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NFL roster rankings for all 32 teams for 2021 - Strengths, weaknesses and X factors for every team's starting lineup (espn.com)
Super Bowl-winning franchises rarely return their entire starting lineup the following season, but that's exactly what the Tampa Bay Buccaneers have done ahead of the 2021 NFL campaign. It's no surprise that they're one of the favorites to again bring home the Lombardi Trophy this season, but how much have the other 31 NFL teams done over the past few months to knock the Bucs off their pedestal?
With the 2021 draft and free agency behind us, we're breaking down each team's roster using the PFF database, with an eye toward the projected starters. We looked at both the PFF grades from the 2020 season -- a number included for every projected starter -- and a more comprehensive look at each player's career using both PFF grades and statistics. - Pro Football Focus grades of 90-plus categorize as elite, 80-89.9 are good/high quality, 70-79.9 fall under average and 69.9 or lower are considered below average.
- For rookies and players not active (or barely active) in 2020, we used college grades or NFL grades from earlier seasons. NFL grades from 2019 or earlier are marked with (*), college grades from 2020 are marked with (**), and college grades from 2019 or earlier are marked with (***).
Here's how the 32 rosters stack up heading into this season, complete with each lineup's biggest strengths, weaknesses and X factors.
Ranking:
- Buccaneers
- Chiefs
- Browns
- Bills
- Ravens
- Packers
- Rams
- Cowboys
- Vikings
- Broncos
- 49ers
- Football Team
- Titans
- Colts
- Seahawks
- Steelers
- Saints
- Patriots
- Giants
- Chargers
- Cardinals
- Dolphins
- Bears
- Bengals
- Falcons
- Raiders
- Panthers
- Jaguars
- Eagles
- Jets
- Lions
- Texans
9. Minnesota VikingsBiggest strength:
Justin Jefferson did not play like the fifth wide receiver selected in the 2021 NFL draft as a rookie. He played more like someone who would be the fifth wide receiver selected in a re-draft of the entire NFL. His 2.66 receiving yards per route run finished third in the league behind only Jefferson, Adam Thielen and Dalvin Cook give Minnesota one of the league's best three-headed monsters on offense heading into this season.
Biggest weakness: Minnesota's interior offensive line has collectively earned a 44.2 pass-blocking grade over the last three seasons. That's nearly 10 points lower than the 31st-place Seahawks. Ezra Cleveland -- who is expected to transition from right to left guard in 2021 -- and Garrett Bradbury were both much more effective as run blockers than pass protectors in 2020. Rookie Wyatt Davis was drafted with the intention of helping in that department. But as we've seen in Minnesota over the past few seasons, relying on rookie offensive linemen doesn't always lead to smooth sailing.
X factor for 2021: Last season, the Colts were the beneficiary of a former Vikings cornerback ( Xavier Rhodes) transitioning to a scheme that better suited his talents. Minnesota fans will be hoping to be on the receiving end of a similar situation for Patrick Peterson in 2021. Peterson ranks in just the 37th percentile of outside cornerbacks in coverage grade over the past two seasons. However, Vance Joseph 's man-heavy defense did Peterson 's declining athleticism no favors. The Vikings' secondary provides an opportunity for Peterson to bounce back in a more favorable defensive scheme.
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6. Green Bay PackersBiggest strength: Jaire Alexander and Adrian Amos form one of the league's best defensive back duos. Alexander's impact is easier to see: He allowed just 51% of the passes into his coverage to be completed last season, and those receptions went for fewer than 10 yards on average. Amos doesn't get as much of the national spotlight. That may be because he hasn't made a ton of splash plays, but Amos also rarely gets beaten for big plays. His 91.9 PFF grade since 2017 ranks second among all qualifying safeties.
Biggest weakness: For as good as some of the high-end talent is on Green Bay's defense, there still are clear weak points for opposing offenses to attack. The second outside cornerback spot is one of them. Kevin King is coming off a 2020 season in which he earned a coverage grade below 50.0 and allowed a passer rating of 105.8 on throws into his coverage. First-round rookie Eric Stokes is the only real competition for King at that spot, and there may be an adjustment period for Stokes in the NFL, given the difference in how illegal contact is enforced from college to the pros.
X factor for 2021: This has to be Aaron Rodgers , right? The future Hall of Famer is coming off the highest-graded season of his career and well-deserved MVP honors in 2020. The Packers' Super Bowl aspirations all hinge on whether Rodgers can have similar success under center this year, but Green Bay can't even guarantee Rodgers will suit up for the team this season, let alone play to the level of his 2020 campaign.
23. Chicago BearsBiggest strength: Khalil Mack 's 17.5 sacks over the past two seasons aren't even a top-10 mark in the league. As a result, many would say he has fallen off a bit. That isn't even remotely the case. Since joining the Bears in 2018, Mack 's 92.5 PFF grade ranks No. 1 among all qualifying edge defenders. Looking only at last season, Mack was the most valuable edge defender in the league, according to PFF WAR, edging out T.J. Watt , J.J. Watt and Joey Bosa. Mack is still the gold standard at the position.
Biggest weakness: Chicago's decision to release Kyle Fuller puts pressure on Jaylon Johnson to play with more consistency this season. Johnson 's 19.4% forced incompletion rate as a rookie ranked third among all cornerbacks who saw at least 50 targets. But those highs did come with some lows. Johnson allowed over 14 yards per reception into his coverage and ended the year with a 54.9 overall grade. The other projected outside starter, Desmond Trufant, is coming off two consecutive injury-impacted seasons, the second of which led to a 38.4 overall grade in Detroit.
X factor for 2021: Chicago has come away from each of the past three seasons at 8-8 or better despite bottom-of-the-barrel play at the quarterback position. Justin Fields has the chance to change all of that. Fields earned 90-plus PFF grades in each of the past two seasons as Ohio State's starter, and he was the most accurate college quarterback that PFF has charted since that process began several years ago. Allen Robinson II may finally have an above-average quarterback delivering him the football in 2021.
31. Detroit LionsBiggest strength: The Lions have made it clear that they plan to build through the trenches, and they're off to a good start along the offensive line. Frank Ragnow projects as one of the best centers in the NFL this season, coming off a career-high 80.3 overall grade in 2020, but rookie right tackle Penei Sewell has the potential to be the best offensive lineman in this starting five. Sewell ended his 2019 true sophomore season at Oregon with a 95.8 PFF grade, which was higher than any offensive lineman in the PFF college era at the time.
Biggest weakness: While the offensive line is in good shape for new starting quarterback Jared Goff , his pass-catching options leave a lot to be desired. Tyrell Williams and Breshad Perriman are the top two wide receivers on Detroit's depth chart. Both entered the league in 2015, but they've combined for just one season with at least 750 receiving yards ( Williams in 2016) in the six years since. Anthony Lynn's offense could employ a run-heavy approach to work around that group this season.
X factor for 2021: Jeff Okudah was supposed to be one of the prospects in last year's draft class who was too good to fail. The size, athletic traits and production were all near-ideal coming out of Ohio State. Yet Okudah struggled as a rookie. His 2.3 yards allowed per coverage snap were the most of any qualifying cornerback in the NFL last season, and he had issues through injuries and Matt Patricia's defensive scheme en route to a 30.9 coverage grade. The talent is still there. The Lions are just hoping it starts to show in 2021.
Biggest strength: The Lions have made it clear that they plan to build through the trenches, and they're off to a good start along the offensive line. Frank Ragnow projects as one of the best centers in the NFL this season, coming off a career-high 80.3 overall grade in 2020,
By all accounts Vikings were targeting Frank Ragnow in the 2018 draft. When the Lions took him, Vikings shifted gears and took Mike Hughes. That's one you'd like to have back.
You could argue up or down a spot or so, but that's about where I would have put our roster on paper...
Quote: @purplefaithful said:
You could argue up or down a spot or so, but that's about where I would have put our roster on paper...
It's probably about where they should be, considering we have several players that are question marks. Rookies on the OL. Will Peterson bounce back? Who's Michael Pierce again? HUGE downgrade from Ant Harris to X Woods. Or is it?
Just a lot of questions. I think if just half of them are answered in the positive, Vikings finish much better than 9th.
At what point does the media stop putting the Cowboys on a pedestal, they have not done a thing since Troy Aikman was there, they can't win the worst division in the history of the NFL and yet they are always at the top of the rankings. Prescott is one of the most inaccurate QBs I have ever seen and is not a leader and Elliott is so overrated. Cousins, Cook, Jefferson blow away their 3.
Quote: @JR44 said:
At what point does the media stop putting the Cowboys on a pedestal, they have not done a thing since Troy Aikman was there, they can't win the worst division in the history of the NFL and yet they are always at the top of the rankings. Prescott is one of the most inaccurate QBs I have ever seen and is not a leader and Elliott is so overrated. Cousins, Cook, Jefferson blow away their 3.
Blow away is a bit strong. I would take Cousins, Cook, JJ and Thielen over Prescott, Elliott, Lamb and Cooper, but not by a huge amount. That's a comparable group. And their offensive line is a lot better than ours. I think our defense is better though.
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