Jordan Dajani, a contributor for CBS Sports, released a ranking of the top 20 NFL linebackers for the next campaign on Monday. And Dajani determined that Nick Bolton of the Kansas City Chiefs, a MIKE linebacker, should be considered one of the best in the league even though Bolton had missed a good deal of 2023 action.
Bolton was out for nine games the previous season, and I still believe he is undervalued. Bolton finished 2022 with the second-highest total of 180 combined tackles (of all players), two sacks, three passes defensed, and two interceptions. Given that he had nine total tackles in the victory over the Philadelphia Eagles and recovered a fumble that he returned for a touchdown, he had a chance to win Super Bowl MVP. As he is currently in his contract year, huge things are ahead.
Many Kansas City supporters believed that Bolton would be ranked among the finest linebackers in the league after his rookie campaign. However, things haven’t always worked out that way. Bolton was ranked 11th by Pro Football Focus heading into 2023, which put him in a third tier of players they called “really solid players.” Following his season cut short by injuries, PFF ranked him fourteenth for 2024. Bolton was ranked 10th by Dajani in the same rating a year prior, but Dajani pushed him up for the upcoming campaign.
In my opinion, this is how one should view Bolton: as a player who made a strong debut, solidified it in his second year, and kept improving (in spite of injuries) in his third. After a complete, injury-free season in 2024, I
Many Kansas City supporters believed that Bolton would be ranked among the finest linebackers in the league after his rookie campaign. However, things haven’t always worked out that way. Bolton was ranked 11th by Pro Football Focus heading into 2023, which put him in a third tier of players they called “really solid players.” Following his season cut short by injuries, PFF ranked him fourteenth for 2024. Bolton was ranked 10th by Dajani in the same rating a year prior, but Dajani pushed him up for the upcoming campaign.
In my opinion, this is how one should view Bolton: as a player who made a strong debut, solidified it in his second year, and kept improving (in spite of injuries) in his third. After a complete, injury-free season in 2024,
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