Georgia is one of college football’s leaders in producing professional talent, and 2018 was yet another great year for Dawgs in the NFL. We compiled an All-Georgia NFL team based on last season’s accomplishments.
Superlatives:
Rookie of the Year: Roquan Smith, Nick Chubb, Sony Michel
This was such a difficult decision. So we did not make one. It’s a three way tie.
Offensive Player of the Year: Todd Gurley
No explanation needed…from us. Still waiting on an explanation from Sean McVay for Gurley’s lack of touches down the stretch.
Defensive Player of the Year: Geno Atkins
Atkins was voted into his 7th Pro Bowl last season after recording 10 sacks from the defensive tackle position.
Bounce-back Player of the Year: Shawn Williams
The Bengals safety only played 11 games in 2017, recording 49 tackles and 1 pick. Last season, however, the Georgia great had 110 tackles, 5 interceptions and 1 touchdown.
MVP: Todd Gurley
Gurley did it all last season and was the league’s best running back by a mile.
All-Georgia 2018 NFL team
Quarterback:
QB1: Matt Stafford (3,777, 21 touchdowns)
Stafford put up nice numbers yet again this season, however, his passer rating of 89.9 ranked 25th in the league. He’s Georgia’s only quarterback in the NFL.
Running backs:
RB1: Todd Gurley (1,411 rushing yards, 19 touchdowns; 59 receptions, 580 yards, 4 touchdowns) ** include postseason
RB2: Sony Michel (1,267 yards, 12 touchdowns) ** include postseason
RB3: Nick Chubb (996 rushing yards, 10 total touchdowns)
Georgia is considered RBU for a reason. The Dawgs have the world’s best running back in Todd Gurley. Super Bowl star Sony Michel. And Cleveland hero Nick Chubb, who took off in 2018.
Wide receivers:
WR1: AJ Green (46 receptions, 694 yards, 6 touchdowns) — only played eight games
WR2: Chris Conley (32 receptions, 334 yards, 5 touchdowns)
WR2: Isaiah McKenzie (18 receptions, 179 yards; 10 carries, 66 yards, 2 touchdowns)
AJ Green has been regarded as one of the league’s best wide receiver’s since he entered the NFL in 2010. He was off to a solid start in 2018 but was only able to play in eight games before being sidelined with an injury. Chris Conley has found a nice role as a backup in Kansas City’s wild offense. This list may be upgraded next season with all of the Georgia receivers entering the NFL.
Tight end:
TE1: Ben Watson (35 receptions, 400 yards, 2 touchdowns)
TE2: Orson Charles (3 receptions, 23 yards)
In Ben Watson’s final season of a 14 year career, the former Bulldog put up good numbers helping the Saints to a great year. Now, it appears ESPN is eyeing him for a TV role.
Offensive line…
Offensive tackles:
Cordy Glenn (Bengals)
Isaiah Wynn (Patriots)
Offensive guards:
Ben Jones (Titans) — moved from center
Clint Boling (Bengals)
Center:
David Andrews (Team captain, Patriots)
Georgia has some solid offensive linemen in the NFL, but none more notable than Patriots captain David Andrews, who just won his second Super Bowl with the Patriots. We slid Ben Jones over from center to play guard.
Defensive line:
LE: Justin Houston (37 tackles, 9 sacks)
RE: Abry Jones (29 tackles, 1 sack)
DT1: Geno Atkins (45 tackles, 10 sacks)
We had to move Justin Houston from outside linebacker to defensive end, but this defensive line would still be quite disruptive. Atkins and Houston still remain elite at their position, and Jones has become a consistent interior defensive lineman. Houston may be a bit small for a 3-4 DE.
Linebackers:
ROLB: Thomas Davis (79 tackles, 6 passes defended)
ILB: Roquan Smith (121 tackles, 5 sacks, 1 INT, 5 PBU)
ILB: Alec Ogletree (93 tackles, 1 sack, 5 interceptions, 2 touchdowns)
OLB: Jordan Jenkins (37 tackles, 7 sacks, 2 forced fumbles, 2 fumbles recovered)
Georgia may be LBU as well as RBU. The crazy part is we did not even include Justin Houston in the linebackers (see defensive end slot above). We gave Thomas Davis the nod over Leonard Floyd because at age 35, and after tearing an ACL 3 times, he’s still going strong. Floyd, however, has been putting together a nice career in Chicago. Also on his way to a great career for the Bears is Roquan Smith, who had a stellar rookie season. And how about Ogletree picking off 5 passes from his linebacker position and bringing two to the house?
Safeties
Reshad Jones (72 touchdowns, 3 interceptions, 1 touchdown)
Shawn Williams (110 tackles, 5 interceptions, 1 touchdown)
In 2017, Reshad Jones was one of the best players in the NFL and was a tackling machine coming out of the secondary. This season, he continued his elite play but his tackles fell off a bit. He was dealing with a shoulder injury this past season as well. Shawn Williams was an absolute stud for the Bengals last season, recording over 100 tackles and 5 interceptions.
Cornerbacks:
Mo Smith (1 tackle, 1 PBU)
Corey Moore (12 tackles, 1 interception, 1 PBU)
Georgia has no cornerbacks in the NFL, so we slid some safeties over to the CB position.
