December 17, 2024

Mauldin IV headlines 5 PFF stats that standout from 2024

Minas Panagiotakis/CFL.ca

TORONTO — The 2024 CFL season featured veteran players reminding all of us why they are among the best in the business.

Lorenzo Mauldin IV, Brady Oliveira, Bo Levi Mitchell, Wynton McManis and Justin McInnis all reiterated or solidified the opinion that they are near or at the top of the league at their respective positions.

Mauldin IV led the league in pressures once again, showing that he never went anywhere after being named the league’s Most Outstanding Defensive Player in 2022. Oliveira meanwhile did it all for the Bombers once more, doubling down on his excellent 2023 season to start writing his name down in the history books.

Often times raw stats don’t tell the entire story, though. That’s where tools like Pro Football Focus come into play to help us understand just how good these players performed in 2024.

CFL.ca brings you five PFF stats that standoud from 2024.

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BIG-TIME BO

34 – big-time throws

Bo Levi Mitchell‘s performance in 2024 showed that the veteran still is among one of the best pivots in the league.

Mitchell led the league in big-time throw with 34, good for a 5.3 big-time throw percentage. The Tabbies signal-caller led the league in passing yards (5,451), passing touchdowns (32) and passing first downs (263) on his way to being named a Most Outstanding Player finalist.

 

BRADYING TACKLES

891 – yards after contact

Brady Oliveira will get his rushing yards, one way or another.

The Most Outstanding Player in the CFL led the league in yards after contact (891) while also finishing third in missed tackles forced (46). That means that on any given play, Oliveira would either run past you or THROUGH you.

That explains why the runner finished first in rushing yards (1,353), second in first downs (62), third in explosive runs (29), and first in stuffed rating (runs that go for zero or negative yards, 8.3 per cent).

 

WHAT CAN’T JUSTIN MCINNIS DO?

68 – receiving first downs

Wide receivers in football can win in multiple ways. You have fast guys who can win with pure speed over the top, you have shifty pass-catchers who can get open quickly and gain yards after the catch, and then there are players who win with size by going up and catching those 50-50 balls.

Then you also have Justin McInnis, who seemingly can do it all. The National receiver  was among the best in almost every single advanced statistic. McInnis was first in first downs (68), contested catches (24), explosive plays (43), fourth in receiving yards after contact and eighth in missed tackles forced (18). That’s not to mention, of course, being first in total receiving yards.

 

VERSATILE WYNTON MCMANIS

15 – stops

Another position that thrives on versatility is linebacker. Being a complete player at the position requires you to be able to play both the run and the pass, which in turn requires a skillset that very few players possess.

One of those players is pending free agent Wynton McManis, the only linebacker in the top 10 coverage grades attributed by Pro Football Focus. McManis ranked fourth (89.7) after allowing only nine first downs over 39 targets.

Every time there was a target on the direction of the veteran, it was almost a certain the pass-catcher would not go for a first down. McManis led the league with 15 stops, missing only four tackles in coverage all season long.

Mauldin’s 75 pressures led the league in 2024 (OttawaREDBLACKS.com)

LORENZO MAULDIN IV IS (STILL) A MENACE

75 – pressures

Pending free agent Lorenzo Mauldin IV was named Most Outstanding Defensive Player in 2022 after leading the league in sacks and terrorizing opposing quarterbacks.

After a down year – by his own high standards – in 2023, Mauldin IV was once again one of the best pass rushers in the CFL in 2024. The veteran tied for the league in sacks (eight), while lapping the field in pressures (75). The next closest player was Toronto’s Robbie Smith, who registered 53 total pressures.

Overall, Mauldin IV had eight sacks, 16 hits and 51 hurries, winning 13.4 percent of his matchups and pressuring the quarterback on 12 per cent of his pass rushing snaps, both excellent numbers for a high volume pass rusher like him.

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