If you’ve ever tuned into an NFL broadcast and seen those bright, shiny Pro Football Focus (PFF) grades pop up next to players’ names, you’re not alone, and neither are the players rolling their eyes at them.
This week, the debate around how players are graded by PFF has taken center stage, with several Detroit Lions players firing back at the popular analytics site for what they see as misleading evaluations.
Lions Players Sound Off: “They Don’t Even Know the Scheme”
Inside the Lions locker room, frustration with PFF seems universal. Cornerback Terrion Arnold didn’t hold back, saying he’ll never accept the site’s grading system because “they don’t even know what plays are being called.”
“I stopped checking when there was a play where I was in Cover 2 and it said I was actually in man-to-man,” Arnold said as quoted by Lions OnSI. “They don’t really know the scheme. Then I saw another one where I supposedly gave up a touchdown — but I wasn’t even the guy in coverage. They just see who’s closest to the ball.”
Amik Robertson echoed that sentiment, saying he tuned out PFF completely after his second year in the league.
“PFF is just guys who never played the game. They don’t even know what defense we’re in,” Robertson said. “I don’t care about rankings. The eye in the sky don’t lie.”
Meanwhile, linebacker Grant Stuard took a more diplomatic approach, saying he only checks PFF to see how many snaps he played.
“I can understand why fans look at it,” Stuard said. “But they don’t really know what we’re running. Nobody does but us.”
The Bottom Line
Whether you love PFF or hate it, one thing’s clear: NFL players don’t think the grades tell the full story. Schemes, assignments, and film room context matter far more than a number next to their name, and for Detroit’s defenders, that’s what really defines performance.
