Panthers have one of PFF's highest-graded position groups of all-time

[ASFN Admin]

It may not seem like it now, but the Carolina Panthers fielded some of the NFL's best linebacking corps in their 31-year history.

This group peaked in the 2015 season, Pro Football Hall of Famer Luke Kuechly was flanked by franchise legend Thomas Davis and promising rookie Shaq Thompson. Together, they were part of the league's best defensive fron seven, which was as much responsible for getting the Panthers to the Super Bowl as Cam Newton's MVP season.

Carolina's linebacker unit from that magical campaign has been named the best in the PFF era, going back to the 2006 season. Contributor Bradley Locker writes:

The 2015 Panthers were loaded almost everywhere, but linebacker was their particular forte. Luke Kuechly’s 93.6 overall PFF grade was the best among his peers by over three grading points, resembling the prime of his Canton-clad career. Next to him, Thomas Davis Sr. secured an 80.0 mark with an 89.3 PFF coverage grade, which placed fourth at the position.

This was a truly unique group at the heart of a defense that dethroned the Seattle Seahawks and their "Legion of Boom" as the NFC's most dominant defense that year. As a whole, the unit allowed the sixth-fewest yards, the sixth-fewest points and recorded a league-high 39 takeaways.

Combined with some super-human exploits from Newton, the 2015 Panthers rolled over just about everyone they faced that season—losing just one game in the regular season to a peak Julio Jones and the Atlanta Falcons and one more in Super Bowl 50 to Von Miller and the Denver Broncos.

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This article originally appeared on Panthers Wire: Carolina's 2015 linebacker corps named NFL's best since 2006

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