Chiefs Star Tyrann Mathieu Calls Out PFF Over Their 'Elite' Rankings
By Michael Luciano
You'd think if any NFL team would be a fan of Pro Football Focus, it would be the Kansas City Chiefs. PFF's 2020 NFL Draft guide claimed that they only graded 49 players in the entire NFL as "elite", but five of them (Patrick Mahomes, Tyreek Hill, Travis Kelce, Mitchell Schwartz, Chris Jones) are on the Chiefs.
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Left off that list is defensive back Tyrann Mathieu, and he blasted the number-crunchers at PFF for declaring him less than elite despite his impact on the defense and leadership in the locker room.
How do you not deem a player elite who has the ability to lift an franchise, provide coaches leadership & things you don’t see, regularly. But will put a guy 6’5 who can jump high & cannot lead or make better the other 10 around him? This why scouting sucks & the draft too.
— Tyrann Mathieu (@Mathieu_Era) April 16, 2020
Mathieu was given a 75.3 grade out of 100 by PFF despite the fact that he was named a first-team All-Pro. Mathieu's 75 tackles, two sacks, and four interceptions show that he's a player who took snaps at slot corner, deep safety, inside linebacker, and even pass rusher, making him one of the most valued chess pieces in the league.
While PFF prides themselves on grading things that don't show up in the box score, the tape, especially the tape of his playoff games during Kansas City's 2019 run, shows that Mathieu is clearly the cream of the NFL's defensive back crop.
Oh, nothing. Just a play where Tyrann Mathieu fakes a blitz, drops to cover Deshaun Watson's first read, then covers his second read, then forces the scramble out of bounds.
— Sam Mellinger (@mellinger) January 15, 2020
Doesn't get credit for any stat here but holy crap. pic.twitter.com/qSeL4FWtfI
PFF does some good work, but Mathieu is right to take them to task for their less than flattering opinion of him.