As the offseason marches on, Pro Football Focus continues its position rankings. The latest rankings listed the NFL's top quarterback-wide receiver duos.
Before we get to the Denver Broncos, remember that Bo Nix ranked as PFF's 19th overall quarterback, and Courtland Sutton checked in at No. 31 (out of 32) among wide receivers. As a duo, PFF ranked Nix-Sutton No. 24, and it triggers multiple questions.
"Nix enjoyed a great rookie season, with a 73.8 PFF passing grade and an 81.2 PFF rushing grade. He earned a 79.2 PFF passing grade when targeting Sutton, but with just an 85.4 passer rating and eight big-time throws to six turnover-worthy plays," PFF's Trevor Sikkema wrote.
On the surface, it's a reasonably decent ranking for the duo, although there are some questionable pairs ahead of these Broncos. Only one of the duos in front of Nix-Sutton is egregious, though.
To rank the duo, it has to be weighted for the quarterback, as it's the most crucial position in all of sports. The better the quarterback, the more likely he is to make his top receiver look even better.
With most of the duos ahead of the Broncos, the quarterback is the difference-maker. In a few cases, the quarterbacks are close enough, but the wide receiver is better than Sutton, which tips the scales outside of the Broncos' favor. That is, except for one duo ahead of them, and possibly another.
The egregious duo is Chicago's Caleb Williams and D.J. Moore, with Seattle's Sam Darnold and Jaxon Smith-Njigba having an argument for and against being ranked higher than Nix-Sutton. When you come away with only two you can make a case for, the ranking is pretty fair. But why are Williams and Moore so egregious?
Let's examine what Sikkema wrote.
“Williams produced a 68.9 PFF passing grade and seven big-time throws when targeting Moore, and that should get better with Ben Johnson now in charge," Sikkema writes.
Johnson could help, but that isn’t an excellent passing grade when targeting Moore, and sometimes great coordinators fail at being a head coach. Will Johnson fall into that category, or will he be a success? There are too many questions there to put this duo ahead of Denver's quarterback and receiver.
However, what makes it so egregious is Sikkema's logic.
“He [Nix] earned a 79.2 PFF passing grade when targeting Sutton, but with just an 85.4 passer rating and eight big-time throws to six turnover-worthy plays.”
So, Williams and Moore get a boost because of the what-if factor of Johnson, but Nix and Sutton have no mention of Sean Payton, who has proven to be what the Bears hope their new coach is. Additionally, Nix and Sutton had a significantly better showing when they teamed up last year, which makes it all the more egregious.
As for the argument between Darnold and Smith-Njigba, Darnold has questions about whether he was a one-year wonder. Was the Minnesota Vikings' scheme and personnel what elevated Darnold, or did he finally find a groove and elevate the guys around him?
Smith-Njigba is a more dangerous receiver than Sutton, but the quarterback tips the scales here. Even with Nix coming off an impressive rookie campaign, he doesn’t have the multiple seasons of being a terrible quarterback that Darnold has, and he isn’t learning a new system with new weapons, unlike Darnold in Seattle.
The rest of the duos ahead of Nix and Sutton are justified, but not these two. Amid the questions, PFF’s data suggests that Nix and Sutton should be at least one spot higher.
