:format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/46351152/usa-today-8101422.0.jpg)
Andrew Whitworth may be underrated everywhere other than in Cincinnati.
However, Pro Football Focus continues to laud him as one of the NFL's best at any position. He led the NFL in pass protection efficiency last season, according to PFF. He was also named first-team All-Pro by Peter King at The MMQB.
With the NFL's Top 100 Players of 2015 still going on, PFF is doing their own countdown of the best players in pro football. Whitworth fell a bit in this year's rankings after coming in at No. 9 last year. Still, finishing at No. 16 is still a high honor for a player who has more than earned it:
16. Andrew Whitworth, LT, Cincinnati Bengals
How flawless was Whitworth in pass protection? He didn't grade negatively once all year in this regard and had an incredible 10 games where he didn't give up any pressure at all. That's remarkable even when you consider the help the Bengals scheme provides in getting rid of the ball quickly. Throw in some excellent run blocking and it's amazing Whitworth isn't more highly regarded around the league.
Best Performance: Week 13, CIN @ TB, +5.1
Key Stat: Gave up just nine QB disruptions all year which was the lowest of any tackle to start at least 10 games.
Some of the notable players Whit ranked ahead of were Richard Sherman (17th), Dez Bryant (19th), Ndamukong Suh (25th), Tom Brady (27th), and Darrelle Revis (29th). All of those guys are lauded as some of the best players in the NFL at any position, yet Whitworth ranked ahead of all of them, without ever being voted into the Pro Bowl.