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They have Lawrence ranked first, Barmore is second and compared to Aaron Donald in the piece.
Defensive tackle is right near the bottom of the list among positions where you can expect a rookie to hit the ground running. The physical learning curve going from manhandling teenagers to doing the same against grown men is massive. Even the greatest defensive tackle in modern football history, Aaron Donald, managed a meager 44 pressures as a rookie. He has averaged double that in his seven seasons since.
So, when a second-rounder like Barmore racks up 48 pressures for the Patriots as a rookie, the football world should take note. Even scarier, we already saw him look like a different player in the second half of last season. He went from a 63.5 pass-rushing grade in the first eight weeks of the season to an 82.6 pass-rushing grade across the final nine. The latter figure was good enough for fifth best among defensive tackles over that span.
If Barmore improves, he will be a problem that offenses have to game-plan around very shortly.
2. Christian Barmore, DT, New England Patriots
Pick in 2021 draft: No. 38Defensive tackle is right near the bottom of the list among positions where you can expect a rookie to hit the ground running. The physical learning curve going from manhandling teenagers to doing the same against grown men is massive. Even the greatest defensive tackle in modern football history, Aaron Donald, managed a meager 44 pressures as a rookie. He has averaged double that in his seven seasons since.
So, when a second-rounder like Barmore racks up 48 pressures for the Patriots as a rookie, the football world should take note. Even scarier, we already saw him look like a different player in the second half of last season. He went from a 63.5 pass-rushing grade in the first eight weeks of the season to an 82.6 pass-rushing grade across the final nine. The latter figure was good enough for fifth best among defensive tackles over that span.
If Barmore improves, he will be a problem that offenses have to game-plan around very shortly.
Ranking the NFL's second-year breakout candidates: 15 players who could turn into stars
Some 2021 draftees are heading into camp looking to build off average rookie seasons. Pro Football Focus tells us who could improve most.
www.espn.com