Edge rusher named highest-rated Tennessee football player by Pro Football Focus

Tennessee football has recruited some great players in recent years. Bringing in elite talent and them grading out as elite players has been another thing prior to the past couple of seasons.

Pro Football Focus has ranked the highest-rated players on each SEC team since its inception. Tennessee's highest-rated player in the PFF era is edge rusher Derek Barnett. 

Barnett finished his college career with 131 total tackles, 52 tackles for a loss, 33 sacks, and one interception. He broke Reggie White's career sack record and was drafted No. 14 overall by the Philadelphia Eagles. 

There has only been one Tennessee player to be drafted higher than Barnett since the 2017 NFL Draft. Offensive lineman Darnell Wright was drafted No. 10 overall by the Chicago Bears in 2023 and the only other first-round draft pick since Barnett. 

That wasn't good enough for him to be at the top of the highest-rated SEC players in the PFF era. Barnett is Tennessee's highest-rated player but is No. 14 among the Vols' SEC rivals. He is ahead of Vanderbilt's Ke'Shawn Vaughn and South Carolina's Javon Kinlaw. 

Alabama defensive lineman Quinnen Williams is the highest-rated player out of the SEC with a 96.0 grade, one point higher than Arkansas tight end Hunter Henry. 

Barnett is the only defensive end/edge rusher on this list, making him the SEC's highest-rated defensive end of all time in the PFF era. Other notable defensive players, Jeffrey Simmons, Jordan Elliott, and Myles Garrett, are all defensive tackles or defensive linemen. 

Edge rusher James Pearce Jr. could top Barnett's grade this year if he lives up to the hype he has been getting in projections and mock drafts. 

Pearce will be a junior this fall and is expected to be one of the best rushers in college football and is expected to leave Rocky Top as one of the fiercest edge rushers in the country. The Vols kick off the 2024 season against Chattanooga on August 31.