The season is rapidly unfolding, and so are the races for the individual accolades.
Through eight weeks, a few truths are starting to emerge. Patrick Mahomes is leading the MVP race, trying to become only the seventh player in league history to win the award at least three times, joining the ranks of Tom Brady, Peyton Manning, Johnny Unitas and others.
In Indianapolis, Jonathan Taylor is making a hard charge at Offensive Player of the Year with a chance of becoming the second back in as many years to eclipse the 2,000-yard barrier.
Finally, Myles Garrett may be on another losing Browns team, but he has a legitimate shot at setting the single-season sacks record, currently co-owned by T.J. Watt and Michael Strahan at 22.5. With 10 sacks in eight games, it’s not impossible.
So who makes our All-Pro team at the midseason juncture? We start at quarterback, where a familiar face is once again playing lights out.
Quarterback
First team (1): Patrick Mahomes, Chiefs
Second team (1): Matthew Stafford, Rams
Mahomes is the betting favorite on every book in America, and rightfully so. After watching Kansas City morph into a defense-first team the past two seasons, Mahomes and his offense are back. The two-time MVP has thrown for 2,099 yards and accounted for 21 touchdowns with four interceptions.
Meanwhile, Stafford entered his Week 8 bye with 1,866 passing yards and 17 touchdowns. The Rams have one of the league’s most explosive pass-catching duos, with Puka Nacua and Davante Adams, and Stafford has taken full advantage.
Running back
First team (1): Jonathan Taylor, Colts
Second team (1): Christian McCaffrey, 49ers
It’s impossible to overstate how great Taylor has been for the Colts. The veteran back leads the NFL with 12 rushing touchdowns and 850 rushing yards, helping the highest-scoring offense in the league with 33.8 points per game.
Meanwhile, McCaffrey has been fantastic for the 49ers. The 2023 Offensive Player of the Year might win the award again, ranking 13th in rushing yards (490) and eighth in receiving yards (559).
Fullback
First team (1): Kyle Juszczyk, 49ers
Second team (1): Reggie Gilliam, Bills
Juszczyk has been a versatile player over the past nine years in San Francisco, earning nine Pro Bowl berths and two All-Pro honors. It’s a good bet he’ll get a third this week. As for Gilliam, he’s the lead blocker in Buffalo’s run game, helping James Cook find open spaces. He’s played 112 offensive snaps for Buffalo this year.
Wide receivers
First team (3): Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Seahawks; Puka Nacua, Rams; Ja’Marr Chase, Bengals
Second team (3): Justin Jefferson, Vikings; George Pickens, Cowboys; Amon-Ra St. Brown, Lions
Smith-Njigba is an easy choice. He leads the NFL by a wide margin with 819 receiving yards despite Seattle being on a bye in Week 7. Nacua is also an obvious call with 616 yards and two scores despite missing two weeks. Chase is coming off a Triple Crown campaign and ranks first in receptions (70), second in yardage (720) and eighth in receiving touchdowns (five).
On the second team, Jefferson has 41 receptions and 602 yards despite playing with J.J. McCarthy and Carson Wentz. Pickens has been one of the best offseason additions in the league with 685 yards and six touchdowns, helping Dallas stay alive in the playoff picture. Finally, St. Brown has 50 catches on 61 targets while notching a league-high seven receiving touchdowns.
Tight end
First team (1): Tyler Warren, Colts
Second team (1): Trey McBride, Cardinals
Last year, we saw a rookie tight end (Brock Bowers of the Raiders) earn first-team All-Pro honors for the first time in league history. It might happen again in 2025, with Warren leading everyone at the position with 37 catches and 492 yards, including three touchdowns.
As for McBride, he’s the main engine for the Cardinals’ offense. He has 47 receptions for 421 yards with four touchdowns, including three efforts of at least 70 yards in seven games.
Left tackle
First team (1): Garett Bolles, Broncos
Second team (1): Trent Williams, 49ers
Bolles has been an anchor on the left side for Denver. His Pro Football Focus grade of 86.0 is third among all tackles, a figure that matches up with his dominant play in both the run and pass games with zero sacks allowed.
Williams is a four-time All-Pro and the 37-year-old continues to play at a high level. He’s only allowed six quarterback hits all year.
Left guard
First team (1): Quenton Nelson, Colts
Second team (1): Joel Bitonio, Browns
Nelson is arguably the best guard of his era alongside Bitonio and Joe Thuney, and he’s having another elite campaign. The 29-year-old hasn’t allowed a sack this season while permitting just two quarterback hits. He’s also a huge part of the line, which has Jonathan Taylor flirting with a 2,000-yard pace.
Center
First team (1): Creed Humphrey, Chiefs
Second team (1): Drew Dalman, Bears
Humphrey might be the best offensive lineman in the league, regardless of position. The fifth-year pivot man has given up zero sacks, one hit, two hurries and three pressures on Patrick Mahomes. Already with two rings, Humphrey is leading an elite offensive attack once more.
Right guard
First team (1): Trey Smith, Chiefs
Second team (1): Quinn Meinerz, Broncos
Smith earned his first Pro Bowl nod in 2024 and could be an All-Pro one year later. Smith has the second-highest PFF pass-blocking grade at 81.2 and hasn’t allowed a sack this season. Alongside Humphrey, Kansas City has the best interior tandem in the league.
Right tackle
First team (1): Penei Sewell, Lions
Second team (1): Lane Johnson, Eagles
Sewell has been the gold standard at right tackle over the past two seasons, earning first-team All-Pro honors in 2023 and ’24. There’s no reason for anything to change. Sewell has been a rock on the right side for Detroit, permitting a single quarterback hit through seven weeks.
Edge rushers
First team (2): Myles Garrett, Browns; Brian Burns, Giants
Second team (2): Nik Bonitto, Broncos; Byron Young, Rams
Garrett has been utterly phenomenal despite the Browns being 2–6. He leads the league with 10 sacks, including five in a 32–13 Week 8 loss to the Patriots. Burns has also been tremendous, tied with Garrett’s 10 sacks while also posting 13 quarterback hits.
Bonitto might be the most underrated player in the game, leading a wicked Denver pass rush. The Broncos are pacing to shatter the 1984 Bears mark of 72 sacks, and Bonitto has eight and 17 quarterback hits. Finally, Young has nine sacks in seven games, creating havoc on a Rams front headlined by Jared Verse, the reigning Defensive Rookie of the Year.
Defensive tackles
First team (2): Jeffery Simmons, Titans; Chris Jones, Chiefs
Second team (2): Maliek Collins, Browns; Calais Campbell, Cardinals
Simmons is a world-beater toiling in relative anonymity. The 28-year-old has 4.5 sacks to lead interior rushers while generating eight tackles for loss. In Kansas City, Jones has only two sacks but has been everywhere, with eight QB hits and six tackles for loss.
While Garrett deservedly gets the attention in Cleveland, Collins has been a force inside. He’s racked up 3.5 sacks in his 10th year, previously having a career-high of five. Campbell has also been a wonder in his age-39 season, with three sacks, five tackles for loss and 12 QB hits.
Linebackers
First team (3): Jack Campbell, Lions; Bobby Wagner, Commanders; Devin Lloyd, Jaguars
Second team (3): Jamien Sherwood, Jets; Demario Davis, Saints; Tremaine Edmunds, Bears
Campbell fills the stat sheet every week. The 2023 first-round pick has 64 tackles, three sacks, five tackles for loss, two forced fumbles and a pass defensed. Then there’s Lloyd, who won September’s Defensive Player of the Month with four interceptions this season, including a 99-yard pick-six of Patrick Mahomes.
While the Jets and Saints aren’t good, no one should overlook Sherwood and Davis. Sherwood has been a linchpin in the middle, racking up 75 tackles, including five for loss and four passes defensed. Davis is still a menace at 36 years old, as he tries to be an All-Pro for the sixth time in seven seasons.
Cornerbacks
First team (2): Quinyon Mitchell, Eagles; Patrick Surtain II, Broncos
Second team (2): Jamel Dean, Buccaneers; DJ Turner II, Bengals
Mitchell has been awesome in his second year. Targeted the fourth-most of any player (48 times), he’s allowed only a 47.9% catch rate. Surtain has been targeted 30 times and barely allowed more than a 50% clip with 19 receptions, helping Denver’s secondary become one of the NFL’s vaunted units.
In Tampa, Dean has led a young secondary and nabbed three interceptions, while Turner has been a bright spot on an awful Bengals defense, holding opponents to 16 completions on 35 targets (45.7%) with just 67 yards after catch.
Slot cornerback
First team (1): Trent McDuffie, Chiefs
Second team (1): Kenny Moore II, Colts
McDuffie has been an All-Pro each of the past two years, and he has a strong case to make it three consecutive seasons. Versatile in his ability to slide inside and out, McDuffie is also excellent in run fits, ranking sixth among corners in rush defense per PFF (with at least 100 snaps).
Moore has long been a gem on the inside for the Colts, and that’s continued under new coordinator Lou Anarumo. Moore has played exclusively in the slot, lining up only four times on the perimeter. The vet must stay healthy, though, having missed three games.
Safeties
First team (2): Derwin James Jr., Chargers; Kyle Hamilton, Ravens
Second team (2): Jalen Pitre, Texans; Antoine Winfield Jr., Buccaneers
Hamilton hasn’t racked up the individual numbers thus far in 2025, playing six games without a sack or interception. However, he grades above all safeties on PFF at 82.7 in coverage. Nobody is better at sticking to tight ends or receivers at the position.
Pitre is having a breakout campaign after quietly starring in a secondary that has overshadowed him, with Derek Stingley Jr. and Kamari Lassiter on the corners. Pitre has been excellent for some time and is putting on a show once more in 2025 with three interceptions, five passes defensed and two tackles for loss.
Kicker
First team (1): Brandon Aubrey, Cowboys
Second team (1): Cameron Dicker, Chargers
Aubrey hasn’t missed a field goal this season, going 16-of-16, including hitting all five of his attempts from 50-plus yards. Dicker has been nearly as good, connecting on 18-of-19 field goals while hitting all 18 of his extra-point attempts.
Punter
First team (1): Jordan Stout, Ravens
Second team (1): Blake Gillikin, Cardinals
Stout is sixth in the NFL for average yards per punt at 49.9 but the fourth-year veteran is second at 45.9 net yards per boot. As for Gillikin, he’s punted 22 times, averaging 51.7 yards per punt with a net average of 45.4, ranking fourth and third, respectively.
Kick returner
First team (1): Chimere Dike, Titans
Second team (1): Luke McCaffrey, Commanders
Dike has been the Titans’ most explosive player through the first half of the year. The fourth-round rookie has 991 kick return yards while averaging 26.0 yards per runback, third of anybody with at least 20 attempts. McCaffrey has also been a force in his second year with 750 yards and 30 yards/return.
Punt returner
First team (1): Marcus Jones, Patriots
Second team (1): Tory Horton, Seahawks
Horton leads the league with 238 punt return yards and a touchdown, showing why Seattle took him in the fifth round out of Colorado State. Jones has been equally impressive with 216 yards and a touchdown, but on just 10 returns compared to Horton’s 16.
Special teamer
First team (1): Kylen Granson, Eagles
Second team (1): Dane Belton, Giants
Granson has been excellent all year on special teams for Philadelphia, co-leading the Eagles with 10 tackles. Belton has done a nice job on defense in a reserve role, but the fourth-year pro has shined on teams with 12 tackles, checking in at second league-wide.
Long snapper
First team (1): Andrew DePaola, Vikings
Second team (1): Morgan Cox, Titans
DePaola has been one of the best long snappers in the league since his rookie season in 2014, being an All-Pro each of the past three years. Cox is a five-time Pro Bowler, looking for his second All-Pro berth.
More NFL on Sports Illustrated
This article was originally published on www.si.com as NFL All-Pro 2025 Midseason Picks and Predictions.
