Matty LaneJun 25, 2026
Maddie Lane ranked their top 10 defensive tackles for 2026 in tiers, with Jeffrey Simmons first and Chris Jones second, and included nose tackles Jordan Davis, Derek Brown and Vita Vea at the bottom.
Said on air, transcribed by us · KC Sports Network (podcast)Hear the original
What Matty Lane said
Jeffrey Simmon's going to my going is my top guy here.
- Where it was said
- KC Sports Network (podcast)
- The episode
- KC Laboratory 6/24: Is Chris Jones Still the Best DT In The NFL? (2026 DT Rankings)
- The original
- Hear the original
- Read it wrong?
- Tell us and we will look
How the call scored
One checkable claim, graded on its own against what actually happened.
Nothing to score yet: this grades once the result is in.
The call is scored 0 to 100 against what happened, on its own, by the published methodology. The naive guess is what knowing nothing would have scored on the same call; the gap, weighted by how hard the call was, is the skill.
“We got Jordan Davis in number 10... Derek Brown... And then Vinivea... the Leonard Williams tier... Leonard Williams and Quinton Williams... my only stand alone... Byron Murphy the second... failed to take the torch. Jalen Carter, number four... Dexter Lawrence... the house that Mississippi State built. This is who's at number two [Chris Jones]. Jeffrey Simmons at number one.”
VerdictWaitingNot settled yet. This is graded once the result is in.
More top player lists
The same kind of call, about other players and teams.
Nick Wright · Top Player Lists · Miss 0
Nick trusts Josh Allen over the Broncos defense, picks the Bills to win outright in Denver (Bills +1.5 as their lock), picks the Patriots to beat the Texans by more than three, likes the 49ers to keep it close but not win, and predicts the Rams blow out the Bears roughly 42-28 with Stafford throwing about five TDs.Mike Mayock · Top Player Lists · Hit 95
Mayock says Philadelphia and Baltimore are the two most talented teams in the league, predicts Ravens DT Travis Jones has a breakout year and that Baltimore scores 30-plus points a game, believes Washington is not a one-year aberration with Jayden Daniels becoming a franchise quarterback, and ranks quarterbacks into tiers. He also thinks Aaron Rodgers will land in his 'solid' third tier and help Pittsburgh have a solid year.