- Jahdae Barron shines for the Broncos: The first-round pick had a career day against Dak Prescott and the Cowboys.
- A pair of young Texans step up: Jaylin Noel and Aireontae Ersery played pivotal roles in the team's win over the 49ers.
- Unlock your edge with PFF+: Access Premium Stats, dominate fantasy with in-season tools and projections and make smarter bets with the new PFF Player Prop Tool.
Estimated Reading Time: 9 minutes
As we approach the halfway point of the NFL season, we’ve seen members of the 2025 NFL Draft class take massive strides. Many of these rookies have become focal points of their teams and look to have them set up for the next five or so years.
Week 8 was no different, as we take a look at this week’s PFF NFL Rookie Team of the Week. A reminder that in order to qualify for this list, a player must have played at least 10 snaps.
Quarterback: Jaxson Dart, New York Giants – 83.2
It was a Sunday to forget for the Giants, as not only did they suffer a blowout loss at the hands of the division rival Eagles, but fan-favorite running back Cam Skattebo endured a serious ankle injury in the process. A positive takeaway, however, was that Jaxson Dart continues to look like the future face of the franchise. In a losing effort, Dart completed 15-of-25 passes for 261 yards and a touchdown while adding three big-time throws and zero turnover-worthy plays for an 80.9 PFF passing grade. Dart also added another touchdown with his legs on six attempts.
Running Back: Ollie Gordon II, Miami Dolphins – 82.8
The Dolphins had easily their best showing of the season, and rookie sixth-rounder Ollie Gordon II was a big reason why. Gordon ran for 46 yards on just 10 carries while adding a 20-yard receiving touchdown. Gordon was also perfect in pass protection, not getting beaten once on six such snaps for a 79.2 grade.
Wide Receiver: Tetairoa McMillan, Carolina Panthers – 85.9
The rookie season McMillan has been putting together in Carolina isn’t getting talked about enough. Despite the blowout loss to the Bills, McMillan was his usual efficient self, as all seven of his receptions resulted in first downs, adding 99 yards to his total along with a season-high 84.6 PFF receiving grade. In fact, 31 of McMillan’s 38 receptions have resulted in first downs, making him one of the most effective chain-movers in the game.
Wide Receiver: Jaylin Noel, Houston Texans – 83.3
Despite a crowded receiving room, Jaylin Noel has managed to put up back-to-back weeks with over 30 snaps played and 80.0-plus PFF grades. This time against the 49ers, he caught five of his six targets for 63 yards and an 82.6 PFF receiving grade.
Wide Receiver: Chimere Dike, Tennessee Titans – 76.1
After a slow start to his rookie campaign, Dike now has assembled back-to-back weeks appearing on this list with another strong performance, this time against the Colts. Dike caught a career-high eight passes for 95 yards while also being stellar as a run blocker, posting a 77.5 grade on 19 such snaps.
Tight End: Mason Taylor, New York Jets – 78.3
The son of NFL Hall of Famer Jason Taylor, Mason Taylor had one of his best showings in helping lead the Jets to their first victory of the season. Taylor caught five passes for 34 yards and what proved to be the game-winning touchdown, the first of his young career. Taylor has also been a machine in tight coverage, as he has nine contested catches on 11 such targets this season.
Offensive Tackle: Aireontae Ersery, Houston Texans – 75.3
The offensive line has been a big problem for the Houston Texans this season, but if their second-round selection out of Minnesota continues to play like he did on Sunday, those woes could be heavily alleviated. Ersery put together his best game as a pro, particularly in pass protection — allowing just two pressures on 45 pass-blocking snaps for an 82.1 grade.
Offensive Tackle: Armand Membou, New York Jets – 71.7
The Jets’ offensive line was a brick wall against the Bengals’ defense, and Armand Membou’s performance was no exception. Membou gave up zero pressures on 40 pass-blocking snaps and only lost two reps. His run blocking was just as good, particularly on outside zone runs — where he carried a 77.0 grade.
Interior Offensive Line: Tyler Booker, Dallas Cowboys – 83.2
It’s been an up-and-down start to the rookie first-rounder’s career, but Booker was stellar in the Cowboys’ blowout loss to the Broncos against what has proven to be a very opportunistic defensive line. Booker’s 86.3 PFF run-blocking grade led all rookie guards, carrying a 77.0-plus mark on both inside zone and power run plays. In all, he tallied a whopping eight positively-graded run blocks.
Interior Offensive Line: Connor Colby, San Francisco 49ers – 71.8
While he struggled to the tune of a 38.0 PFF pass-blocking grade against a physical Texans defensive line, Colby’s grade is so high because his run blocking was just that dominant. On nine run-blocking snaps, Colby registered an 80.3 grade, including 89.2 on outside zone runs — where 75% of such blocks received a positive grade.
Interior Offensive Line: Dylan Fairchild, Cincinnati Bengals – 65.8
There was a brief scare late in the first half where it looked like Fairchild may have reinjured the knee that had sidelined him the previous two weeks. However, he was quickly able to return, which was great news for a Bengals offensive line that has underperformed this season as is. Like the other interior linemen on this list, Fairchild was at his best blocking for the run, posting a career-high 75.2 grade against the Jets with six positively-graded blocks against just two negatives.
EDGE: Donovan Ezeiruaku, Dallas Cowboys – 79.9
It’s unknown how exactly Ezeiruaku fell to the Cowboys at Pick 44, but Dallas has been reaping the benefits ever since. Against the Broncos, Ezeiruaku secured a 22.2% pass-rush win rate that included three pressures and a quarterback hit for an 86.6 PFF pass-rushing grade.
EDGE: Abdul Carter, New York Giants – 74.5
Carter has been a solid force on the Giants’ defensive line through the first half of his rookie season. The former third overall pick generated a 71.2 PFF pass-rushing grade that included five pressures and a 23.8% win rate while lining up against two of the league’s best tackles in Jordan Mailata and Lane Johnson.
Defensive Interior: Jordan Phillips, Miami Dolphins – 72.0
The Falcons struggled to get anything going in the run game on Sunday, and Jordan Phillips was a key contributor to that. Phillips’ 73.6 PFF run-defense grade was a career-high, while 22.2% of those snaps were positively-graded vs. zero receiving a negative grade.
Defensive Interior: Joshua Farmer, New England Patriots – 59.0
Farmer makes his debut on this list after a solid showing against the Browns. While he didn’t win any of his pass-rush reps, he did manage to bat a pass at the line while also being solid against the run. On Sunday, 16.7% of Farmer’s run-defense snaps were given a positive grade.
Linebacker: Carson Schwesinger, Cleveland Browns-75.0
Despite what the final score may indicate, the Browns put together another solid showing on defense, with Carson Schweinger being right in the center of things. After a few weeks missing from this list, the former second-rounder out of UCLA put forth his best performance in the last four weeks. Schwesinger allowed just one catch into his coverage on 33 such snaps while also recording a positively-graded play on 20.8% of his run-defense snaps.
Linebacker: Jihaad Campbell, Philadelphia Eagles – 72.8
The status quo has once again been achieved, as the linebacker spots are manned by Schwesinger and Jihaad Campbell — something that had been a mainstay for much of the early part of the season. Campbell continues to have a Defensive Rookie of the Year-caliber season, though this past week, he played just a season-low 21 defensive snaps as incumbent starter Nakobe Dean worked his way back from injury. But Campbell made his limited reps count, posting a grade of at least 65.0 each in coverage, against the run and as a pass rusher.
Cornerback: Jahdae Barron, Denver Broncos – 90.2
The Broncos’ top draft choice has yet to see consistent playing time through the first half of his rookie season, having yet to eclipse 21 snaps in any game, but he’s proven to be effective when he has been on the field. Sunday against the Cowboys was a career day for Barron, as he secured career highs in overall PFF grade and coverage grade at 90.5. This grade was aided by his first NFL interception while not permitting a single reception into his coverage.
Cornerback: Maxwell Hairston, Buffalo Bills – 77.0
After suffering an injury in the preseason that had some fearing Hairston had lost his rookie year, he managed to defy the odds and make his debut in Week 8 against the Panthers. The 30th overall selection in this year’s draft out of Kentucky did not disappoint, particularly in coverage. On 15 such snaps, Hairston wasn’t targeted a single time while making a stop.
Cornerback: Jacob Parrish, Tampa Bay Buccaneers – 76.1
Parrish has been a nice find for the Buccaneers as a third-round pick out of Kansas State. Week 8 against the Saints was his fourth game with a PFF grade over 75.0, playing the vast majority of his snaps against the pass. While all four of the targets that went his way were caught, he never got burned, as only one reception went for a first down to the tune of a 73.2 PFF coverage grade.
Safety: Dante Trader Jr., Miami Dolphins – 83.7
After a strong showing in Week 1, things had been quiet for the former fifth-rounder out of Maryland. But like the rest of his Dolphins teammates, Trader stepped it up a notch against the Falcons, setting career highs in both overall PFF grade and coverage grade at 80.6. Trader didn’t yield a single reception into his coverage while forcing two incompletions, the first such two of his young career.
Safety: R.J. Mickens, Los Angeles Chargers – 75.1
The Chargers seemed to right the ship on Thursday against the Vikings, and a key component of that was Mickens making this list for the second straight week. Mickens played a career-high 36 snaps and was particularly good in coverage, not allowing either of his two targets to be caught while also recording his first NFL interception.
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