nsive tackle Gerald McCoy as much or more than the carefully-crafted Carolina compensation package that tries to top Ndamukong Suh‘s money Blue Kawann Short Jersey , but neither the new Browns nor the old Browns could give McCoy what his new team can: Two cracks this year at his old team.That definitely counts for something, even though the Panthers-Bucs series won’t entail a return to Tampa for McCoy, since that game will be played in London. Beyond dumping McCoy’s $13 million salary, Bucs coach Bruce Arians publicly discussed the notion that McCoy “just didn’t fit,” even though (as noted by Rick Stroud of the ) Arians had previously said that he believes McCoy fits Bowles’ defense. The team ultimately chose a cheaper option, who is both more than a year older than McCoy and who developed a reputation in 2018 for not going all out, all the time. Throw in the news from Monday that the Bucs instantly gave Ndamukong Suh the number worn by McCoy for nine years in Tampa, and the two games played by the two teams in 2019 become far more intriguing.That said, McCoy bristled at the suggestion that the team’s issuance of 93 to Suh and McCoy’s decision to sign with the Panthers wasn’t a coincidence. Still, it’s hard not to wonder whether all factors — the cutting of McCoy, the signing of Suh, Arians’ comments Color Rush Christian Miller Jersey , and the issuance of 93 to Suh — came together to push the needle away from Cleveland and Baltimore and toward Carolina.Regardless, McCoy staying in the division makes those games more interesting than they otherwise would have been. With public data available from Pro Football Focus, here is how the defensive mainstays fared in 2018"WhiteFanposts Fanshots Sections Keep Sounding PodcastPanthers 2019 NFL DraftCSR Film RoomFinal 2018 ratings for all Panthers defensive players, per Pro Football FocusNew,41commentsWith public data available from Pro Football Focus, here is how the defensive mainstays fared in 2018ESTShareTweetShareShareFinal 2018 ratings for all Panthers defensive players, per Pro Football FocusBill Streicher-USA TODAY SportsThe good people at Pro Football Focus spend enormous amounts of time breaking down every player’s performance on every individual play throughout the season. In the end, players can then be given a final rating somewhere between zero (poor) and 100 (elite). If you want to learn more about their methodology, you can read PFF’s Player Grade overview.What I have always appreciated about PFF is that while no player evaluation system is perfect, at least PFF is consistent. Players are graded by the same criteria which enables them to be given one of seven grades based on their rating and position rank:EliteHigh QualityGoodAbove AverageAverageBelow AveragePoorBased on free, public information available at PFF’s Carolina Panthers page after Week 17, here are the final 2018 ratings Blue Donte Jackson Jersey , grades, and position rankings for each of the Panthers starters and regular contributors on defense. (Note, I did the same write-up last year and here’s the link.)Grades and Ranks After Week 17, per PFFNamePosOverallGradePosition RankNamePosOverallGradePosition RankDefensive MVPs1 - Luke Kuechly: 90.7 rating, No. 2 linebacker. Luke will go down as one of the best linebackers in NFL history, health permitting. No surprises here and no need to explain any further. 2 - Kawann Short: 85.7 rating, No. 14 interior defensive lineman. KK had another solid season. Despite missing two games, his 12 tackles for loss dwarfed the combined totals of Dontari Poe (four), Kyle Love (zero), and Vernon Butler (zero), per Football Reference. 3 - Kyle Love: 76.8 rating, No. 32 interior defensive lineman. This one’s a surprise Donte Jackson Jersey 2019 , but PFF loved Kyle Love. He registered just 19 tackles, 1.5 sacks, four quarterback hits, and zero tackles for loss. But some of the value of interior defensive linemen doesn’t show up on the stat sheet (e.g. eating blockers) so PFF saw something special with what Love was doing.Defensive LVPs1 - Wes Horton: 42.4 rating, No. 107 edge rusher. The Panthers struggled all year to get pressure on the quarterback coming from the edge and Horton was part of the problem. Despite playing 537 snaps, Horton registered just 1.5 sacks and two quarterback hits. 2 - Mike Adams: 51.4 rating, No. 83 safety. Adams really struggled this year, especially in coverage. In my weekly “Plays to Love/Hate” column he tied for the defensive lead for the most “Plays to Hate” on the season, meaning his gaffes significantly impacted multiple games this year. 3 - Captain Munnerlyn: 61.6 rating, No. 84 cornerback. This one passes the eye test. Captain was either too slow, too short, or too out of position to consistently make plays. With the lack of a pass rush this year Captain was left on an island too often and the outcome usually wasn’t good. Additional observationsRespecting our elders: Major props to Julius Peppers (75.9 PFF grade DJ Moore Jersey 2019 , No. 23 defensive end) and Thomas Davis (74.2, No. 17 linebacker) for terrific seasons. Carolina should seriously consider bringing both of them back next year if they can work out team-friendly deals. Eric Reid’s production: Eric Reid’s (66.5, No. 53 safety) performance significantly exceeded his cap hit. Carolina signed him after Week 3 on a $1.4 million deal and he immediately delivered an “above average” season at a position of serious need. Turning the corner: Both James Bradberry (66.4, No. 59 cornerback) and Donte Jackson (65.0, No. 64 cornerback)were given “above average” grades this year. Hopefully they both continue to improve as they play on rookie deals for the next few years. Dontari Poe above average?: Color me surprised by this one. He seemed invisible to me so PFF must have seen him doing things like eating double teams that I missed. If “meh” was a grade, that’s the one I’d use. Again, what I appreciate about PFF is that so much of what happens in football cannot be measured by simple statistics. Their system isn’t perfect (none are), but at least it’s consistent.With that, props to Luke Kuechly, Kawann Short, and Kyle Love – the Carolina Panthers 2018 PFF Defensive MVPs.