2016 New Contract Tracker: Pass Rushing Linemen (Week 7)

On a weekly basis, I will be evaluating pass rushing defensive lineman that signed some sort of contract in this offseason. Players on-field performance will be evaluated against the annual salary of their new contract. In terms of on-field production, I will be taking into account stats relevant to the defensive end position such as percentage of defensive team snaps played, tackles, tackles for loss, sacks and hurries. The basis for contract evaluation will be the APY of a given player’s contract.

This week, we head to the Meadowlands where the New York football Giants made two big moves on their defensive line this off-season.

Jason Pierre-Paul

The story of JPP and his hand has been well documented ever since his accident occurred on July 4th, 2015. While it may be hard to prove a direct correlation between his hand injury and his production, his drop in production ever since the accident can’t be ignored. In the 2014 season, JPP recorded 12.5 sacks. In the 15 games since returning from injury, he has only recorded a combined 2.5 sacks over the last two seasons. Interestingly enough, even though his sack production has gone down, he has still been getting to the QB, with 16 hurries thus far this season. Pierre-Paul signed a one-year $10 million deal this off-season. He clearly bet on himself by signing a one-year deal, so it will be interesting to see how a player of his age and potential, is compensated this upcoming off-season.

Olivier Vernon

 

The other bookend of the Giants’ defense is newly signed, free agent, Olivier Vernon. Vernon came to the Giants after four seasons in Miami, on a five-year, $85 million contract. The total guarantees in Vernon’s contract are $52.5 million. Much like his counterpart, JPP, Vernon has been creating pressure in opponents’ backfields but he too does not have the sack numbers to show for it. The Giants defense is tenth in the league in points against per game but could use sacks and turnovers to help boost their struggling offense.

 

Here are the current stats for the newly contracted rushers as tabulated by Sportingcharts.com. The chart is sorted from highest to lowest based on a production formula that takes into account some of the relevant stats shown in the table.

PlayerTeamAPYAPY RankDef Snaps% Def SnapsSolo TackleTot TackleTFLTFL %SacksHurriesStuffsProd. Rank
Jason Pierre-PaulGiants$10,000,000                550496%202827%21611
Olivier VernonGiants$17,000,000                347891%1824521%11542
Fletcher CoxEagles$17,100,000                228376%1315427%4613
Derek WolfeBroncos$9,175,000                734972%1925312%5504
Adrian ClaybornFalcons$4,250,000             1330561%1314429%21025
Dwight FreeneyFalcons$2,000,000             2519439%69444%3806
Andre BranchDolphins$2,750,000             1927856%71716%3927
Malik JacksonJaguars$14,250,000                430762%1112325%11018
Muhammad WilkersonJets$17,200,000                137284%1621629%2429
Chris LongPatriots$2,375,000             2433871%917318%18110
Mario WilliamsDolphins$8,500,000                830962%810440%17311
Jason JonesDolphins$1,535,000             2927755%1018211%33012
Charles JohnsonPanthers$3,000,000             1725164%91300%17013
Jared CrickBroncos$2,000,000             2538178%1121314%13114
Vinny CurryEagles$9,250,000                616243%58113%15015
Derrick ShelbyFalcons$4,500,000             1224649%68225%05216
Benson MayowaCowboys$2,750,000             1916644%36350%20117
William HayesRams$5,833,333             1016734%813215%13218
Stephen PaeaBrowns$1,900,000             2716133%4700%05019
Eugene SimsRams$3,333,333             1621243%610220%10220
Cedric ThorntonCowboys$4,250,000             1313736%613215%10121
Ziggy HoodRedskins$935,000             3329265%51119%10022
Mitch UnreinBears$1,130,000             3126554%51400%03023
Robert Ayers Jr.Buccaneers$6,500,000                98622%44125%10024
Tyrunn WalkerLions$1,600,000             2818741%915213%00225
Quinton Dial49ers$4,000,667             1525750%122100%00026
Wallace GilberryLions$1,250,000             3012528%3500%00027
Billy WinnBroncos$760,000             3513428%4800%00128
Ricardo MathewsSteelers$760,000             3512126%1400%00029
Rob NinkovichPatriots$2,500,000             2212626%5900%00029
Tank Carradine49ers$2,650,000             2112023%2600%00031
Jarvis JenkinsJets$3,000,000             179421%5700%00032
Tony Jerod-Eddie49ers$1,000,000             32265%1100%00033
Justin TrattouVikings$810,000             3451%0000%00034
Kendall ReyesRedskins$2,500,000             2200%3500%00035
Aldon SmithRaiders$5,750,000             1100%0000%00035

Rohan is a law student at Villanova Law School. He also writes for the Villanova Sports and Entertainment Law Society Blog. For more insight, follow Rohan on Twitter, @rmohanty3 .