Week 16 NFL Practice Squad Power Ranking

If you celebrate Christmas, and you're reading this week's Practice Squad Power Rankings right after opening presents and devouring cinnamon rolls over coffee, you're a real one, a genuine PSPR follower, and I appreciate your readership more than you can ever know.This year has been mercile s to all of us, but it's time to take solace in the holiday with our families -- regardle s of which holiday you celebrate. As you loyally read this piece every Friday know that you are a part of the PSPR family, a wide-ranging group of proud football nerds who anxiously await to read about the next practice squad star ready to be elevated by his respective team and contribute on gameday.Sometimes it's not the first picked, nor the biggest, nor the most gorgeously wrapped present that ultimately becomes your favorite or most useful. The same is true with PSPR members. Most were initially overlooked, had athletic or size limitations, and frankly, weren't too appealing when entering the NFL. But the smart clubs, with shrewd GMs, understand value for a football team can be found in many shapes Roger Clemens Jersey and sizes, and draft round doesn't matter.Deandre Baker got his first action with the Chiefs in Week 15, but he only played seven snaps on special teams. Those defensive reps are coming. The elevated interior offensive lineman , a PSPR mainstay, for action last Sunday. Dallas called up running back Sewo Olonilua, but he only played on special teams. Get him some touches, McCarthy. For those keeping score at home, the PSPR tracker now reads 39 call-ups, and we very well could see more call-ups over the weekend. I can't tell you how thrilled I am that we've nearly hit the 40 mark -- darn good Christmas gift right there. This year, I'm only including practice squadders who are rookies, second-year players, or third-year players. That's it. And it aligns perfectly with my niche area of expertise because the 2018 draft cla s is the first I fully evaluated as CBS Sports' NFL Draft analyst.And as you'll see below, I couldn't resist ranking more players, given the increase in practice squad sizes this season. To run parallel with the league's figure, I hope to write about 16 individuals every Friday, 10 officially in the rankings and six honorable mentions.Last week's PSPR cover guy may take another week or two to learn the nuances of the Brock Holt Jersey Chiefs' scheme, but he's as talented as anyone in Kansas City's cornerback room and will be fresh for the latter part of the regular season and playoffs, a nice boost for Steve Spagnuolo's defense if the coordinator decides he needs it. Jackson's back on Buffalo's practice squad and deserves this high ranking due to the solid play he turned in for the Bills during his stint on the active roster. In four games -- two starts -- the 2020 seventh-round selection had 12 tackles, one fumble recovery, a pick and three pa s breakups. He can play outside or in the slot and only mi sed one tackle.The Jets should completely be in play-young-players mode, and Scott is only in his third season. He really hasn't gotten a chance to play much in the regular season either. Originally a fourth-round pick by the , he e sentially Mitch Moreland Jersey had a redshirt year to get stronger as a rookie, then in Year 2 led the Ravens in receiving during the preseason. Scott is nearly 6-5 and 218 pounds and excels when he needs to extend to make a catch outside his frame.Mr. Butler is back on the Eagles practice squad after two weeks on the 53-man roster and just one target to show for it. He's a tight end now, so there should be better matchups for him against linebackers and safeties inside of ultra-twitchy corners who can stay in his hip pocket. Philadelphia's getting healthier now at receiver and tight end, but I still believe Butler can make plays after the catch and when simply throws it up to him. While it appears will still start if Alex Smith can't go due to injury in Week 16, if Haskins doesn't play, the WFT will likely turn to tight end and former college (and NFL) quarterback for under-center duties. That means, Washington could have to replace Thomas as a pa s catcher, and they just signed Cantrell, a former stud wideout at Texas Tech who scorched his in 2018 at nearly 6-3 and 228 pounds.Football talent runs in Taylor's family. One of his uncles is former NFL defensive back Pierson Prioleau. Another is Joe Hamilton, a former Davey O'Brien award winning quarterback at Georgia Tech who was picked in the seventh round of the 2000 draft. In a strange genetic twist, Hamilton is only 5-10.Last week's cover guy was the former backfield mate of and . Leake is kind of a straight-line back, not routinely capable of sinking his jumps and cutting laterally to avoid a tackle, but if the blocking is good -- Look. Out. He is a home run hitter of the 1998 Sammy Sosa variety. I'm throwing Olonilua here because he's a large, athletic back who deserves David Ortiz Jersey some burn down the stretch for the Cowboys. At 6-3 and 232 pounds, he had a vertical in the 70th percentile and a broad jump in the 80th percentile at the combine. While never a star at TCU, he demonstrated the ability to make defenders mi s well for a big back when he wasn't running through them. I'd like to see him be the hammer to lighten the workload for Elliott over the next two months.Will the Steelers suddenly give a former late-round pick who's been on the practice squad most of the season a chance to show he can catch a football as the team tries to hang onto the No. 2 seed in the AFC? Probably not. But, heck, it wouldn't be the worst idea, and Cain is an explosive player who tracks it well and can play on the perimeter.I remember watching Love late in the 2018 pre-draft proce s and loving what I saw. The summary of my evaluation of him was "strong, well-built defensive end with good suddenne s but not the ability to sustain speed chasing from the backside. Uses his relatively heavy hands well as a pa s-rusher and when shedding against the run." And Love had seven pre sures in three preseason games in Buffalo last year. Buffalo has a collection of edge rushers in front of him who play in a heavy rotation, but if there's ever a need at the position, Love can produce in a limited role. , RB, Bellamy made (No. 243 overall), and it's perfectly clear why the Broncos signed him after he went undrafted -- he's Carl Yastrzemski Jersey eerily similar to . In that Big Board article, I wrote: "Bellamy from Western Michigan truly is a burner yet po se ses a smaller frame." He only ran 4.50 at the combine, but I do not for a split second believe he's a 4.50 guy on the field. No way. He had runs of 47, 55, 73, and 75 yards last year and averaged more than seven yards per carry in his first four years at Western Michigan. While not as twitched-up nor as powerful through tackle attempts as Lindsay, Bellamy can fly. , OG, The Buccaneers just aren't the same when isn't on the field. The veteran guard is one of the better players