Ravens Players Sound Off on PFF Grades: “We Watch the Film”
When the Ravens take the field Sunday night under the bright lights at M&T Bank Stadium, millions of viewers will tune into NBC’s Sunday Night Football. And before the first snap, they’ll be introduced to the starters in a now-familiar way: a headshot, a name, a college - sometimes real, sometimes tongue-in-cheek - and, tucked into the chyron, a small line of text that’s become a lightning rod around the league: “PFF RANK.”
That’s Pro Football Focus, the analytics company whose player grades are now a staple of NFL broadcasts, social media debates, and front office discussions. Whether you buy into their methodology or not, their influence is impossible to ignore.
For the Ravens, it’s a weekly reminder that their performances are being dissected not just by coaches and teammates, but by a legion of analysts grading every snap - sometimes without full knowledge of what a player was actually asked to do.
Inside the Ravens’ View on PFF
Let’s start with the basics: Ravens players know the grades are out there. They know fans see them.
They know the graphics will flash across the screen before kickoff. But when it comes to how much weight they carry in the locker room?
That’s a different story.
“I tell them, ‘We watch the film. We go off the film.
We judge you off the film, not off of a ranking,’” said defensive coordinator Zach Orr. That’s the message he gives his guys.
The coaching staff grades every play based on the actual scheme, the assignments, the execution - not just the result.
That’s the key disconnect. PFF grades are based on what analysts think a player was supposed to do. But only the people inside the building - the coaches, the teammates, the film room - know for sure.
Kyle Hamilton, one of the league’s top safeties by just about any measure (including PFF’s), put it simply: “It’s hard to put blame on one or another thing if you’re not in the rooms.” He’s not dismissing analytics - in fact, he sees value in data-driven insights.
But when it comes to play-by-play grading? That’s where things get murky.
The Assignment Gap
Former All-Pro defensive end J.J. Watt, now an analyst for CBS, said it bluntly earlier this season: PFF grades are “a completely made-up number.” That might sound harsh, but his point echoes what many players have said - grading a player without knowing the assignment is like grading a test without knowing the questions.
Roquan Smith, who’s been a Pro Bowl-caliber linebacker for years, knows this all too well. His PFF grades haven’t always matched his impact on the field, and he’s got a theory why.
“As a linebacker, you’re in the middle of a lot,” Smith said. “You can be making up for somebody else, but then you can be caught in that area - then it seems like, ‘Oh, that’s totally him,’ when the other guy’s nowhere to be found.”
It’s the classic case of the eye test versus the assignment sheet. A missed tackle might not be the linebacker’s fault.
A blown coverage might be the result of someone else’s mistake. But unless you know the call, you’re guessing.
The O-Line Knows the Drill
Offensive linemen probably feel this more than anyone. When a sack happens, someone’s getting dinged - whether it was their fault or not.
Right tackle Roger Rosengarten gets it. “Can’t have those,” he said of sacks and tackles for loss.
“No matter if they know the play or not.” He knows how it looks on tape.
And he knows how quickly a single bad rep can tank a grade, even if the rest of the game was clean.
Center Corey Bullock takes a more hands-off approach. “When it comes to PFF,” he said, “I really don’t look into it.”
That’s not apathy - it’s focus. The Ravens have their own internal grading system, and that’s the one that matters most to the guys in the building.
The Social Media Spotlight
Still, in today’s NFL, you can’t fully escape the spotlight. Whether it’s a glowing tweet or a harsh critique, the grades - and the reactions - are everywhere.
“It’s obviously better when ... a tweet is good about you,” Rosengarten said with a smile. “You want to be like, ‘Oh, that’s awesome.’ But when it’s not so good you’ve got to also take that on the chin, too.”
That’s the reality of the modern NFL. Every snap is under the microscope.
Every player is a trending topic waiting to happen. And while the Ravens might not live and die by PFF’s numbers, they know the rest of the world is watching.
The Bottom Line
Good players make good plays. Good plays usually lead to good grades. But sometimes, the numbers don’t tell the full story - especially when the story is written without the script.
So when those headshots pop up Sunday night and the PFF ranks scroll across the screen, remember: there’s a lot more to the game than what fits in a chyron. The Ravens know it.
Their coaches know it. And if you’re watching closely, you probably know it too.