My top-12 rookie LBs for dynasty (no pass rushers, sorry) 2018 Rankings
Posted: Mon May 07, 2018 1:24 pm
1. Roquan Smith, Bears
Out of all the rookie LBs, Roquan is the only one who is more or less GUARANTEED to be a starting, 3-down LB, and will be doing so on a team who (though they're making great strides to improve) should still be trailing a fair amount this season, giving Smith plenty of tackle opportunities.
2. Darius Leonard, Colts
Yup, he's my #2 LB in this class for IDP. Not that I think he's the 2nd best in real life, but he will probably lead all rookie linebackers (perhaps all LBs in the NFL) in snaps this year. As we know for IDP, snaps played is one of the most important factors. And don't get me wrong, his talent is very real as well. If Indy's D-Line can keep him clean, Leonard might get 90+ solos this year.
3. Tremaine Edmunds, Bills
I've already made my opinion known about Edmunds on this forum, but in summary: this dude is a total size/athleticism freak and has the ceiling to be a top-5 LB for the next 10+ years. But, he's still a project. Don't expect him to be a starter for you this year. Favorable stat crew, no competition from teammates, I get all that. But he's not ready to be a full time guy, so hope for the best but prepare for him to start out part time.
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4. Rashaan Evans, Titans
Evans is going to start from day 1, that's no issue. But he is not a great coverage backer, and when he does play on passing downs, he usually rushes the passer. So I see him as a guy who may not be the tackle producer we normally expect from a 1st round LB.
5. Fred Warner, 49ers
Worst case scenario, he should be a starting linebacker NEXT TO Reuben Foster. Best case scenario, he's the only 3-down guy in town, in which case Brock Coyle figures to be the 2nd starting LB in the Bay. Either way, expect Warner to have a full time role from the get-go.
6. Leighton Vander Esch, Cowboys
Similar to Edmunds, "LVE" carries massive upside as a monster of a man with athletic traits to match. He's similarly raw in many elements of the game as well. UNLIKE Tremaine Edmunds, however, Vander Esch may not see the field a ton as a rookie. Dallas typically only plays one LB on an every-down basis, and until further notice that's Sean Lee. They also like Jaylon Smith to play 20-40% of the snaps, so we may only see LVE get an Anthony Hitchens-type workload in year one, and that's only seeing the field on 50-60% of the plays. Even if he's capped in 2018 though, his future is quite bright.
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7. Malik Jefferson, Bengals
He's the last guy on this list with a sky-high ceiling, but he also has a downside that could see him fall out of the league by the end of his rookie contract. Cincy won't have Burfict to start the year, so there's a chance Jefferson can supplant Vigil & Rey to start at WLB for a few games, although Marvin Lewis may very well continue to hate on rookies (which may be justifiable in this case, given Jefferson's question marks).
8. Jerome Baker, Dolphins
Similarly murky situation as I wrote about with Jefferson. There aren't theoretically any open jobs available on the Miami linebacker corps, with Alonso at WLB and McMillan at MLB. But the scuttlebutt around the league seems to be that the Dolphins are seeking to replace Alonso, and McMillan is still wholly unproven of course. I just sort of hate Baker as a prospect. He's fast and that's kind of it. He'll probably get at least 2-3 games this year where he receives serious playing time and a chance to prove his game translates to the big leagues.
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These last 3 are all similar. Guys with definite flaws but stepping into possible roles on teams with holes. All are late enough picks to not be handed anything as far as playing time, but early enough to at least be guaranteed a roster spot.
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9. Kenny Young, Ravens
He's probably not the next great Bruin linebacker, but he could be very serviceable playing next to Mosley, IF he wrests that job away from Onwuasor.
10. Oren Burks, Packers
Fantastic athlete, but still raw as an actual player. Converted to LB from safety, so he's probably expected to be a rich man's version of Joe Thomas who got some serious playing time in 2016 for Green Bay. He's definitely not replacing Martinez, but he will certainly eat into Jake Ryan's playing time, if not replace him outright.
11. Kyzir White, Chargers
He was drafted pretty darn high, and announced as a linebacker (played safety and nickel corner in college), so he definitely carries some IDP sex appeal. I just can't imagine that he'd be a better option on the field than Jatavis Brown. It would appear that LA at least wants to give him an opportunity to earn the WLB job next to Denzel Perryman.
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12. Micah Kiser, Rams
Let me be clear, this is only a guy to put on your watch list. Do not draft him. There is a slight chance that he could earn a starting ILB gig next to Barron, but frankly I believe that's Littleton's job to lose.
Out of all the rookie LBs, Roquan is the only one who is more or less GUARANTEED to be a starting, 3-down LB, and will be doing so on a team who (though they're making great strides to improve) should still be trailing a fair amount this season, giving Smith plenty of tackle opportunities.
2. Darius Leonard, Colts
Yup, he's my #2 LB in this class for IDP. Not that I think he's the 2nd best in real life, but he will probably lead all rookie linebackers (perhaps all LBs in the NFL) in snaps this year. As we know for IDP, snaps played is one of the most important factors. And don't get me wrong, his talent is very real as well. If Indy's D-Line can keep him clean, Leonard might get 90+ solos this year.
3. Tremaine Edmunds, Bills
I've already made my opinion known about Edmunds on this forum, but in summary: this dude is a total size/athleticism freak and has the ceiling to be a top-5 LB for the next 10+ years. But, he's still a project. Don't expect him to be a starter for you this year. Favorable stat crew, no competition from teammates, I get all that. But he's not ready to be a full time guy, so hope for the best but prepare for him to start out part time.
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4. Rashaan Evans, Titans
Evans is going to start from day 1, that's no issue. But he is not a great coverage backer, and when he does play on passing downs, he usually rushes the passer. So I see him as a guy who may not be the tackle producer we normally expect from a 1st round LB.
5. Fred Warner, 49ers
Worst case scenario, he should be a starting linebacker NEXT TO Reuben Foster. Best case scenario, he's the only 3-down guy in town, in which case Brock Coyle figures to be the 2nd starting LB in the Bay. Either way, expect Warner to have a full time role from the get-go.
6. Leighton Vander Esch, Cowboys
Similar to Edmunds, "LVE" carries massive upside as a monster of a man with athletic traits to match. He's similarly raw in many elements of the game as well. UNLIKE Tremaine Edmunds, however, Vander Esch may not see the field a ton as a rookie. Dallas typically only plays one LB on an every-down basis, and until further notice that's Sean Lee. They also like Jaylon Smith to play 20-40% of the snaps, so we may only see LVE get an Anthony Hitchens-type workload in year one, and that's only seeing the field on 50-60% of the plays. Even if he's capped in 2018 though, his future is quite bright.
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7. Malik Jefferson, Bengals
He's the last guy on this list with a sky-high ceiling, but he also has a downside that could see him fall out of the league by the end of his rookie contract. Cincy won't have Burfict to start the year, so there's a chance Jefferson can supplant Vigil & Rey to start at WLB for a few games, although Marvin Lewis may very well continue to hate on rookies (which may be justifiable in this case, given Jefferson's question marks).
8. Jerome Baker, Dolphins
Similarly murky situation as I wrote about with Jefferson. There aren't theoretically any open jobs available on the Miami linebacker corps, with Alonso at WLB and McMillan at MLB. But the scuttlebutt around the league seems to be that the Dolphins are seeking to replace Alonso, and McMillan is still wholly unproven of course. I just sort of hate Baker as a prospect. He's fast and that's kind of it. He'll probably get at least 2-3 games this year where he receives serious playing time and a chance to prove his game translates to the big leagues.
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TIER BREAK
These last 3 are all similar. Guys with definite flaws but stepping into possible roles on teams with holes. All are late enough picks to not be handed anything as far as playing time, but early enough to at least be guaranteed a roster spot.
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9. Kenny Young, Ravens
He's probably not the next great Bruin linebacker, but he could be very serviceable playing next to Mosley, IF he wrests that job away from Onwuasor.
10. Oren Burks, Packers
Fantastic athlete, but still raw as an actual player. Converted to LB from safety, so he's probably expected to be a rich man's version of Joe Thomas who got some serious playing time in 2016 for Green Bay. He's definitely not replacing Martinez, but he will certainly eat into Jake Ryan's playing time, if not replace him outright.
11. Kyzir White, Chargers
He was drafted pretty darn high, and announced as a linebacker (played safety and nickel corner in college), so he definitely carries some IDP sex appeal. I just can't imagine that he'd be a better option on the field than Jatavis Brown. It would appear that LA at least wants to give him an opportunity to earn the WLB job next to Denzel Perryman.
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12. Micah Kiser, Rams
Let me be clear, this is only a guy to put on your watch list. Do not draft him. There is a slight chance that he could earn a starting ILB gig next to Barron, but frankly I believe that's Littleton's job to lose.
I have a few LB spots to fill on a dynasty orphan I've taken on and this has been really useful.