Za’Darius Smith’s incredible first season with the Green Bay Packers landed the Pro Bowl edge rusher on the NFL’s “All-Analytics Team” for 2019.
The team, compiled by Cynthia Frelund of NFL Network, selected the top player at every position based on the individual contribution metric, a stat developed to measure a “player’s impact on his team’s ability to win games, for every snap,” based on “production in context, such as down and distance, score and time, type of play called and opponent faced.”
Smith, who finished with career-highs in sacks (13.5), quarterback hits (37) and tackles for losses (17), was the NFL’s top edge rusher based on the contribution metric.
From Frelund: “No one had more quarterback pressures in 2019 than Smith’s 71, per NGS. NGS also shows that he was able to pressure opposing QBs at the second highest overall rate in the NFL (14.8%) among those with a minimum of 250 pass rushes. Smith lined up on the edge and in the interior, and this versatility boosted his win contribution overall.”
Smith tied for the NFL lead in quarterback hits, a stat tracked by the league, and lead all players in total pressures with 93, according to Pro Football Focus. His pass-rushing productivity, also tracked by PFF, led all edge rushers.
The Packers signed Smith to a four-year, $66 million deal in free agency. The addition turned out to be one of the best free-agent signings in recent NFL history. Smith reshaped the Packers defense in his first season, providing Mike Pettine’s pass rush with a difference-making player who impacted the game from the edge and the interior.
No other Packers player made the All-Analytics Team for 2019.
