• Mason Graham dominates against the Dolphins: The fifth overall pick secured a career-best 79.0 overall PFF grade, in particular due to his play in the run game.

• Three young Saints play well in Chicago: Kelvin Banks Jr., Danny Stutsman and Quincy Riley made positive contributions despite New Orleans’ loss.

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Estimated Reading Time: 9 minutes

We’re seven weeks into the 2025 NFL season, and we’re coming off a chaotic week of action with some breakthrough performances by a talented crop of rookies. A reminder that in order to qualify for this list, a player must have played at least 10 snaps.

Cam Ward’s first start under interim head coach Mike McCoy was up and down. Ward completed 25-of-35 passes for 255 yards while throwing a touchdown and an interception and also losing a crucial fumble that led directly to a Patriots touchdown. Ward did record two big-time throws, though, and his 71.4% completion percentage was a career high.

Running Back: Quinshon Judkins, Cleveland Browns – 74.6

The Browns dominated the Dolphins on Sunday, and a big reason why was rookie second-rounder Quinshon Judkins, who continued his stretch of strong rushing performances despite the inclement weather. Judkins carried the ball 26 times for 90 yards and three scores while also forcing a career-high six missed tackles.

Wide Receiver: Chimere Dike, Tennessee Titans – 74.8

Entering Week 7, Chimere Dike had only achieved a single-game PFF grade over 60.0 once, a 61.4 number against the Cardinals in Week 5. To say he had a career day against the Patriots is an understatement. Dike caught all four of his targets for 70 yards and his first NFL touchdown. That came while facing press coverage on a career-high 11 routes.

It took until Week 7, but reigning Heisman Trophy winner and two-way star Travis Hunter has finally cracked the PFF Rookie Team of the Week, this time as a wide receiver. While the Jaguars got thrashed by the Rams overseas, Hunter caught eight of his 12 targets for 101 yards, his first career 100-yard receiving game while also recording his first NFL touchdown. Hunter played a little more sparingly at cornerback but was good in limited action, generating an 83.6 PFF coverage grade on 10 coverage snaps while not allowing a reception.

Golden wasn’t as dominant this week as he was last time out, where he compiled an elite 90.0 PFF receiving grade. Still, he managed to convert three of his four receptions into first downs despite an average depth of target of just 3.8 yards.

Despite a double-digit loss at the hands of the Colts, Oronde Gadsden II was on another level for the Chargers. Gadsden shattered career highs across the board by catching eight of 10 targets for 183 yards and his first NFL touchdown. Gadsden also hauled in both of his contested targets and posted a whopping 3.66 yards per route run.

Kelvin Banks continues to be a highlight of what’s been a strong rookie offensive tackle class, assembling the best performance of his young career against the Bears. Banks posted grades over 70.0 both as a pass blocker and run blocker. With his pass protection in particular, Banks allowed just two pressures on 39 pass-blocking snaps.

Offensive Tackle: Armand Membou, New York Jets – 72.4

It’s been a nightmare start through seven games for the Jets, but rookie tackle Armand Membou has been a big positive for this team during that stretch. Against the Panthers, Membou permitted just three pressures on 46 pass-blocking snaps, though one of them was converted into a sack. However, the sack came on an RPO where Justin Fields failed to get rid of the ball quickly and was swallowed up by fellow rookie Nic Scourton.

It’s been an up-and-down beginning for Jared Wilson as he continues to learn on the job at left guard after having played center for the duration of his college career. While he surrendered two sacks against the Titans, he was much better as a run blocker, posting grades of 65.1 and 64.6 on inside zone and outside zone blocks, respectively.

Against an extremely talented Eagles defensive line, Donovan Jackson was always going to have his work cut out for him, but he managed to hold his own. He only allowed two pressures on 49 pass-blocking snaps and was particularly good blocking on man run schemes, posting a 74.0 grade on those runs — which included both of his positively-graded run blocks.

Interior Offensive Line: Tyler Booker, Dallas Cowboys – 49.8

The Cowboys scored a big win over the division rival Commanders this past Sunday, and Tyler Booker’s pass blocking was a key contribution to their success. On 38 pass-blocking snaps, Booker yielded just two pressures while securing a 72.1 PFF pass-blocking grade protecting Dak Prescott.

Edge Defender: Ashton Gillotte, Kansas City Chiefs – 71.5

The Chiefs had about as decisive a victory as you’ll see in their 31-0 romp of the Raiders, and rookie Ashton Gillotte out of Louisville got to show that he deserves a bigger role on this Chiefs defensive line. Gillotte recorded a quarterback hit on 10 pass-rushing snaps and was even better against the run, posting a 72.2 run-defense grade with zero negatively-graded plays.

Edge Defender: Danny Striggow, Jacksonville Jaguars – 70.8

The undrafted rookie out of Minnesota barely played enough snaps to qualify for this list but made them count against the Rams. Striggow was at his best defending the run, as he recorded a positively-graded play on 14.3% of these snaps without a single negatively-graded play.

Defensive Interior: Mason Graham, Cleveland Browns – 79.1

The former fifth overall pick out of Michigan wreaked havoc against the Dolphins’ offensive line, particularly as a run defender. On Sunday, 38.5% of his run-defense snaps earned a positive grade while recording two tackles for loss. In fact, Graham’s average depth of tackle was 1.5 yards behind the line of scrimmage.

Defense was optional in the Thursday night duel between the Bengals and Steelers, but don’t tell that to Pittsburgh’s first-rounder out of Oregon. Harmon was a brick wall against the run, as 46.2% of his run-defense snaps earned a positive grade for a net mark of 87.8, by far a career-high. As a pass rusher, Harmon added four pressures on 30 pass-rushing snaps.

After a one-week hiatus from this list, Jihaad Campbell is back as the top rookie linebacker with a solid showing against the Vikings. Campbell continued to add to his case for Defensive Rookie of the Year with a particularly strong outing against the run. The Alabama product was largely avoided by Minnesota’s rushing attack and generated a 71.7 PFF run-defense grade.

Linebacker: Danny Stutsman, New Orleans Saints – 64.0

Stutman’s debut on the PFF Rookie of the Week Team comes in large part thanks to a stellar showing against the run. Playing a career-high 16 defensive snaps, 10 of those were against the run. Stutsman stuffed the Bears’ rushing attack twice for a 78.5 PFF run-defense grade, his second straight week with that number going over 70.0.

Cornerback: Azareye’h Thomas, New York Jets – 76.0

As the Jets look to find another corner opposite Sauce Gardner, they may have located something with third-round rookie Azareye’h Thomas. In his first game with significant action, Thomas was strong both in coverage and against the run. Thomas allowed two catches for 41 yards into his coverage but also recorded a forced incompletion after being targeted four times. Against the run, Thomas has yet to receive a negatively-graded play all season on 24 such snaps.

Cornerback: Quincy Riley, New Orleans Saints – 74.0

Despite the loss in Chicago, the Saints had some strong performances from members of their rookie class, as Riley is the third member to make this week’s team. He did so with a good 78.1 PFF coverage grade, where he allowed just three receptions into his coverage for 25 yards and picked up his first career NFL interception.

Cornerback: Trikweze Bridges, Dallas Cowboys – 67.3

With Trevon Diggs out against a potent Commanders offense, the onus to pick up the slack fell on the draft’s second-to-last selection in Bridges — and he proved to be up to the task. After seeing just 26 career defensive snaps prior to this game, Bridges more than doubled that total with 53 snaps in Sunday afternoon’s win. In coverage, Bridges gave up just two catches for 48 yards while also recording a stop in coverage.

A former fourth-rounder out of Alabama, Moore posted his second-consecutive 70.0-plus PFF grade thanks in large part to a 73.9 grade against the run. In fact, Moore has been dominant against the run this season, never posting a single-game grade lower than 65.0 — culminating in an 83.6 figure for the season. Sunday also marked the third straight game where Moore recorded a run stop from his safety position.

Safety: R.J. Mickens, Los Angeles Chargers – 69.3

Sunday was just Mickens’ second game where he played any defensive snaps, but he assembled a strong showing in coverage. The Colts only targeted him twice, where he surrendered just one reception for six yards on a 66.6 PFF coverage grade. Despite the Colts’ offensive explosion, Daniel Jones had a quarterback rating of just 56.3 when targeting the rookie sixth-rounder out of Clemson.