2009 All-Pro 3rd Team

QB: Philip Rivers, SD

Rivers completed 65.2% of his passes on a league-leading 8.75 YPA, threw only 9 interceptions, and led his team on an 11-game winning streak to end the regular season. The average pass he completed was 7.07 yards downfield, a mark that finishes 5th among quarterbacks who’ve started at least 14 games.

HM:

Ben Roethlisberger, PIT; Aaron Rodgers, GB; Matt Schaub, HOU; Tony Romo, DAL; Brett Favre, MIN

RB: Maurice Jones-Drew, JAC

It was very difficult to leave Maurice Jones-Drew off the 2nd team. Still he turned in a great year with nearly 1400 yards and 4.5 yards per carry. Among full-time starters, only Ricky Williams and Fred Jackson finished with a better stuff percentage than MJD who was stuffed on only 8.3% of his carries. His strength to break through tackles and speed to burst into the secondary makes him a very exciting back to watch.

RB: Frank Gore, SF

Though he missed a couple games, he was the catalyst of the 49ers offense. He set a new career high in touchdowns (10 rushing, 3 receiving) and finished in the top 5 in explosive plays among backs with more than 100 carries.

HM:

Cedric Benson, CIN; DeAngelo Williams, CAR; Jonathan Stewart, CAR

FB: Lousaka Polite, MIA

Polite is everything you want in a fullback. He’s a good blocker who can convert short yardage plays (17/19 on carries with 2 or less to go).

HM:

Leonard Weaver, PHI

WR: Miles Austin, DAL

Though he received limited opportunities in the first four weeks of the season and was limited for a short stretch in the middle of the season, few receivers were more impressive this year than Austin. The emergence of a high-end athlete capable of breaking off big plays after the catch helped offset the loss of Terrell Owens in the offseason. In fact, Austin led all starting receivers with 6.85 YAC per reception, finished top 5 in yards per receptions, and 3rd in receiving yardage.

WR: Vincent Jackson, SD

While Jackson disappeared for a short stretch in the middle of the season, his vertical ability (9 catches on passes of more than 20 yards downfield), consistency (3 drops), and reliability (league-high 54.2% 1st downs per target) gives him the nod over a trio of other worthy candidates.

HM:

Larry Fitzgerald, ARI; DeSean Jackson, PHI; Brandon Marshall, DEN; Steve Smith, NYG

TE: Vernon Davis, SF

Though Witten or Miller could have earned this spot and are better all-around tight ends, Davis’s year was quite exciting to watch. Though he led the league in drops (11), he’s an underrated blocker. He also tied a tight end record with 13 touchdowns, with many coming on an unstoppable seam route.

HM:

Jason Witten, DAL; Heath Miller, PIT

LT: D’Brickashaw Ferguson, NYJ

Maybe people have written him off or still feel he holds a bust tag, but few tackles have been more impressive in their year-to-year improvement than D’Brick. While he still allows a couple sacks per season, he’s done a marvelous job in cutting back the overall pressures. More importantly, he’s taken strides in improving as a run blocker.

HM:

Ryan Clady, DEN; Jake Long, MIA

LG: Ben Grubbs, BAL

Though Grubbs has made consistent improvement as a pass blocker, his forte is lining up and using his strength to plow lanes or agility to do some pulling and trapping in the run game.

HM:

Logan Mankins, NE; Kyle Kosier, DAL

C: Ryan Kalil, CAR

Kalil finished the year starting all 16 games at center for the first time in his career and turned in a fine season. While the overall production of the interior line as a run-blocking unit dipped a little in the second half of the season because of Travelle Wharton’s relocation to left tackle, the Panthers were still able to gash defenses up the middle, leading the league in rushes of 10 yards and more through the interior.

HM:

Matt Birk, BAL

RG: Chris Snee, NYG

The Giants’ offensive line and running game struggled to get much going this year and were a big part of the offense’s problems this year. Chris Snee was, however, one bright area for the line. The team called more run plays over the right side and likewise finished the year running the ball best up the middle and to the right, behind Snee.

HM:

Josh Sitton, GB

RT: Vernon Carey, MIA

By keeping Carey at right tackle, the Dolphins have found a player that’s more than capable in pass protection and also great in paving lanes for Brown and Williams. Both runners averaged 5 yards a carry running over right tackle.

HM:

Jon Stinchcomb, NO

DE: Julius Peppers, CAR

Peppers dominated this season as a pass rusher and made huge impacts throughout the season. Even though he recorded only 1 sack against Minnesota, he nearly destroyed the Vikings single-handedly. He finished 4th among defensive ends in impact plays (26.5) despite playing fewer snaps than most starting ends. Though Peppers is still not an elite run defender, he brings a lot more to the table than your average pass rush specialist.

DE: Robert Mathis, IND

While the rookie starting corners for Indy played well this season, it was really the unrelenting pass rush from either side that allowed them to look even better. Opposite Freeney, Mathis was a terror. Unofficially, he finished the year only behind his teammate in quarterback pressure percentage (14.1%) among ends with over 500 snaps.

HM:

Will Smith, NO; Andre Carter, WAS; Randy Starks, MIA; Johnny Jolly, GB; Calais Campbell, ARI

DT: Darnell Dockett, ARI

I know I’m cheating moving Dockett inside to tackle, but he takes enough snaps here (about 5-10 a game) for me to feel he could do it in a 4-3 defense, which the Cardinals do sometimes play. With 7 sacks and 10 stuffs and a total of 20 impact plays which is tops among all 3-4 defensive ends and ties for tops among defensive tackles. His run defense is also very good, though he’s more of a penetrator/disruptor.

DT: Jonathan Babineaux, ATL

Haynesworth was more dominant on the field, but missed 4 games and played only around 70% of his team’s snaps in games he dressed for. Babineaux on the other hand played closer to 85% on the whole season. Few defensive tackles were more active (47 tackles, 6 sacks, 10 stuffs) than Babineaux who led all defensive tackles in impact plays. The Falcons played their best run defense with runners crashing through the middle as well.

HM:

Albert Haynesworth, WAS; Casey Hampton, PIT; Tony Brown, TEN; Aubrayo Franklin, SF

OLB: Elvis Dumervil, DEN

Though Dumervil had 17 sacks and 4 forced fumbles, which speaks volumes in itself. His game is very limited, though, in what he can do. He recorded 0 tackles behind the line against running backs and was very limited in dropping into coverage. Dumervil didn’t even face the offensive line’s best pass protector most weeks, going up against right tackles, also using blitz schemes to pick up some sacks. A record-setting year, or a higher volume of pressures and hits could have landed him a higher spot as a pure pass rusher, but he’s still well-deserving of this spot.

OLB: Clay Matthews, GB

Matthews is already has the makings of a polished, all-around player. He has ELITE speed to the quarterback, but can also protect the edge in the run game. His pass rush and playmaking really allowed Green Bay’s defense to step up. He tied Brian Cushing in impact plays for all outside linebackers – not just rookies. With a couple more pass-rushing moves in his repertoire, Matthews could become a legitimate 1st team candidate in the future.

HM:

Anthony Spencer, DAL; Brian Orakpo, WAS; Geno Hayes, TB

ILB: Jonathan Vilma, NO

Vilma had an outstanding season, but was elite in pass coverage this year. He had 3 picks and 8 pass deflections, but really just displayed consistency in blanketing backs and tight ends. The most impressive part of Vilma’s season was that he saved his big plays for the biggest and closest games.

ILB: London Fletcher, WAS

Though Fletcher should really be thanking Albert Haynesworth for his step up in production, he’s really been a model for consistency for the entire decade. He’s always gone unnoticed, probably because of his only moderate success as a playmaker, but Fletcher is really efficient and knows how to attack the ballcarrier.

HM:

Nick Barnett, GB; Curtis Lofton, ATL; DJ Williams, DEN

CB: Leon Hall, CIN

Both of the Bengals’ corners stepped up this year and combined the top two receivers to go for a meager 90.8 yards per game on average, which is good for 4th in the league. Hall allowed a catch rate of around 50%, a very good mark for a top cornerback, but also finished 2nd in the league in pass deflections. His 6 picks and 2 forced fumbles proved that he could also be a playmaker in the secondary.

CB: Mike Jenkins, DAL

Sheldon Brown has been the most criminally underrated cornerback of the decade, but he didn’t have his best year in coverage. Despite a number of key weak links in the secondary, Dallas managed to finish middle of the pack in pass defense. Mike Jenkins struggled in a couple games early, but was darn near elite toward the end of the season. He allowed a nearly 50% completion mark and unofficially recorded a 6.0 yards per attempt. With 19 pass deflections and 5 picks on the year, he was a big part of what enabled Dallas to stay competitive defensively.

HM:

Sheldon Brown, PHI; Jonathan Joseph, CIN; Mike Jenkins, DAL; Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie, ARI; Quentin Jammer, SD

S: Louis Delmas, DET

Delmas had an outstanding rookie season and was in heavy contention for defensive rookie of the year. He carried his reputation as a big hitter out of college into the NFL, laying the wood on several occasions. With a better defense around him, Delmas should flourish for years and continue to show his well-rounded game.

S: Kerry Rhodes, NYJ

Rhodes didn’t have a great season by his standards, but was still good by most. He took some bad angles in run support, which led to a short-lived benching in weeks 12-14, but Rhodes was consistently over the top to prevent the big play from occurring under his supervision.

HM:

Roman Harper, NO; Brandon Meriweather, NE; Tyvon Branch, OAK; Jairus Byrd, BUF

K: Ryan Longwell, MIN

The other ex-Packer led the league in field goal percentage (93%), missing only 2 field goals on the year. Longwell was 10 of 11 from beyond 40, including 2 of 2 from beyond 50. He also drilled a game-winning field goal against Baltimore midway through the year.

P: Mat McBriar, DAL

McBriar finished 7th in net average (39.9), but was an expert in pinning opponents inside the 20 yard line. He had 38 In 20’s, or on a league-leading 52.8% of his punts.

KR: DeSean Jackson, PHI

Jackson was a lethal punt returner, averaging a league-best 15.2 yards per punt. Jackson took 2 all the way, and 5 others for more than 20 yards.

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