• Cooper Kupp‘s return doesn't hinder Puka Nacua: While Nacua earned his lowest receiving grade of the season this past week — due in large part to a pair of drops and a fumble — he stayed involved in high-leverage situations on third and fourth down. He still ended the game with seven catches for 71 yards, a touchdown and four first downs, generating a 112.3 passer rating.
• Jalen Carter following greatness: This past week, Carter had his first multi-sack outing to bring his season total to four, third among all interior defenders. His 20.7% pass-rush win rate on the year ranks second only to Aaron Donald (21.2%).
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Estimated reading time: 6 minutes
Members of the 2023 draft class are primed and ready to face down the bright lights of the NFL stage. Whether they were drafted first or 259th, the best will rise to the top when the games are played.
These are the 15 highest-graded rookies after NFL Week 5.
1. RB De’Von Achane, Miami Dolphins: 93.6
Achane has taken the majority share of the backfield work in Miami over the last several weeks. He ranks at or near the top of every PFF rushing metric, and his 7.42 yards after contact per rush not only leads the NFL by a wide margin but also betters every other back’s total yards per carry average.
2. DI Jalen Carter, Philadelphia Eagles: 91.8
Carter’s 91.8 overall grade ranks nearly 10 grading points above the next highest-graded rookie defender. This past week, Carter had his first multi-sack outing to bring his season total to four, third among all interior defenders. His 20.7% pass-rush win rate on the year ranks second only to Aaron Donald (21.2%).
3. WR Puka Nacua, Los Angeles Rams: 84.7
Cooper Kupp‘s return to the lineup didn’t hinder Nacua quite as much as many expected. While Nacua earned his lowest receiving grade of the season this past week — due in large part to a pair of drops and a fumble — he stayed involved in high-leverage situations on third and fourth down. He still ended the game with seven catches for 71 yards, a touchdown and four first downs, generating a 112.3 passer rating.
4. WR Rashee Rice, Kansas City Chiefs: 83.2
Rice doesn’t fill up the stat sheet, but he is proving to be a quality contributor and found the end zone for the second time in Week 5. He’s been targeted on 33.8% of his routes this season, the highest rate among first-year wide receivers.
5. CB Joey Porter Jr., Pittsburgh Steelers: 81.9
Porter may have been limited over the first month of the season, but that all changed this past week, and he did not disappoint. The Penn State standout had a phenomenal day in coverage, earning a 91.4 grade — the week’s highest grade at the position — finishing with an interception on his only target in coverage.
6. CB Christian Gonzalez, New England Patriots: 80.8
Although Gonzalez (shoulder) is expected to miss the rest of the season, his contribution before going down will cement his place on this list for the foreseeable future. The former Oregon standout recorded an interception and two pass breakups across 24 targets in coverage this season, with quarterbacks managing just a 67.5 passer rating when throwing his way.
His loss proved devastating for this Pats defense, which finished the week without any coverage defender earning a grade over 66.0.
7. WR Marvin Mims, Denver Broncos: 79.7
Week 5 was uneventful for Mims, as he caught his only target for just 4 yards. Still, he remains among the league leaders in key deep-threat metrics, like average target depth (20.6), yards per reception (24.6), deep target percentage (50%) and yards per route run (4.82), the latter of which is the highest in the NFL.
7. CB Devon Witherspoon, Seattle Seahawks: 79.7
The Seahawks were on bye in Week 5, but Witherspoon retained his spot in the top 10. He left off on a high note in Week 4, finishing as the NFL’s highest-graded (90.9) defensive rookie. The Seahawks corner has an interception and three pass breakups this season. He has allowed just a 61.6 passer rating on throws into his coverage.
7. CB Brian Branch, Detroit Lions: 79.7
Branch (ankle) wasn’t able to play in Week 5, but he still managed to retain his place on this list. That loss is a sizable blow to this Lions defense. Before his injury, Branch was coming off a phenomenal stretch, earning a top-10 grade in both coverage (90.2) and run defense (89.2) over Weeks 3 and 4.
10. DI Keeanu Benton Pittsburgh Steelers: 78.3
Through five games, Benton has proven to be a quality run defender on the interior, earning a 72.0-plus run-defense grade in three of his five contests. He had one of his best days in that regard in Week 5, earning a positive grade on over 23% of his run-defense snaps without a single negative grade.
11. TE Sam LaPorta, Detroit Lions: 78.1
LaPorta started off October just as impressively as he finished September. While he saw a season-low in opportunities this past week — just four targets — he made the most of those looks. On his three catches, LaPorta managed a pair of touchdowns, giving him three scores over his last three games.
12. WR Tank Dell, Houston Texans: 77.2
The Houston rookie makes his debut on this list after five weeks of play. While he didn’t jump off the box score, Week 5 marked the second game in which Dell earned an 82.0-plus receiving grade. That performance brings his receiving grade on the season to 77.7, top-25 among receivers.
13. LB Ivan Pace Jr., Minnesota Vikings: 76.8
The undrafted rookie has made this list every week since the season began. While he has struggled in terms of grading over the last couple of weeks, he has built a solid resume thus far, especially as a pass-rusher (87.5 grade). However, the Vikings have recently opted to play Pace in coverage more often, giving him just 13 pass-rush snaps over the last two games.
14. RB Bijan Robinson, Atlanta Falcons: 76.2
While Robinson has had mixed outings, he’s proven to be an effective runner when things roll his way. Robinson’s 83.1 rushing grade ranks in the top five among qualifying backs. His 22 missed tackles forced ranks third in the league, behind just Christian McCaffrey (23) and Travis Etienne Jr. (27).
15. RB Zach Charbonnet, Seattle Seahawks: 75.8
While Charbonnet's workload has been limited, he has been an explosive runner when called up in recent weeks, producing four runs of 10 or more yards in his last two games. Perhaps more impressively, he has also earned a first down on nearly 35% of his carries, one of just six backs to surpass 30% this season.
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