DeForest Buckner

Buckner has one thing that few other defensive lineman, particularly interior lineman, can boast in that he's topped 800 defensive snaps in seven of his eight professional seasons. From a durability and pass rushing perspective Buckner has shown no signs of slowing down even as he enters his age 30-season. The only area we've seen any hint of him being on the backside of his career is on special teams, as his snaps on the unit have all but disappeared across the last two seasons. That hasn't been enough to hurt his statline, though and the Colts inked Buckner to a lucrative new two-year deal this offseason, reiterating their faith in him. Buckner won't remain an elite defensive lineman forever, but we've seen nothing to suggest that 2024 is the year his run ends.

The veteran defensive tackle put together another outstanding campaign, recording a career-high 74 tackles last year while piling up at least seven sacks for the fifth consecutive season. Buckner's combination of interior pass rush skills, run-stuffing and consistency (he's missed only two games in a seven-year career) are unmatched at his position, but at 29 it's fair to wonder how much longer he can keep going to war in the trenches without slipping. The Colts scaled back Buckner's snaps on special teams last year, and they could keep an even closer eye on his workload in 2023.

Buckner will never be as valuable as an IDP as he is on the real football field, but he’s still a conventionally valuable defensive lineman IDP. His modest sack totals restrict him to more of the low-end DL1 range of the defensive line IDP rankings. Buckner is a big snare trap in the middle of the Colts defense who frees up everyone else and still finds time to push for double- digit sacks.

Buckner is truly a foundational talent on the defensive line, single-handedly anchoring the Indianapolis front seven and opening possibilities for the rest of the swarming Colts defense to pursue the ball. At 6-7, 291, with exceptional reach and quickness, Buckner tangles up offensive linemen and obstructs throwing lanes like few can. Despite these responsibilities, Buckner piles up numbers on his own part, too. In recent years he has reliably produced about a 60-tackle, 10-sack range for a 16-game season, and health permitting he should keep that up.

There's no way to know exactly how Buckner will fit into the Indianapolis defense, but there's no doubt that he's an elite talent on the line with unusually strong conditioning. Even as the primary concern of the offensive line on any given play, he always showed the ability to play upwards of 1,000 snaps on the interior line. With the Colts, though, it seems unlikely that he'll play much more than 800 snaps. Still, his per-snap numbers from San Francisco would project to roughly 59 tackles and 6.5 sacks per 800 snaps, so Buckner should provide DL2 utility or better in most IDP formats.

Buckner is an elite defender whose uncommon conditioning allows him to approach 1,000 snaps despite the exhausting task of anchoring the San Francisco defensive line. In his three NFL seasons, Buckner already has 201 tackles, and he really threw down the gauntlet last year by breaking out for 12 sacks on 852 snaps. Offenses have already been doing everything they can to slow Buckner, so his per-snap production is mostly sustainable even if last year was the best-case scenario for sack production. Buckner is a sound DL1 with 70-tackle, 10-sack upside.

The general rule is that defensive linemen see fewer snaps the bigger they are, with the reasonable underlying premise being that bigger linemen get more blocking attention, and thus take more of a beating. Buckner seems immune to that rule. He's a huge lineman at 6-7, 300 pounds, yet he's displayed a freakish level of conditioning and durability to play 1,000 snaps or more in a season. Any lineman who plays that much has an advantage over the field of IDPs, making him a strong bet to rank among the positional tackle leaders.

The 49ers selected Buckner seventh overall last year because he fits like a glove as an end in a 3-4 scheme at 6-7, 300, but he likely will play tackle in the 49ers' new 4-3 scheme this year. It's not ideal to be that tall and line up over guard, but Buckner is a unique enough athlete to produce anyway. He was productive as a 22-year-old rookie starter last year, posting 73 tackles despite missing one game with a foot issue. He logged a lot of plays to get there, however, playing 1,005 snaps, and it might be more realistic to project something like 900 this season.

Rookie 3-4 ends normally don't make IDP noise, but Buckner might be a different breed. A rare athlete at 6-foot-7, 291 pounds with incredible conditioning, Buckner is already a polished product and shouldn't need the acclimation time most DEs would require. He was exceptionally productive at Oregon the last two years, exceeding 80 tackles in both seasons while totaling 30 tackles for loss and 14.5 sacks in just 28 games. He's a boom-or-bust IDP consideration with a low floor, but Buckner might do a good Calais Campbell impression surprisingly early in his career.