I’ve got my hand on the incredible extensive free agency guide from the folks at Pro Football Focus, and we’re going to make our way through the 49ers’ pending free agents, and perhaps some targets as well, looking at what PFF had to say about them overall. Today, we look at defensive lineman Tank Carradine.
For edge defenders, PFF tracks two primary signature stats: pass-rushing productivity and run-stop percentage. They are both fairly self-explanatory. The first considers the frequency of pressure generated by a defender, taking sacks, htis and hurries all added up and factored on a per-pass-rushing-snap basis. The second tracks tackles, run defense snap counts and defensive stops to take an individual look at run defense production.
Carradine had a 6.1 run-stop percentage, 36th among 4-3 defensive ends in 2017. He is listed 15th among all edge players who are set to be free agents in run-stop percentage, and doesn’t appear on the pass-rushing efficiency list. Leger Douzable, another 49ers player, was listed as fourth of all free agent edge players in run-stop percentage.
Here’s their writeup on Carradine:
Carradine was the quintessential Trent Baalke selection in the heyday of the Harbaugh-Baalke era. He was considered a first-round talent, but the 49ers snagged him in the second after he tore his ACL in his last season at Florida State. His length and power perfectly fit the profile the 49ers liked on the edge, but the injury issues persisted throughout his rookie contract. In five seasons, he’s managed all of 816 snaps, although he’s coming off a career year grade wise (78.1 overall) and could provide value as a base end.
They harp on the snaps, and they have more to say on the matter. He’s played just 22.1 percent of the possible snaps when active throughout his career, and has never played more than 229 snaps in a single season.
PFF lists him as having 90 pass-rush snaps in 2017, and in that time had two sacks, two quarterback hits and four hurries. They gave him an overall grade of 78.1 for 2017, which included a pass rush grade of 71.8, a run defense grade of 82.6 and a coverage grade of 60.0. His overall, pass rush and run defense grades are all up from 2016, with career highs in overall and run defense.
Personally, I like what Carradine was able to do. It seems like he’s finally found his place. I still like Aaron Lynch more as an edge player, but a one-year “prove-it” deal could be good.
Finally, they project the 49ers as his best for for 2018, with a projected annual guarantee of the veteran minimum. All credit to PFF for tracking the useful stats, so use the link above if you want to see more.
Previous PFF free agency guide articles: RB Carlos Hyde, CB Dontae Johnson