KC Kansas City Chiefs · LB· #32

Nick Bolton

Age
26
Height
5'11"
Weight
237 lbs
College
Missouri
Drafted
2021, No. 58 overall (KC)
Experience
6th NFL season

51

Overall grade

32nd of 65 linebackers

Typical

about average; 50 is average

Grades updated Rechecked every few hours on game days

The read

Nick grades about average among linebackers so far, with no number far from the middle.

Lately he is playing better. Missed tackles is 5% over the last 2 games (21 tackle chances), against 15% before that. A few plays could easily explain this. Worth watching, not worth believing yet.

Written from his numbers, not from film. 4 games are behind the season figures.

How he stacks up

Every graded stat at a glance, against all the linebackers in the league.

  • Yards allowed per target6.013th of 44small sample
  • Tackles per 100 snaps13.626th of 63
  • Tackles for loss per 100 snaps0.733rd of 63small sample
  • Missed tackles10%44th of 65small sample

Left is the worst at his job, right is the best, and the line down the middle is average. The bubble is his percentile: 90 means better than nine in ten qualifying linebackers. Faded bars are still small samples.

How he has progressed

Where he has ranked among linebackers after each week, and every game behind it.

WorstMiddleBestrecent12345Week 2: 19th percentileWeek 3: 27th percentileWeek 4: 31st percentile31st

Season rank climbed: 19th to 31st percentile since Wk 2.

The line is his season-to-date rank among players at his position after each week, from 100 (the best) to 0 (the worst). It rises when he passes other players, not when he has one big game. Early weeks are noisier because fewer plays are behind them. The shaded weeks are the recent stretch.

Missed tackles game by game
WeekOpponentThat gametackle chancesSeason rank after
1vs DEN20%5–
2vs IND13%1519th pct
3vs MIA8%1227th pct
4vs LV0%931st pct

Lower is better for this stat. One game is a small sample: a single stat over 10 tackle chances can swing on a handful of plays. Shaded rows are the recent stretch.

The numbers, in context

Each one against every linebacker with at least 10 tackle chances. Right on the strip is better.

Missed tackles

Below typical

10%lower is better

44th of 65 linebackers · bottom 34%

The share of his tackle chances he missed. Fewer is better.

The box score: Tackle totals reward the player who gets the most chances, not the one who finishes them.

Does it show up in winning? Across 212 games league-wide, a good or bad game on missed tackles from a linebacker has not lined up much with his team winning (53% wins in the best third, 47% in the worst).

Last 2 games: 5% (21) vs 15% before+10.8grade points upLeaning that way

Small sample: could move a lot · 41 tackle chances · true level likely 2% to 18%

Tackles per 100 snaps

Typical

13.6

26th of 63 linebackers · top 42%

Tackles for every 100 snaps he plays. It shows how often the ball is finding him, which is partly the scheme.

The box score: A tackle total ignores snaps.

Does it show up in winning? Across 213 games league-wide, a good or bad game on tackles per 100 snaps from a linebacker has not lined up much with his team winning (51% wins in the best third, 44% in the worst).

Last 2 games: 12.7 (157) vs 14.7 before−3.2grade points downWithin the noise

Sample still growing · 273 snaps · true level likely 9.9 to 17.2

Tackles for loss per 100 snaps

Typical

0.7

33rd of 63 linebackers · bottom 50%

Plays he ends behind the line of scrimmage, for every 100 snaps.

The box score: Tackles for loss are counted, but never against the snaps he played.

Does it show up in winning? Across 213 games league-wide, a good or bad game on tackles for loss per 100 snaps from a linebacker has not lined up much with his team winning (48% wins in the best third, 52% in the worst).

Last 2 games: 0.6 (157) vs 0.9 before−2.3grade points downWithin the noise

Small sample: could move a lot · 273 snaps · true level likely -0.1 to 1.6

Yards allowed per target

Above typical

6.0lower is better

13th of 44 linebackers · top 30%

The yards the receiver he is covering gets each time he is targeted. Fewer is better.

The box score: Coverage is not in the box score.

Does it show up in winning? Across 50 games league-wide, teams won 75% of the time when their linebacker was in the best third on yards allowed per target, and 44% when he was in the worst third.

Last 2 games: 5.9 (11) vs 7.0 before

Small sample: could move a lot · 12 targets · true level likely 1.5 to 10.5

How he plays

Tendencies: how his game differs from the linebackers around him. These are not better or worse, only different, and often say as much about the offense or defense he plays in as about him.

Pressures per 100 snaps

Style

0.4

Stays home, more than most linebackers. A typical one is 0.8.

How often he gets after the quarterback, for every 100 snaps. For a linebacker it describes his job more than his quality, so it is shown, not graded.

Sample still growing · 273 snaps

Playing time

He has played in 4 of his team's 4 games with snap counts, on the field for about 100% of the team's defensive plays when he plays.

Each column is a game: the share of his team's defensive snaps he played. 80% means about 8 of every 10 plays. “Out” means he did not play; a question mark means snap counts are not posted yet. Shaded games are the recent stretch.

Game by game

Every game this season: how it ended for his team, how much he played, his box score, and the advanced numbers from that one game. One game is a small sample, so read the right-hand columns as a snapshot, not his level.

Nick Bolton game by game
GameResultSnapsTklSoloAstTFLSacksPressPBUIntMissedMissedTackles/100TFL/100Yds/target
Wk 1 vs DENW 31–10100%42200110120%7.80.0–
Wk 2 vs INDW 33–30100%136710000213%20.01.57.0
Wk 3 vs MIAW 24–10100%11831001018%15.11.44.4
Wk 4 vs LVW 30–27100%9450000000%10.70.07.2

The box score

The traditional totals, with where each ranks among linebackers. A total rewards volume, which is why the advanced numbers above matter.

Nick Bolton box score totals
StatTotalRank
Tackles3720th of 65
Solo tackles2013th of 65
Assisted tackles1722nd of 65
Tackles for loss226th of 65
Sacks029th of 65
Pressures135th of 65
Passes defended28th of 65
Interceptions017th of 65
Missed tackles49th of 65

Players with a similar profile

The linebackers whose grades are closest to his across the same stats. Similar means similar numbers, not the same style of play.

Ranks are among players at the same job who have enough plays to be graded. Grades and rankings come from play-by-play, charting and snap-count data, so they cannot see blocking, route running or assignments. See how the grades work.

← All players

Data: nflverse play-by-play, CC BY 4.0. Also FTN charting, Pro Football Reference advanced stats, snap counts and injury reports, all through nflverse. Calculations and charts by Raiders Rundown.