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Top-rated players at each position before Week 10

Posted on by Kennedy
Top-rated players at each position before Week 10

• Harold Fannin Jr. is still unstoppable: Bowling Green's star tight end leads the nation in nearly every measure at the position.

• Don’t sleep on Cal’s Craig Woodson: The safety has excelled in coverage this season, ranking fourth nationally with his coverage grade of 89.2.

• Unlock your benefit with a PFF+ subscription: Get full access to all of our in-season fantasy tools, including weekly rankings, WR/CB matchup charts, weekly projections, the starting sit optimizer, and more. Register now!

Estimated reading time: 7 minutes

QUARTERBACK

Power four: Cam WardMiami Hurricanes – 91.4

Week 8 was the first game of the season in which Cam Ward did not score a touchdown pass or big throw and in which he also threw for fewer than 300 yards. But if your lowest overall rating game is 63.0, I'd say you're doing something right. However, he still ranks in the top four in both touchdown passes (24) and big throws (20).

Group of five: Bryson DailyBlack Knights of the Army – 93.6

Bryson Daily is coming off a bye week but has been nothing short of spectacular this season with an overall PFF grade of 93.6. As the quarterback of a team that runs the ball almost exclusively, he leads the nation with 19 touchdown runs and also has an elite 90.5 running grade.

RUN BACK

Power four: Brashard SmithSMU Mustangs, 92.5

In a game where QB Kevin Jennings struggled, Smith had to carry the load offensively for the Mustangs with 95 rushing yards after contact and two touchdowns against Duke. This year, Smith has caught all 19 of his targeted passes for 171 yards, giving him the nation's highest receiving grade among Power Four halfbacks at 91.6.

Group of five: Ashton JeantyBoise State Broncos, 95.3

It almost feels disrespectful to say that this was Ashton Jeanty's worst game of the season when he ran for 128 yards and a touchdown. But UNLV held Jeanty in check the most, limiting him to 3.9 yards per carry and just nine broken tackles. This may have diminished Jeanty's Heisman chances a bit, but he is still the nation's leading rusher with a 97.3 run grade.

WIDE RECEIVER

Power four: Tre HarrisOle Miss Rebels – 90.1

Tre Harris has been dealing with an injury in recent weeks, but his status as the best wide receiver in the country was hardly in question. His 987 receiving yards still ranks second nationally, while his receiving yardage ranks first at 90.1.

Group of five: Nick NashSan Jose State Spartans – 87.4

Nick Nash has finally passed Tre Harris with 995 yards receiving this season. No one was targeted more or caught more touchdown passes than Nash this year.

Tight end

Power five: Eli StowersVanderbilt Commodores – 90.0

The former quarterback recruit has adapted very well to his new position and has carried Vanderbilt's passing offense all season. Stowers caught another touchdown pass last Saturday against the Longhorns and also recorded his first two contested catches of the year.

Group of five: Harold Fannin JrBowling Green Falcons – 96.2

Another game goes by and another week in which Harold Fannin Jr. leads all tight ends in every major statistic.

Stat

 number rank
yards 947

1

TD's

 6 1
grade received 96.5

1

YAC

 533 1
Y/RR 3.91

1

MTF

 23 1
1. Downs 46

1

Offensive attack

Performance Four: Wyatt MilumWest Virginia Mountaineers – 92.1

Wyatt Milum missed last week due to injury, but he is the only FBS tackle yet to play over 400 snaps with a 100% pass blocking efficiency rate. Let's hope his injury isn't serious since he played his way into the first round.

Group of five: Kage CaseyBoise State – 85.7

Kage Casey has meant so much to Ashton Jeanty this season from a run blocking perspective, where he ranks in the top 10 with a grade of 80.0. But he meant even more to Maddux Madsen, with an 85.1 pass-blocking grade with no surrendered sacks.

OFFENSIVE GUARD

Performance Four: Willie LampkinNorth Carolina Tar Heels – 83.4

Despite five pressures and three quarterback hits, Willie Lampkin still hasn't given up a sack this year and his pass blocking efficiency rate is 99.2. He's also helped Omarion Hampton a lot this season, with a run-blocking grade of 85.0, which is in the top five at his position.

Group of five: Addison WestWestern Michigan Broncos – 92.8

Among all guards in the FBS, Addison West is the leader in run blocking (90.3), pass blocking (92.0) and overall PFF grade (92.8).

CENTER

Performance Four: Bryce FosterKansas Jayhawks, 78.0

Bryce Foster allowed a season-high two quarterback hurries against Kansas State last week. But that was only the sixth pressure he allowed in 2024, giving him a pass blocking efficiency of 98.7 percent.

Group of five: Jacob GardnerColorado State Rams – 89.6

Jacob Gardner has been the most consistent center in college football this season through five games with a PFF grade of 80.0. He is the only center with a grade of 86.0 or better in both run blocking and pass protection.

Central defender

Power four: Mason GrahamMichigan Wolverines – 89.9

It's no surprise that Mason Graham is the highest-rated Power Four DT in the country heading into the season. After all, he is the third overall player PFF's big board. His 24 pressures are the third most at the position.

Group of five: Peyton ZdroikLuftwaffe Falcons – 92.0

Peyton Zdroik hasn't played since Week 6 because he was injured, but no defensive tackle has yet surpassed his overall PFF grade. In the five games he played, he made 13 pressure attempts, 11 defensive stops and one forced fumble.

EDGE DEFENDER

Performance Four: Josaiah StewartMichigan Wolverines – 93.5

All in all, Michigan may still have the best defensive line in all of college football. Both Mason Graham and Josaiah Stewart have 24 pressures this season. In 147 pass-rushing snaps, Stewart has racked up six sacks and posted a pass-rushing grade of 93.8, which is the highest among edge defenders.

Group of five: Eric O'NeillJames Madison – 88.9

Last Saturday, Eric O'Neill pressured ten times in one game. He was virtually unblockable against Southern Miss as he recorded two sacks. With the 88.0 pass rushing grade O'Neill posted in this contest, his season pass rushing grade rose to an outstanding 80.5.

LINE BACKER

Performance Four: Chris Paul JrOle Miss Rebels – 90.9

Chris Paul Jr. has the most pressures of any linebacker with 20. He has been so good at all three levels in this Ole Miss defense, earning a grade above 80.0 in every PFF statistical category.

PFF Stat

 degree
defense

90.9

Run defense

 90.1
Tackle

85.1

Pass rushing

 80.3
cover

90.3
Group of five: Shaun DolacBuffalo Bulls – 89.5

Shaun Dolac added eight more tackles and three more defensive stops to his resume, where he happens to lead the FBS in both categories. His overall mark in duels is 90.6, which corresponds to third place at this position.

CORNERBACK

Performance Four: Jahdae BarronTexas Longhorns – 88.0

Jahdae Barron broke up another pass against Vanderbilt on Saturday, marking his third PBU of the season to go along with his three interceptions. Opposing quarterbacks' passer rating when attacking Barron is now 30.9.

Group of five: Cam StoneHawaii Rainbow Warriors – 88.5

Good luck breaking a tackle on Cam Stone in the secondary. During the year, he only missed a single tackle on 25 successful attempts, for a tackle grade of 85.8. This guy just has great hands and great instincts for finding the ball. His six pass breakups rank among the top 10 corners in the Group of Five.

SECURITY

Craig WoodsonCal Golden Bears – 89.0

Craig Woodson has been extremely productive for Cal's defense this year with 39 tackles and five pass breakups. His grade was consistently high above 78.0 or better in all major PFF statistical categories. Woodson has allowed just 47 yards after the catch all season.

Group of five: JJ RobertsMarshall Thundering Herd – 89.2

Since the Ohio State game, Roberts hasn't given up even 100 receiving yards in coverage and has recorded six PBUs in that span. His coverage rating is 88.4, which puts him in the top five of all safeties in the Group of Five.

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