8. WR MICHAEL THOMAS, NEW ORLEANS SAINTS
Michael Thomas smashed the all-time single-season receptions record in 2019, breaking Marvin Harrison's mark with a week to spare and ending the year with 149 catches from just 180 targets (82.8%). On the season, quarterbacks passing to Michael Thomas had a passer rating of 123.3, and he did this despite Drew Brees missing five starts with an injured thumb. Thomas was one of the most dominant players in football because even though teams knew exactly what the Saints wanted to do, few could even put a dent in his production.
10. DI CAMERON HEYWARD, PITTSBURGH STEELERS
Every season there is a battle to earn the position of the best interior defender in the league not named Aaron Donald. This season, Cameron Heyward raised his hand, and his game, to take that honor. With teammate Stephon Tuitt getting injured, Heyward needed to up his game and did exactly that, registering 59 total pressures and 44 defensive stops. The latter figure was a career-best, seven more than his previous high, while his 59 pressures were good enough to earn a PFF pass-rushing grade of 84.0. His overall PFF grade of 91.5 was the best mark of his career and the second-best mark among interior defenders in 2019.
28. EDGE NICK BOSA, SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS
One of the most impressive rookies PFF has seen over the past decade-plus of grading, Bosa ended the season with the most total pressures ever recorded by a first-year pass-rusher during the PFF era (2006 – present). He only added to that total in the playoffs, with a ridiculous 22 extra pressures across three games. In the biggest game of them all — the Super Bowl — Bosa recorded an absurd 12 total pressures and a pass-rush win rate over 30% in a losing effort, and he could easily have been seen as the best player on the field in that game. Nick Bosa was a true pass-rushing force as a rookie — 2020 and beyond could be scary for the rest of the NFL.
29. EDGE JOEY BOSA, LOS ANGELES CHARGERS
The elder Bosa brother makes it a tandem of Bosas inside the top 30 of the PFF Top 101, a feat I'm sure the Watts will have a good chance to emulate going forward. The elder Bosa was back to his best play this season after injury affected his 2018. He notched 71 total pressures and had an overall PFF grade of 89.6, the best mark of his career, while the 49 defensive stops he tallied also set a career-high and were eight clear of the figure he recorded in 2017. Nick Bosa may have taken the league by storm as a rookie, but he's hasn't left his brother in the dust just yet.
51. WR TERRY MCLAURIN, WASHINGTON REDSKINS
The performance of rookie receiver Terry McLaurin was one of the most impressive of the season from a young player. McLaurin immediately became the No. 1 receiver in Washington, averaged a top-15 yards per route run figure (2.05), generated a quarterback a passer rating of 118.3 when targeted, and he did it all without any kind of quality quarterback play over the season. Only a few too many drops saw McLaurin slip from being ranked among the very best receivers in the game, but his 85.7 overall PFF grade was still good enough to rank sixth over the season.
Michael Thomas smashed the all-time single-season receptions record in 2019, breaking Marvin Harrison's mark with a week to spare and ending the year with 149 catches from just 180 targets (82.8%). On the season, quarterbacks passing to Michael Thomas had a passer rating of 123.3, and he did this despite Drew Brees missing five starts with an injured thumb. Thomas was one of the most dominant players in football because even though teams knew exactly what the Saints wanted to do, few could even put a dent in his production.
10. DI CAMERON HEYWARD, PITTSBURGH STEELERS
Every season there is a battle to earn the position of the best interior defender in the league not named Aaron Donald. This season, Cameron Heyward raised his hand, and his game, to take that honor. With teammate Stephon Tuitt getting injured, Heyward needed to up his game and did exactly that, registering 59 total pressures and 44 defensive stops. The latter figure was a career-best, seven more than his previous high, while his 59 pressures were good enough to earn a PFF pass-rushing grade of 84.0. His overall PFF grade of 91.5 was the best mark of his career and the second-best mark among interior defenders in 2019.
28. EDGE NICK BOSA, SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS
One of the most impressive rookies PFF has seen over the past decade-plus of grading, Bosa ended the season with the most total pressures ever recorded by a first-year pass-rusher during the PFF era (2006 – present). He only added to that total in the playoffs, with a ridiculous 22 extra pressures across three games. In the biggest game of them all — the Super Bowl — Bosa recorded an absurd 12 total pressures and a pass-rush win rate over 30% in a losing effort, and he could easily have been seen as the best player on the field in that game. Nick Bosa was a true pass-rushing force as a rookie — 2020 and beyond could be scary for the rest of the NFL.
29. EDGE JOEY BOSA, LOS ANGELES CHARGERS
The elder Bosa brother makes it a tandem of Bosas inside the top 30 of the PFF Top 101, a feat I'm sure the Watts will have a good chance to emulate going forward. The elder Bosa was back to his best play this season after injury affected his 2018. He notched 71 total pressures and had an overall PFF grade of 89.6, the best mark of his career, while the 49 defensive stops he tallied also set a career-high and were eight clear of the figure he recorded in 2017. Nick Bosa may have taken the league by storm as a rookie, but he's hasn't left his brother in the dust just yet.
51. WR TERRY MCLAURIN, WASHINGTON REDSKINS
The performance of rookie receiver Terry McLaurin was one of the most impressive of the season from a young player. McLaurin immediately became the No. 1 receiver in Washington, averaged a top-15 yards per route run figure (2.05), generated a quarterback a passer rating of 118.3 when targeted, and he did it all without any kind of quality quarterback play over the season. Only a few too many drops saw McLaurin slip from being ranked among the very best receivers in the game, but his 85.7 overall PFF grade was still good enough to rank sixth over the season.
