Author: Aaron Schatz

Aaron SchatzApr 11, 2026, 06:40 AM ET

CloseAaron Schatz is an NFL analyst for ESPN.com. He has more than 20 years of experience working in NFL analytics and is the creator of the DVOA and DYAR metric. He also serves as the Chief Analytics Officer at FTN Network.Open Extended Reactions

The 2026 NFL draft class will test the patience of all but one quarterback-needy team. I wrote in last year’s article that the 2025 class was less heralded than 2024, and such teams might have to wait until 2026 for their quarterback of the future. But 2026 has arrived, and it resembles

Link to Original Article - on ESPN

Aaron SchatzApr 5, 2026, 06:00 AM ET

CloseAaron Schatz is an NFL analyst for ESPN.com. He has more than 20 years of experience working in NFL analytics and is the creator of the DVOA and DYAR metric. He also serves as the Chief Analytics Officer at FTN Network.Open Extended Reactions

The 2026 NFL draft is a good one for edge rushers, with seven players projected to go in the first round. Our SackSEER projection system — which predicts sack totals across a player’s first five pro seasons — agrees with the consensus on many of this year’s top prospects. We also identify

Link to Original Article - on ESPN

Aaron SchatzApr 4, 2026, 06:00 AM ET

CloseAaron Schatz is an NFL analyst for ESPN.com. He has more than 20 years of experience working in NFL analytics and is the creator of the DVOA and DYAR metric. He also serves as the Chief Analytics Officer at FTN Network.Open Extended Reactions

The conventional wisdom about the running backs in the 2026 NFL draft is that Jeremiyah Love (Notre Dame) is far ahead of the rest of a somewhat disappointing class. The opinion of my BackCAST projection system is the same.

Last year, nine running backs had a BackCAST over 40%. This year,

Link to Original Article - on ESPN

Aaron SchatzMar 29, 2026, 06:40 AM ET

CloseAaron Schatz is an NFL analyst for ESPN.com. He has more than 20 years of experience working in NFL analytics and is the creator of the DVOA and DYAR metric. He also serves as the Chief Analytics Officer at FTN Network.Open Extended Reactions

It used to be rare for a rookie wide receiver to make a big impact, but that paradigm is clearly changing. A first-year pass catcher with 1,000 receiving yards might now be a perennial occurrence. Every NFL draft since 2019 has seen at least one wide receiver hit 1,000 yards as a

Link to Original Article - on ESPN