How impressive was Devaughn Vele on Sunday? The big New Orleans Saints wide receiver turned in a breakout performance, catching all eight passes thrown his way to pick up 93 yards and score a crucial touchdown. And that helped him earn the Saints’ highest player grade of the week from Pro Football Focus.
But Tyler Shough wasn’t far behind. The rookie quarterback was PFF’s second-best player in the game for the black and gold on offense, and his game grade trailed only cornerback Kool-Aid McKinstry for the other side of the ball, too. He’s making some strides, but he needs more help.
Who else earned top marks? Which players stood out for more negative plays than good moments? Here are the top five and bottom five from each phase of the game:
Top 5 offenseWR Devaughn Vele: 86.5QB Tyler Shough: 74.6C Luke Fortner: 69.2TE Foster Moreau: 65.2RB Devin Neal: 64.8Bottom 5 offenseLG Dillon Radunz: 45.5WR Mason Tipton: 53.5RT Taliese Fuaga: 55.7QB Taysom Hill: 56.1WR Kevin Austin Jr.: 56.1Top 5 defenseCB Kool-Aid McKinstry: 76.2EDGE Carl Granderson: 72.6S Jordan Howden: 69.1EDGE Cameron Jordan: 69.0S Terrell Burgess: 68.6Bottom 5 defenseDT Jonah Williams: 27.7S Jonas Sanker: 35.6EDGE Chris Rumph II: 40.9LB Demario Davis: 43.3DT Nathan Shepherd: 44.6Top 5 special teamsS Terrell Burgess: 80.8S Jordan Howden: 74.3WR Kevin Austin Jr.: 73.5WR Dante Pettis: 73.1CB Isaac Yiadom: 71.2Bottom 5 special teamsCB Michael Davis: 51.1RB Audric Estime: 56.3WR Mason Tipton: 56.4QB Taysom Hill: 57.0TE Jack Stoll: 58.6Other notable player gradesEDGE Chase Young: 63.5TE Juwan Johnson: 62.8WR Chris Olave: 62.2RG Cesar Ruiz: 58.0DT Bryan BResee: 53.0LT Kelvin Banks Jr.: 55.7CB Alontae Taylor: 52.5