Introducing Reach-Block Grading: Highlighting the league's best offensive linemen on reach blocks

• Christian Darrisaw leads the way in 2024: The Vikings tackle has earned a league-best 95.4 grade on reach blocks in 2024.

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Estimated reading time: 3 minutes

It’s never too early to start preparing for next season, and for PFF, that means looking at ways to improve PFF Premium Stats.

One exciting option is to introduce more data. And to find out which stats resonate most with you, we’ll be offering select data outside of Premium Stats to see what grabs your interest.

This week, we're introducing a metric called “reach-block grade,” which measures the effectiveness of offensive linemen when asked to execute a reach block.

What is reach-block grading?

A reach block is an offensive line technique in which a blocker attempts to get outside a defender to prevent them from making a play on the ball.

In simple terms, the blocker wants to “reach” across the defender’s body to cut them off from the direction of the play. It’s common in zone-blocking schemes, especially for runs to the outside, where the offensive lineman needs to move quickly and get in front of the defender, even if the defender starts in a position outside of them.

The goal is to create space for the running back to get past the defender.

Reach block grade and rate evaluate the effectiveness and frequency of a run-blocker's reach blocks. The grade reflects how well they execute these blocks, while the reach-block percentage indicates how often they are assigned this task.

Here is how the league's offensive linemen have fared through five weeks, with 2023 numbers included for historical context.

Reach-block grade through five weeks of the 2024 NFL season (min. 10 attempts)

Reach-block grade from 2023 (min. 30 attempts)