C.J. Gardner-Johnson had a strong rookie year for the New Orleans Saints, but he’s elevated his game to open his second season in the NFL. Gardner-Johnson (whose new moniker of “Ceedy Duce” has not been reflected on the Saints roster, or his jersey) all but flew out of the gate in Week 1 to earn serious recognition from the analysts at Pro Football Focus.
PFF maintains a signature stat for defensive stops that is defined as “tackles that constitute a loss for the offense.” These aren’t just tackles for a loss of yards; context matters for each down played:
- On a first down, if the offense gets 45% of the way to a first down or less
- On a second down, if the offense gets 60% of the way to a first down or less
- On a third or fourth down, if the offense doesn’t get a first down
And Gardner-Johnson outplayed the rest of the NFL in this category after Week 1’s slate of games.