Barnwell picks the NFL's top luxuries: The best players at 11 specialized roles

For each the superstars the Eagles had connected discourtesy during their two Super Bowl title runs implicit the past decade, the players who were successful what are commonly characterized arsenic situational roles mightiness person played conscionable arsenic large of a portion successful their victories.

In February, it was 3rd antiaircraft tackle Milton Williams tormenting the interior of the Chiefs' violative enactment and slot country Cooper DeJean returning a Patrick Mahomes prime to the house. In 2018, it was reserve pass-catching backmost Corey Clement racking up 100 receiving yards, third-string choky extremity Trey Burton throwing a touchdown pass, and, of course, backup backmost Nick Foles adding to his touchdown catch with 373 passing yards and 3 scores.

Let's observe what I similar to notation to arsenic the NFL's luxury players. No enactment builds a roster prioritizing its plaything tackle oregon 4th wide receiver, but it tin definite beryllium utile to person successful a play crippled plan. These players mightiness person been constricted to 1 relation oregon definite snaps, and they aren't needfully going to beryllium that caliber of performer if fixed a larger relation successful 2025. We should laud them for what they are and however effectual they were astatine what they were asked to bash past season, though.

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Keep successful caput that we're focusing present connected players successful specialized roles. The champion third-down backmost successful the league mightiness beryllium Saquon Barkley, Jahmyr Gibbs oregon Christian McCaffrey, but those guys are large connected all downs. This would beryllium the spot to observe idiosyncratic similar Ameer Abdullah, an unsigned seasoned who has been coagulated arsenic a walk blocker and peculiar teamer, caught 85% of the passes thrown successful his absorption successful 2024 and adjacent chipped successful a 115-yard show arsenic a starter successful Week 17. Some of these players are already household names, but others are respected astir the NFL for what they bash successful a specialized role.

Jump to a position:
Sixth OL | Blitzing off-ball LB
Slot CB | Kickoffs | Gunner
Blocking TE | Short-yardage RB
Fourth WR | Gadget player | QB2 | Two-down DT

Sixth violative lineman

Alec Anderson, Buffalo Bills

Some teams bring other violative linemen onto the tract successful short-yardage and goal-line situations, hoping to usage the added bulk to make much question astatine the enactment of scrimmage. Over the past mates of years, though, the Bills person utilized the sixth violative lineman maneuver arsenic thing adjacent to a halfway violative concept.

Offensive coordinator Joe Brady utilized six linemen connected first-and-10 93 times past season, much than doubly arsenic often arsenic immoderate different offense. The league's different 31 teams went determination an mean of conscionable implicit 10 times connected first-and-10 successful 2024. And portion the Bills went with six linemen to assistance their tally game, the other lineman besides forced teams into the aforesaid hindrance we've seen defenses conflict with against multi-tight-end groupings. Play nickel and dime sub-package versus a six-lineman acceptable and the Bills volition tally it. Play basal defence and the Bills were blessed to throw; Josh Allen averaged 9.4 yards per effort retired of those six-lineman groupings past season, up astir 2 afloat yards from his people with 5 linemen connected the tract (7.6).

All of those unit grouping mismatches look large connected paper, but offenses request the unit to really propulsion them off. While the Bills utilized David Edwards successful this relation earlier helium moved into the starting lineup successful 2024, Anderson has taken it to different level. The 305-pound tackle spent 2 years connected the Buffalo signifier squad earlier making his debut past season. Brady carved retired a regular relation for Anderson immediately, arsenic helium averaged 14 snaps per game, excluding the Week 18 game successful which the Bills played their backups against the Pats.

Anderson has been a dependable tally blocker, but helium has excelled protecting Allen connected the edge. Amid his 79 pass-blocking snaps, the 25-year-old allowed conscionable 1 backmost unit and zero sacks, per NFL Next Gen Stats. Being capable to trust connected Anderson arsenic a coagulated walk blocker allows the Bills to take shots downfield retired of those Jumbo packages, which past scares defenses into protecting against the heavy passing onslaught and creates softer boxes for Allen and James Cook successful the tally game.

Blitzing off-ball linebacker

Kaden Elliss, Atlanta Falcons

During his last play successful New Orleans successful 2022 and implicit his archetypal 2 seasons successful Atlanta, Elliss has been 1 of the league's astir unsocial defenders. The Saints utilized him arsenic much of an borderline rusher for important stretches than the Falcons have, but some defenses person recovered ways to maximize his quality to get aft the quarterback.

Elliss' athleticism and timing person made him a invaluable subordinate connected "green dog" rushes, wherever a defender adds onto a walk unreserved if his sum work stays successful arsenic portion of the walk extortion unit. Coach Raheem Morris besides had immoderate occurrence utilizing him connected twists past season, including a drawback successful which helium was the pb rusher successful a twist/stunt and managed to get astir the defender assigned to artifact him and strip-sack Drew Lock.

As a one-on-one walk rusher, though, Elliss is overmuch amended than radical realize. How bully was helium successful 2024? By reducing the threshold for ESPN's pass unreserved triumph rate to see players who had astatine slightest 100 plays with a triumph oregon loss, his 26.4% PRWR was tied with Danielle Hunter for 2nd successful the NFL, trailing lone Aidan Hutchinson. Over the past 2 seasons, mounting the bounds astatine 150 plays with a triumph oregon loss, Elliss' 23.6% PRWR is the league's fourth-best mark.

When Elliss gets matched up against moving backs, helium is excessively explosive to block. Watch him spin and tally done Aaron Jones to instrumentality down Sam Darnold a twelvemonth ago. Not galore off-ball linebackers person that benignant of burst oregon wriggle, and helium does a bully occupation of finishing the play by keeping Darnold successful his grasp and getting the Vikings backmost down with a Jake Roberts-esque DDT.

Elliss finished past play with 5 sacks and a team-high 16 knockdowns of opposing quarterbacks, fantabulous numbers for a subordinate who lone rushed the backmost 148 times. It's a small bizarre to deliberation of an Atlanta walk rusher arsenic a luxury fixed that the enactment has struggled for truthful galore years to find its primary borderline rushers, but see Elliss to beryllium the world-class dependable strategy successful a car whose brakes and motor don't work. He's doing his part.

Slot cornerback

Cooper DeJean, Philadelphia Eagles

Yes, he's already there. DeJean spent the archetypal period of his rookie play connected the sidelines, but aft Philadelphia's Week 5 bye, his determination into the starting lineup coincided with a massive antiaircraft improvement. After ranking 26th successful expected points added (EPA) per play connected defence earlier the bye, the Eagles were comfortably the league's champion defence by the aforesaid metric afterward -- the second-place Texans ranked person to 13th than they did to first.

It would astir apt beryllium unrealistic to suggest DeJean was the azygous operator of those improvements, but helium surely served arsenic a revelation successful the secondary. From Week 6 onward, his minus-22.7 EPA allowed arsenic the nearest defender successful sum ranked 2nd successful the league, with chap rookie standout Nate Wiggins the lone cornerback up of him, per NFL Next Gen Stats. He didn't let a azygous touchdown connected 68 targets. And portion helium didn't grounds immoderate interceptions during the regular season, you mightiness retrieve what helium did to Patrick Mahomes successful the Super Bowl.

With the Eagles releasing Darius Slay, DeJean volition play extracurricular much often successful 2025, arsenic he'll apt commencement extracurricular successful their basal defence and enactment retired of the slot successful sub packages. He was successful sum arsenic an extracurricular cornerback connected conscionable six snaps past season, nary of which came during the postseason. He moved each astir the backfield successful assemblage astatine Iowa, which should assistance his chances of handling the added responsibilities. A ascendant rookie play besides bodes good for his chances of being a large NFL cornerback careless of wherever helium lines up pre-snap.

Kickoffs

Blake Grupe, New Orleans Saints

The assorted changes to the league's kickoff rules implicit the past fewer years person changed the mode kickers attack their jobs. With touchbacks connected kickoffs pushing the shot to the 30-yard enactment past season, determination was added worth successful some kickoff region and placement. With the new dynamic kickoff preventing teams from covering kickoffs until the shot is caught, the extremity for kickers is to nutrient a footwear that is heavy capable to unit a meaningful instrumentality without pushing the shot into the extremity portion for a touchback.

Nobody did a amended occupation of that past twelvemonth than Grupe, who produced touchbacks connected a league-low 26.9% of his kicks. He ranked 31st among each kickers successful yards per kickoff, but a deficiency of touchbacks, bully placement and reliable sum by the Saints meant that his mean kickoff produced a thrust that started 71.9 yards from the extremity zone. That was the league's champion complaint among kickers with astatine slightest 40 kickoffs. New Orleans ranked 2nd successful EPA per kickoff, trailing lone the Jets, who got a large half-season from Anders Carlson.

In 2025, the league is further incentivizing kickoff returns and discouraging touchbacks by pushing the shot 5 yards forward, giving offenses the quality to commencement connected the 35-yard enactment if the opposing squad kicks the shot into oregon done the extremity zone. The Saints mislaid peculiar teams manager Darren Rizzi to the Broncos this offseason, but if Grupe and his sum squad tin proceed to debar touchbacks and consistently screen returns, the quality volition beryllium adjacent much meaningful nether the even-more-dynamic kickoff rules.

Special teams gunner

Brenden Schooler, LB, New England Patriots

While the once-vaunted Patriots peculiar teams fell isolated and ranked among the worst successful shot by the clip Bill Belichick was fired aft the 2023 season, the 3rd facet of the crippled was 1 of the fewer places wherever the Pats held their ain a twelvemonth ago. New England ranked 2nd successful peculiar teams EPA, trailing lone the Steelers, who forced an unreal 11 fumbles connected kickoff and punt plays, the astir by immoderate squad since 2004.

The astir important unit down that peculiar teams show was Schooler, who was rewarded for his efforts with a first-team All-Pro nod. Schooler is not rather arsenic accordant of a tackler arsenic Nick Bellore (Commanders) oregon J.T. Gray (Saints), but the 28-year-old was unblockable astatine times connected punt duties past season; helium played a important relation successful helping the Patriots upset the Bengals successful the opener with his sum work. He's besides an fantabulous blocker erstwhile called upon to bash so.

In summation to blocking a punt successful an October crippled against the Dolphins, Schooler added thing to his résumé: defense. The Patriots utilized Schooler connected 50 snaps, and portion fractional of them came successful a meaningless Week 18 win implicit the Bills, helium was utilized much regularly to spy opposing quarterbacks. In constricted time, helium managed to pursuit down a brace of sacks, which near him tied for 4th connected the squad successful that category.

Signed to a three-year extension past fall, Schooler is 1 of the fewer Patriots to travel retired of 2024 looking similar helium would person acceptable successful during New England's dynasty.

Blocking choky end

Josh Oliver, TE, Minnesota Vikings

It's wide that the Vikings spot their 2nd choky extremity arsenic a captious portion of the offense. As I was moving connected this piece, they signed Oliver to a three-year, $23.3 cardinal extension, which would look to beryllium a lofty fig for a subordinate with 701 vocation receiving yards crossed six NFL seasons with 3 antithetic teams. It's the 2nd clip the Vikings person paid Oliver, who joined the squad connected a three-year, $21 cardinal woody 2 years ago.

The numbers backmost up the thought that Oliver is an elite blocker. He ranked 4th among eligible choky ends successful ESPN's run artifact triumph rate a twelvemonth ago, finishing conscionable down a erstwhile teammate successful now-Jaguars choky extremity Johnny Mundt. NFL Next Gen Stats credited Oliver with lone 2 pressures allowed crossed 55 pass-blocking snaps, producing a unit complaint that was conscionable astir fractional the league mean among choky ends.

Is that worthy much than $7 cardinal per twelvemonth successful a marketplace wherever bully blockers specified arsenic Mundt ($2.8 million) and Chris Manhertz ($1.4 million, Giants) are making mode less? It's pugnacious to say. Oliver is conscionable bully capable of a receiver to springiness teams intermission erstwhile he's moving routes up the seam and disconnected play-action footwear concepts. Combine that with large blocking and he's a precise utile player, 1 who lined up connected conscionable astir fractional of the violative snaps for the Vikings successful 2024. As teams thin further into 12 unit groupings, Oliver and John Bates (Commanders) could extremity up arsenic undervalued examples of an archetype seeing the tract much than ever before.

Short-yardage moving back

Kareem Hunt, RB, Kansas City Chiefs

The league's champion backmost successful abbreviated yardage is astir to go a luxury with an costly declaration successful Los Angeles. If rumors clasp true and Kyren Williams gets a caller woody with the Rams, manager Sean McVay & Co. volition beryllium locking up a backmost who has gone 39-of-45 (86.7%) successful converting 3rd oregon 4th down with 1 oregon 2 yards to spell implicit the past 2 seasons. He is much than conscionable a short-yardage back, but helium has been peculiarly invaluable successful that relation for the Rams.

Limiting this prime to backs who aren't standouts successful different ways, the champion enactment is Hunt, who was forced into a pb relation with the Chiefs past play aft Isiah Pacheco went down and rookie Carson Steele fumbled distant his opportunity. Hunt wasn't great, but the 1 happening helium did good was person successful abbreviated yardage. He went 15-of-18 (83.3%) successful those situations, 1 twelvemonth aft helium went 15-of-20 (75%) successful those aforesaid spots for the Browns.

Doing that for an discourtesy that relied heavy connected converting 3rd downs and wasn't consenting to tally Patrick Mahomes connected sneaks was a captious portion of the puzzle for Kansas City. With Pacheco backmost to afloat wellness and escaped cause Elijah Mitchell joining the mix, it would beryllium a astonishment if the Chiefs relied connected Hunt successful a featured relation again successful 2025. However, helium could inactive beryllium a utile 3rd moving backmost successful the close situations.

Gadget player

Marvin Mims Jr., WR, Denver Broncos

The thought of a gadget subordinate means little than it did successful the past, if lone due to the fact that violative coordinators realized that utilizing prima players successful the aforesaid places they erstwhile utilized situational playmakers is simply a large mode to make mismatches. Just astir each superstar "X" wide receiver has seen a meaningful fig of snaps from the slot and retired of bunches and stacks, but we're present seeing playcallers determination wideouts specified arsenic Justin Jefferson and CeeDee Lamb into the backfield to sow chaos and disorder for opposing defenses.

Thinking astir the classical thought of an undersized gadget subordinate who moves astir the enactment to thrive, catches each kinds of passes adjacent the enactment of scrimmage and creates large plays with the shot successful his hands, Mims comes to mind. Like galore gadget players from years past, helium adds worth connected peculiar teams: He was the league's first-team All-Pro instrumentality antheral successful 2024, averaging an NFL-best 15.7 yards per punt return.

As a receiver, though, Mims was plentifulness invaluable successful his ain role. After utilizing him chiefly connected the extracurricular arsenic a rookie, manager Sean Payton moved him astir much often successful 2024. Mims averaged conscionable 0.8 yards per way tally connected the extracurricular past season, but that jumped to a whopping 5.5 yards per way tally retired of the slot and successful the backfield, arsenic helium proved to beryllium an absorbing subordinate erstwhile lined up adjacent to Bo Nix.

From Week 11 onward, Mims' 4.4 yards per way tally was the champion people successful the league for immoderate subordinate who ran 80 routes oregon more. While that came successful a tiny illustration and included immoderate blown coverages on the way, helium caught Nix's best walk of the year connected a seam way versus a Tampa-2 strategy for a 93-yard touchdown against the Browns. He besides had 1 of the champion catches by immoderate wide receiver each season, out-jumping 2 Bengals defenders connected a fourth-and-the-game prayer with 9 seconds near to propulsion different late-season game to overtime.

Is Mims truly going to nutrient similar Puka Nacua implicit a afloat season? No. As a subordinate who tin get the astir retired of the galore bubble and plaything screens helium runs, amusement capable velocity to endanger linebackers and safeties vertically, and service arsenic a high-end instrumentality man, helium doesn't request to mean 4-plus yards per way tally to beryllium valuable.

93 YARDS TO THE 🏡!!!!!!!!!!@marvindmims | 📺: ESPN pic.twitter.com/DbkJnOqy7j

Fourth wide receiver

Olamide Zaccheaus, WR, Chicago Bears

There are surely bigger names who mightiness autumn 4th connected a extent illustration astatine wide receiver, specified arsenic Diontae Johnson (Browns) oregon Demarcus Robinson (49ers), but this is simply a spot wherever receivers are expected to bash much than drawback passes. Teams request their 4th and 5th wideouts to artifact successful the tally and surface games and inactive marque an interaction arsenic a walk catcher erstwhile their fig is called oregon erstwhile the apical guys aren't connected the field.

While Zaccheaus mightiness person been thing person to the 2nd oregon 3rd wide receiver for the Commanders past season, helium is expected to slot successful down DJ Moore, Rome Odunze and rookie second-round prime Luther Burden III successful Chicago. Don't beryllium amazed if Zaccheaus is connected the tract much often than you would expect -- coaches emotion him.

Zaccheaus is undersized astatine 5-foot-8, 193 pounds, but helium has inactive carved retired a relation successful the NFL by being an aggressive, consenting blocker. He was effectual arsenic some a blocker and receiver connected the passageway and bubble screens the Commanders ran past season; helium was besides susceptible of uncovering holes successful sum retired of the slot. He averaged a respectable 1.9 yards per way tally past season, conscionable up of DK Metcalf (Seahawks) and Jordan Addison (Vikings). And portion Zaccheaus is ne'er going to bid their benignant of people share, the 27-year-old is 1 of the league's astir effectual wideouts without the shot successful his hands. He adjacent ran done tackles successful the Eagles' secondary for a captious people successful the 4th fourth of a December win implicit the eventual Super Bowl champs.

The lone blemish connected Zaccheaus' 2024 grounds is his 3 fumbles, each of which came connected punt instrumentality duties. The Bears signed Devin Duvernay to instrumentality implicit the instrumentality enactment successful Chicago, and Zaccheaus had lone 1 fumble successful his vocation earlier past season, truthful I'm consenting to constitute that disconnected arsenic a spot of a fluke. Zaccheaus won't beryllium the Bears' wideout who sells the astir jerseys this offseason, but helium should beryllium connected the tract plenty.

Backup quarterback

Kirk Cousins, QB, Atlanta Falcons

These rankings don't see the fiscal concern made for players astatine each position. Obviously, teams would similar to debar paying their backup backmost $27.5 cardinal portion guaranteeing him $10 million for next season, particularly erstwhile he'll beryllium 38 years aged and perchance playing for different franchise.

At this point, the 2025 play and what Cousins is owed is simply a sunk outgo for the Falcons. Yet looking astir the league, it's beauteous wide helium would beryllium the champion prime of immoderate backup passer to commencement 1 meaningful game.

The Falcons undoubtedly lost religion successful Cousins during his late-season illness successful 2024, and reports afterward that helium was battling a shoulder injury added immoderate logical discourse to the situation. Before that stretch, though, his 59.3 QBR ranked 12th successful the league, a tenable fig since his early-season mobility was compromised by a torn Achilles wounded successful 2023. He led a precocious comeback to beat the Eagles successful Week 2 and threw for 509 yards and 4 touchdowns successful an October win implicit the Buccaneers. He besides managed to marque the occasional large throw, similar this spell route that travelled 50 yards successful the aerial to Darnell Mooney against the Vikings.

Admittedly, Cousins missed oregon underthrew plentifulness of passes during that aboriginal stretch, but the anticipation has to beryllium that the offseason has fixed his enarthrosis clip to heal. Even with that disastrous extremity to his first twelvemonth successful Atlanta, helium finished the play 23rd successful QBR, up of starters C.J. Stroud, Dak Prescott and Aaron Rodgers. He averaged astir 7.7 yards per effort and completed conscionable nether 67% of his passes. Would I privation to motion him to a declaration for what the Falcons are paying him? Of people not. Then again, what's much luxurious than paying excessively overmuch for thing you won't use?

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Mad Dog lets rip astatine Falcons' beforehand bureau implicit Kirk Cousins' injuries

Chris "Mad Dog" Russo fumes astatine the Atlanta Falcons' beforehand bureau for saying they were unaware of Kirk Cousins' injuries during the season.

Two-down antiaircraft tackle

T.J. Slaton, DT, Cincinnati Bengals

The Bengals signed Slaton to a two-year, $14.1 cardinal deal this offseason, and portion that's not precisely Dak Prescott oregon Josh Allen money, it's a testament to the quality the 2021 fifth-round prime made successful his relation with the Packers.

Listed astatine 330 pounds, it's nary astonishment that Slaton was asked to bash the soiled enactment connected aboriginal downs against the run. Last season, helium played astir 45% of Green Bay's snaps connected archetypal and 2nd down, but that fell to conscionable nether 19% of the snaps connected 3rd and 4th downs.

With 2 sacks and 7 backmost knockdowns implicit his 4 seasons successful Green Bay, Slaton isn't going to amusement disconnected a bid of nuanced pass-rush moves. What helium tin bash is power gaps and maul the subordinate successful beforehand of him erstwhile asked.

In 2024, Slaton's 45.5% tally halt triumph complaint connected the interior led each defenders, conscionable up of highly compensated tackles D.J. Jones, Grover Stewart and DeForest Buckner. The item of his play mightiness person been a fourth-and-goal drawback successful the 4th fourth against the Dolphins, wherever Slaton drove the defender backward, drew a holding punishment and pressured Tua Tagovailoa into the arms of Quay Walker for a drive-ending sack. It wasn't pretty, but it definite was effective.

Slaton's not going to beryllium a replacement for Trey Hendrickson oregon adjacent erstwhile Bengals tackle DJ Reader, but for a squad that ranked 30th successful EPA per play against designed runs past season, Slaton was a much-needed addition.