offensive weapons, the Patriots will likely have to draft those positions if they want to acquire talented players who can fill the voids left by Thuney and Van Noy.
