Zach Brown
Zach Brown’s case in 2018 is an interesting one. The metrics and game film show different stories, as to how he should be graded.
By statistical measures, Brown had a fairly good year, though not as productive as last year. In 16 games, and 12 starts, Brown logged 96 total tackles, 10 tackles for loss, one sack, one pass deflection, and two forced fumbles. Pro Football Focus graded him out at a surprising 89.2 on the season, bordering elite territory.
While Pro Football Focus can be valuable in certain contexts, especially when looking at specific metrics, sometimes it’s tough to see the correlation during games. While Brown, at his best, was very solid, his eyes weren’t consistently trustworthy against the run, and he was sometimes slow reading his keys on play action.
Brown played at a starter’s level in 2018, and he only missed four tackles, but some grades don’t tell the whole story. Thus, the letter grade given to Brown will encompass all evidence. He was good. But he might not have been good enough to force the Redskins to keep him, after expressing his desire to leave.